Kimchi: It's what's for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Passport & Plate - Kimchi Jjigae

South Korea | Thursday, March 5, 2015 | 3 photos

Ingredients
4 cups kimchi chopped into 2 inches pieces - save kimchi juice for broth
1/2 pound of pork belly- cut into ½ inch pieces
1 yellow onion - sliced
Korean hot pepper flakes (Gochugaru) - Quantity depends on how spicy you want the stew to be. I like it super hot so I put in about 2 tablespoons but if you want yours to be less spicy, then start with 1 or 2 TEASPOONS. If you don’t have kimchi juice, then definitely add more in.
Korean hot pepper paste (Gochujang) - Quantity depends on how spicy you wan the stew to be. . If you don’t have kimchi juice, then definitely add more in.
2 garlic gloves minced
1 small piece ginger minced
Scallions
Package of tofu
4 cups water
Sesame oil

 

How to prepare this recipe
In a pot, cook the chopped kimchi, pork belly, garlic, ginger, onion, hot pepper flakes, and hot pepper paste until soften and pork is cooked through.
Add the kimchi juice and water and let the stew come to a boil, then put on medium heat for about 25-30 minutes.
While stew is cooking, slice the tofu and cut the scallions.
Add the tofu and scallions to the stew towards the end and let it boil for another few minutes.
Top off with sesame oil before serving.

 

The story behind this recipe
Kimchi jjigae is one of my favorite comfort foods. It's one of the dishes my soul craves when I want something to fill me up and completely satisfy me. The love I have for it is so strong I can have it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and not get sick of it. When my mom asks what she should make for my home visits, my answer is always the same. KIMCHI JJIGAE WITH PORK BELLY!!!! My mom's version is out of this world because she makes hers with homemade kimchi that has been fermenting for at least 6 months (the older the kimchi, the better it is for eating and cooking). The spicy hot broth warms me as I devour the savory pork belly, and the kimchi fools my mind into thinking that gorging on this is ok because it’s cabbage so it must be healthy.
As a busy New Yorker, I can't visit my parents to have my mom's jjigae as often as my heart desires so I started experimenting with making my own. However the thought of cooking Korean food sounded so daunting even to a Korean like me! Looking back at my childhood, I see visions of my mom, my grandmother, and my aunts constantly in the kitchen chopping this, soaking that, marinating this, and drying that. Those memories alone made me think, "Wait, can I really make my own jjigae or is my “Twinkieness” going to be exposed?” Thankfully kimchi jjigae is one of the easier Korean dishes to make and I saved my Korean face. It really is all about the ingredients. The better the kimchi, the better the jigae. And by better, I mean older, more fermented, more stinky, and the cabbage is a bit translucent and soft from soaking in kimchi juice for months after months. My recipe is an easy foolproof way to make a solid kimchi jjigae. It might not be as good as my mom's, but I don't think anything can be. Nothing beats a Korean mom's cooking!