← Nouns Cooking · Korean

Ingredients

• 600 ml water (or the water from rinsing rice)
• 1 piece dried kelp (about 8 cm square)
• 3 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 2½ tbsp Doenjang (Korean soybean paste)
• 1 tsp Gochujang
• 1 small potato, peeled and cut into 1.5 cm cubes
• ½ Onion, cut into chunks
• 1 small courgette, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 175 g firm or medium tofu, cut into 2 cm cubes
• 50 g enoki or oyster mushrooms (optional)
• 1 Green chilli, sliced
• 1 Spring onion, sliced
• ½ tsp Gochugaru (Korean chilli flakes) (optional)

Method

1. Put the water, kelp and dried shiitake in a small pot, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 min. Lift out the kelp. Fish out the shiitake, slice them and return them to the pot.
2. Stir in the doenjang and gochujang, pressing the paste through a small sieve or against the side of the pot so it dissolves without lumps.
3. Add the potato and onion and boil over medium heat for 5 min, until the potato is starting to soften.
4. Add the courgette and garlic and cook for 4–5 min more, until the potato is tender when poked with a knife.
5. Slide in the tofu and mushrooms and simmer for 3 min, until the tofu is hot through. Taste: add a little more paste if it needs salt, or a splash of water if it is too strong.
6. Add the chilli, spring onion and gochugaru, give it 30 seconds, then serve bubbling hot with rice.

Tips

• For the classic non-vegetarian version, make the broth with a handful of dried anchovies, or brown a few slices of beef brisket or clams in the pot first.
• Doenjang is saltier than Japanese miso, and many brands contain wheat; check the label if you avoid gluten.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Beyond Kimchee Kimchimari FutureDish