Sundubu Jigae (Spicy Korean Tofu Stew) | Recipe
let’s get jjigae with it.
sundubu jjigae that is.
Sunday is our official stew day in the NL Household, especially in the winter. On a brutal cold day in NY we all need a steaming soup to warm us up— walking to the train is no joke in the wind. Yesterday, Andrew’s girlfriend Elain made an extremely spicy sundubu (spicy tofu stew) so we could feel like we were in the heat of summer (internally in our bodies lol).
While we didn’t have all of the official ingredients to make a traditionally made sundubu, she made a pretty fire Chinese Korean version with ingredients we had on hand and also got bonus points since we didn’t have to trek all the way to Chinatown / Koreatown to shop. Seriously, Sunday is for PJs and pimple stickers all day. What we love about this stew is you can really make it your own adding which proteins and veggies you like or have! It’s your stew! Get jjigae with ;)
What’s in it
1 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp ground chili flakes - we only had chinese chili flakes on hand which still did the job, but you can use korean chili flakes if you like!
3/4 cup minced kimchi
protein of choice - we added about 1 .5 pork tenderloins cut into thin strips
1.5-2 cups water
2 tbsp kimchi juice
3/4 soft tofu, broken up with hands
fish tofu
mushrooms of choice (we used baby bella, but enoki, shiitake or shimeiji is also good)
1 tbsp dried shrimp, boiled in 1/2 cup hot water for 1-2 minutes. More traditional versions use dried anchovies + kelp stock but this is what we had on hand to add a seafood flavor to the soup
2-3 scallions stalks, diagonally sliced
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt or to taste
black pepper to taste
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp gochujang
1 tbsp honey
How to do it
We used a dolsot (stone pot) to make this stew, but you could use a regular pot! Heat to medium heat, with a stone bowl heat the bowl up gradually and get to medium heat.
Add sesame oil and heat for 30 seconds, add in chili flakes, garlic, soy sauce. Cook for an additional 45 seconds to 1 minute taking care the chili flakes don’t burn.
Add minced kimchi, cook for a minute.
Add in sliced pork and cook until it is cooked thoroughly.
Add in 1.5 cups water + kimchi juice. Boil for 5 minutes.
Add in your tofu, breaking apart in your hands as you add it in for soft clumps of tofu in the stew.
Add in the dried shrimp + broth it’s in, salt + pepper.
Add fish tofu, mushrooms. Boil for additional 5 minutes. Add in gochujang + honey. If you like it spicier you can add more gochujang or kimchi juice, if it’s too spicy you can add some more water and honey and simmer longer.
Add scallions + egg in! You can cover and poach your egg if you like or serve immediately and stir the egg in to cook within the pot.
Serve with warm white rice! Create your own bowl adding rice and the stew on top. Garnish with additional scallions if you like!