Kimchi Jjigae (김치찌개) also known as Kimchi stew or Kimchi soup is probably the most common way of consuming some aged Kimchi. It is a such a staple food in Korean households that typically Koreans would eat it at least once or twice a week!
Ingredients
Meat
200g skinless pork belly (0.4 pounds), cut into bite size pieces
1 tbsp rice wine (mirin)
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp sesame oil
Kimchi & Others
3/4 cup aged Kimchi (at least 2 to 3 weeks old), cut into bite size pieces if not already
1/4 small brown onion (30 g), thinly sliced
1/2 stalk small green onion (5 g), thinly sliced
4 small shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, thinly sliced
150 g firm tofu, sliced into 1cm thickness rectangles, or other shapes you may prefer
1 cup water
Jjigae base (mix these in a bowl)
1 Tbsp Korean chili flakes (gochugaru)
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tsp Korean chili paste (gochujang)
14g tsp minced garlic
3 Tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
Marinate the pork belly with the rice wine and the ground black pepper for about 15 mins.
Cook the Kimchi in a skillet until soft.
Put the marinated meat into the bottom of the pot. Add all the other ingredients (kimchi, onion, mushrooms, tofu, water and the base sauce) except for green onion into the pot.
Boil the pot on medium high heat initially then reduce the heat to medium once it starts boiling. Cook further until the meat is cooked. (It takes 10 to 15 mins from the beginning of step 4.) Make sure the sauce is well blended into the rest of the ingredients. (This can be done by gently mixing the sauce around the soup with a small teaspoon and splashing the soup over other ingredients every now then). When the meat is cooked, add the green onion and turn the heat off.
Serve with rice (and other side dishes).
Notes
Like all stews, it's an even better day!
What to do when your kimchi is aging or too acidic? It's perfect for this spicy kimchi jjijae!
Kimchi jjijae or kimchi goulash is fast, tasty and healthy. Served with fresh steamed Korean rice and a side dish of cold kimchi.
If you need to reduce hotness, skip the chili and gochujang paste and it will still be delicious.
Do you want to eat vegetarian without pork belly? No problem, skip the belly. You can use chicken, fish or just vegan.
Kimchi jjigae is a versatile, healthy, tasty and fun diet, it requires only one basic ingredient: old kimchi!
Enjoy, and as we say, before meals: 잘 먹겠습니다 (jal meokgetseumnida), which roughly means: "Eat well."
KimchiLove♥️ ...from our kitchen to yours. www.kimchilove.cz
Comments