Budae Jjigae (Army Stew)

 

We tried Korean Army Stew for the first time several weeks ago. My girls really loved it so I wanted to try making it at home. I made whit with napa, tofu, hot dog, and spam.  I also added a little more gochujang and gochugaru to taste.

Budaae Jjigae (Army Stew) Recipe - Korean Bapsang

Ingredients

·        2 cups baechu (napa cabbage) kimchi (used napa)

·        2 hot dogs (or sausages)

·        3 strips bacon (or about 3 ounces fatty pork),

·        1/3 can of spam (about 4 ounces)

·        4 ounces tofu, sliced (about 1/2-inch thick)

·        1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced

·        3 to 4 mushroom caps, sliced

·        2 scallions, cut into 2 inch pieces

·        1/4 red bell pepper, sliced - optional

·        4 cups anchovy broth (or beef or chicken stock) More if you want extra broth. You can also use water.

Seasoning

·        1 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean red chili pepper flakes) Use more for a spicier stew

·        1 teaspoon gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste)

·        1 tablespoon soup soy sauce (or salt to taste)

·        1 tablespoon minced garlic

·        1 to 2 tablespoons broth or water

·        black pepper to taste

Optional

·        1 package instant ramyeon noodles Pre-boil right before adding to the stew to keep them from absorbing too much liquid from the stew

Instructions

1.      Cut the ingredients into bite size pieces, and arrange them in a medium size shallow pot. Mix all the seasoning ingredients in a small bowl.

2.      Add the broth, and stir in the seasoning.

3.     Cook over medium high heat until the bacon is cooked through and the kimchi has softened. Add the optional ramyeon noodles and more broth or water if necessary. (The noodles soak up a lot of the liquid, so I briefly cook the ramyeon noodles in a separate pot of water before adding to the stew.)

Notes

1. Use flavorful broth such as anchovy broth or good quality store-bought beef or chicken broth.
2. Have extra broth so you can replenish while eating, if needed.
3. Noodles absorb lots of liquid if you cook them in the stew. Pre-boil the noodles right before adding to the stew. 
4. Cook the stew over the portable burner at the table for more delicious experience. You can add more ingredients as the diners take some out to eat. Most ingredients in this recipe don’t take long to cook.
5. Eat the noodles first while they are still nicely chewy. This will also prevent the noodles from soaking up too much liquid from the stew.
6. Freeze the leftover processed meats for more budae jjigae later.