Budae Jjigae (Korean Army Base Stew)

From Jesse Badger (Spoke & Bird)

Says Jesse: I chose to do Budae Jjigae for the “Soup & Sanctuary” series for a few different reasons. For those unfamiliar with it, the name literally means “army” or “military base” stew, and while it is an important cultural touchstone for South Koreans, it would be hard to sell it as “traditional” since it has only been around since the food shortages (some would say famine) in South Korea after World War II and during the Korean War, when some of the most readily available foodstuffs were surplus goods from U.S. military bases. This explains why the dish was historically made with SPAM, hot dogs, and “emulsified cheese product” (Velveeta or American cheese).

The base of the broth is similar to many other jjigae (stews) with its primary flavoring and seasoning coming from gochujang (fermented chili paste) and kimchi and the nature of the dish as a hot pot that was easily cooked with a small amount of fuel, often over a small portable burner, allowed for a lot of variation in ingredients easily fitting to whatever happened to be on hand or was getting ready to spoil and therefore needed to be used. In short the origins of the dish are of a people in hardship, many of them displaced from the North to the South by war and politics, although one could argue that politics was what caused the war in the first place.

In addition to the general historical context, I have a personal connection with this dish which, having been born into a middle class white family in the midwest, I don’t have with many immigrant dishes born out of necessity. One of my first serious girlfriends was the first generation of a family of Korean political refugees to be born in the U.S. Her family in general was not very keen on the idea of her dating an American, especially one who was just going to be a cook, not a doctor or a lawyer. However, they put up with me enough for me to be able to hang around their kitchen long enough to ingratiate myself to her grandmother, who had escaped from North Korea to the South where she started a family before being allowed to immigrate to the U.S.

She was an excellent cook and had learned this dish while biding her time in South Korea. Through my persistence in chopping garlic, slicing scallions, and performing whatever other tedious prep tasks she delegated to me, she slowly began to tolerate me and eventually, I think, to actually like me. She taught me not just how to make this dish and many other traditional and modern Korean dishes, but she also began to share stories about growing up in Korea and all the stops along the way that had brought her to the U.S. as a political refugee, which was a wealth of life experience and firsthand information that I would have never had exposure to otherwise.

From Martha: This recipe is everything I could have hoped for and more. Sorry that it’s written in restaurantese. A challenge!

Budae Jjigae

Ingredients

4 liters stock (recipe below)
seasoning paste for Budae Jjigae (recipe below)
kosher salt, to taste
10 g black peppercorns
10 g pink peppercorns
10 g white peppercorns
1 small head cabbage, sliced as thinly as possible
450 g baechu kimchi
500 g fresh ramen (recipe below)
500 g smoked pork belly, sliced (recipe below)
4 hot dogs, sliced thinly on the bias
400 g extra firm tofu, sliced
125 g inexpensive cheddar, sliced as thinly as possible
200 g scallions, green and white parts, cut as thinly as possible on a bias
200 g mustard or radish sprouts, for garnish

 

Preparation

Mix the peppercorns and toast in a dry skillet until very aromatic.

Cool peppercorns completely then grind very finely.

Place stock into a large wide rondeau (or wok if you want to be “authentic”).

Place over high heat and mix in seasoning paste until broth is as spicy as you want.

Add salt and peppercorn blend to taste (not too much as the broth will reduce during cooking).

Add the raw cabbage, then the kimchi (and any accompanying liquid).

Gently stir the ramen into the broth to separate without disturbing the cabbage and kimchi.

Arrange the pork belly, hot dogs, and tofu on top as artistically as you feel is necessary.

Layer the cheddar on top of the proteins so it will melt with the steam as the broth heats.

Place the scallions and then the sprouts on top, once again, as artistically as you feel like.

Once the broth boils, the stew is ready.

This is traditionally a hot pot so keep it on a low simmer as people are eating.

If broth reduces too much, add more water.

*

Stock

Ingredients

2 kilos chicken bones
1 sheet kombu dashi
55 g bonito flakes

 

Preparation

Cover the chicken bones with cold water in medium pot.

Place over high heat and bring to a boil.

As soon as the pot boils, pour into a colander and discard the liquid.

Rinse the bones to remove the coagulated protein and grit (this will clarify the actual broth).

Thoroughly clean the pot, return the bones to it and just cover with cold water again.

Place over heat and bring to 180F and hold at that temp for 3 hours.

After three hours, reduce the heat to 160F.

Toast the kombu over an open flame until very fragrant.

Add toasted kombu and bonito to stock and hold at 160F for an additional hour.

Strain through a chinois and reserve the liquid.

*

Seasoning Paste

Ingredients

40 g garlic, minced
45 g gochujang
80 g kochukaru
35 g usukuchi
28 g fish sauce
75 g palm sugar, grated or crushed into granules

 

Preparation

Combine everything in a small mixing bowl and mix until fully combined into a thick paste.

*

Smoked Pork Belly

Ingredients

500 g pork belly, skin removed, preferably the fatty stuff
5 g black peppercorns, whole
1 g mustard seeds, whole
7.5 g kosher salt
2.5 g curing salt
1.25 g garlic, minced
1.25 g scallions, crushed
5 g maple syrup

 

Preparation

Jaccard (tenderize) the belly in a criss-cross pattern on both sides.

Score in a fine diamond pattern on the fat side only.

Toast the peppercorns and mustard seeds in a dry skillet until fragrant.

Set the spices aide to fully cool then grind into a coarse mix.

Mix together ground spices, both salts, garlic, and scallions.

Place pork belly in a Ziploc bag, add the spice mix and massage it all over the meat.

Add the maple syrup and massage again.

Refrigerate for 5 days, massage and redistributing spices once a day.

After 5 days, rinse all the belly under running water to remove excess cure.

Smoke at 225F over white oak until just tender, 4-6 hours.

Allow to rest for 1 hour after removing from heat before slicing.

*

Fresh Ramen Noodles

Ingredients

333 g high gluten flour
5 g kosher salt
200 g water
4 g sodium carbonate
1 g potassium carbonate
10 g water

 

Preparation

Combine flour, salt, and first water in stand mixer fitted with dough hook.

Mix on low speed for 5-10 minutes until the dough comes together and is elastic.

Dissolve alkaline salts in second water and add to dough ball with mixer running.

Allow to mix until the ball feels rubbery and smooth.

Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and allow to rest and room temp for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Divide dough ball in half and and flatten thin enough to fit into past roller.

Sheet until you achieve your desired thickness (I like 1/16”) then cut into noodles.

If not using immediately, toss with flour, place in small piles on tray, wrap tightly, refrigerate.

 

Jesse Badger is the chef at Spoke & Bird, a cafe and bakehouse in Chicago’s South Loop.

Posted: Tuesday Jan 31,2017 11:56 AM In Soup Recipes