Sundubu-jjigae (순두부찌개)
Overview
Sundubu-jjigae is a spicy Korean stew-soup of very soft, silky tofu. Gochugaru, the Korean chilli flakes, is fried in oil with garlic and a little pork or beef to make a red chilli oil, then stock made from anchovies and kelp is added with clams, shrimp or other seafood. Large spoonfuls of uncurdled soft tofu go in and break up gently in the broth. The stew is cooked and served in a small earthenware pot called a ttukbaegi, and a raw egg is cracked in just before it reaches the table so it cooks in the bubbling soup. It comes with rice and side dishes.
History
Soft tofu has been eaten in Korea for centuries, and the village of Chodang in Gangneung is famous for tofu curdled with seawater from the East Sea. The spicy red jjigae became a popular everyday dish in the second half of the 20th century. Korean immigrants took it to the United States, where restaurants in the Koreatown of Los Angeles made it widely known from the 1990s.
Main ingredients
Soft tofu, gochugaru, clams, pork, egg, spring onion. The soup is built on anchovy or seafood stock and is usually served hot. Diet: contains meat; not usually gluten-free.
Explore: Pork soups · Fish and seafood soups · Egg soups · More soups from South Korea
Recipe
Method
- 11 min
Fry the meat in the oil, then add the garlic and gochugaru and stir for 1 minute.
- 2
Pour in the stock and bring to the boil, then add the clams.
- 3
Spoon in the soft tofu in large pieces and season with soy or fish sauce.
- 45 min
Simmer for 5 minutes, until the clams open.
- 5
Crack an egg into each pot, add spring onion and serve bubbling with rice.
- ✓
Serve. About 30 min from start to bowl.
Sources
Description, history and recipe written by SoupWiki and checked against the sources above. Calories and times are rough estimates.
