Kimchi-jjigae (김치찌개)

We bought a traditional Korean earthenware pot recently and tried making kimchi-jjigae (kimchi stew) using it and it worked a treat!

I mainly followed Aaron’s recipe as per his YouTube video below but made a couple of minor tweaks.

Aaron’s recipe – which is pretty great! I just made a few minor tweaks to suit my tastebuds

Ingredients (serves four):

1. fermented kimchi (approx 500-600 g depending on how much you want)

2. pork belly (or pork shoulder) (250-300 g)

3. 1/2 an onion

4. 2 spring onions

5. tofu (ideally not the soft type) (one small tub – approx 300-400 g)

6. Korean chilli pepper flakes (gochugaru/고춧가루) (1/2-1 tablespoon)

7. soy sauce (1-2 tablespoons)

8. minced garlic (1 tablespoon)

9. oil (I used olive oil) (1/2-1 tablespoon)

10. water (3-4 cups – depending on desired level of richness)

11. black pepper (couple of shakes)

12. optional: I like to add a tablespoon of Korean chilli pepper paste (gochujang/고추장) but some people prefer theirs without it.

Recipe:

1. Chop up the kimchi into bitesize pieces, the pork belly into thin strips, and the onion and spring onions into thin slices and the tofu into chunky squares.
2. Mix 1-2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 1/2-1 tablespoon of chilli pepper flakes, and 1 tablespoon of minced garlic in a small bowl.
3. Get a large wok or pot and heat about a tablespoon of oil on a medium-high heat before adding the pork and cook it for about 4-5 minutes. Then add the kimchi and seasoning mix. You can add a tiny bit of water if you’re worried about burning the kimchi/pepper flakes (since they burn easily).
4. Add about 3-4 cups of water once the kimchi is starting to look cooked and boil it over medium-high heat for about 10-15 minutes. I like to add the onion at this point to make sure it cooks. And, this may be controversial, but I quite like to add a tablespoon of Korean chilli pepper paste (gochujang/고추장) at this point to give the stew a richer flavour. Make sure the paste is well mixed into the stew before moving on to the final few steps.
5. If you have one lying around, move your jjigae using a ladle to a ttukbaegi (뚝배기) which is the traditional Korean earthenware pot I mentioned earlier. Add the tofu slices and the spring onions as garnish. For extra style points, you can sprinkle on a few chilli pepper flakes on top.
6. Bring it to a boil and heat it for 2-3 minutes or until it looks piping hot, then serve with a few bowls of rice and any side dishes of your choice.

This is how mine ended up looking: