Kimchi Jigae
Extremely easy to make (probably one of the easiest dishes of all time, and infinitely scalable), yet so comforting. It works well as a meal in of itself with a bowl of rice, especially on a cold day. Definitely make more rice than you think you might want though, this is definitely one of those "rice thief" dishes that goes so well with rice. Or serve on the side -- this goes especially well with bossam, bringing a nice acidic contrast to the otherwise relatively rich dish. I will definitely be making this again.
Active Time: 20 min
Total Time: 30 min
Ingredients
> kimchi (1/2 lb, cut into bite sized pieces)
> pork (1/4 lb, cut into thin-ish pieces)
> tofu (1/2 pack, cut into slices)
> onion (1/2, sliced)
> green onion (2 stalks, cut diagonally)
> kimchi brine (2 tbsp)
> sugar (1 tsp)
> gochugaru (1 tbsp)
> gochujang (1 tbsp)
> sesame oil (1 tsp)
> instant dashi (enough for 2 cups)
> water (2 cups)
Instructions
1. Add everything except the tofu into a pot, mix thoroughly, and bring to a simmer. Let cook, covered, over medium heat for ~10-15 minutes.
2. Arrange the tofu on top. Cover and continue to cook for ~10 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat. Optionally, roughly chop 1 green onion and use as garnish. Serve and enjoy immediately with rice.
Notes/Tips:
> The "proper" way to cook this is to prepare a Korean dashi broth with anchovies, kelp, and potentially other ingredients. I'm too lazy to do this, and find that instant dashi usually suffices. The first time I made this, I didn't even have Korean instant dashi (I used Japanese instant dashi) and it still turned out delicious.
> You may want to adjust the ingredient amounts (specifically, the kimchi brine, sugar, gochugaru, and gochujang), depending on how strongly flavored your ingredients are.