The ultra comforting Korean stew – Kimchi Jjigae recipe!
Kimchi Jjigae (김치찌개) also known as Kimchi stew or Kimchi soup is probably the most common way of consuming some aged Kimchi. It is a such a staple food in Korean households that typically Koreans would eat it at least once or twice a week if not more!
I originally shared my Kimchi Jjigae recipe back in 2006, when nobody knew my little website even existed. Every now and then, people try my Kimchi Jjigae recipe and they give me a raving review.
But every time I hear those kind words, I get embarrassed. You know why? Because the Kimchi Jjigae photo I took back in those days looked awful! Seriously, it doesn’t look appetising and it looks rather scary. (Too zoomed in! lol)
Back to my Kimchi Jjigae, I love making Kimchi Jjigae with some fatty pork meat. Of course, you can make it differently using different types of meat (beef or tuna etc) but in my humble opinion, the fatty pork goes best with this soup. When the fat melts into the soup, it’s not just your ordinary Kimchi soup. It’s so comforting and irresistible!
Seriously, I can finish my bowl of rice just with my Kimchi Jjigae without any side dishes. You MUST try this! Promise? Enjoy! 🙂
How to make Kimchi Jjigae (video tutorial)
Ingredients for 2 to 3 servings
Meat
- 180g (0.4 pounds) skinless pork belly, cut into bite size pieces
- 1 Tbsp rice wine (mirin)
- 3 sprinkles ground black pepper
Kimchi & Others
- 3/4 cup aged (at least 2 to 3 weeks old) Kimchi, cut into bite size pieces if not already
- 1/4 small (30g, 1 ounce) brown onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 stalk small (5g, 0.2 ounce) green onion, thinly sliced
- 2 small (50g, 1.4 ounces) shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, thinly sliced
- 150g (5.3 ounces) firm tofu, sliced into 1cm (0.4 inch) thickness rectangle (or other shapes you may prefer)
- 1 cup water
Jjigae base (mix these in a bowl)
- 1 Tbsp Korean chili flakes (gochugaru)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp Korean chili paste (gochujang)
- 1/4 tsp minced garlic
- 3 sprinkles ground black pepper
*1 Tbsp = 15ml, 1 Cup = 250ml
**If you’re not sure of the above Korean cooking ingredients, look them up from my 30 Essential Korean Cooking Ingredients post.
Steps
1. Marinate the pork belly with the rice wine and the ground black pepper for about 15 mins.
2. Cook the Kimchi in a skillet until soft. (You could do this in the pot where you will make this jjigae. Do this only if the pot is big enough to manoeuvre around.)
3. Put the marinated meat into the bottom of the pot. Add all the other ingredients (Kimchi, onion, mushrooms, tofu and the base sauce) except for green onion into the pot.
4. Boil the pot on medium high heat initially then reduce the heat to medium once it starts boiling. Cook further until the meat is cooked. (It takes 10 to 15 mins from the beginning of step 4.) Make sure the sauce is well blended into the rest of the ingredients. (This can be done by gently mixing the sauce around the soup with a small teaspoon and splashing the soup over other ingredients every now then). When the meat is cooked, add the green onion and turn the heat off.
5. Serve with rice (and other side dishes).
- 180 g skinless pork belly (0.4 pounds), cut into bite size pieces
- 1 Tbsp rice wine (mirin)
- 3 sprinkles ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup aged Kimchi (at least 2 to 3 weeks old), cut into bite size pieces if not already
- 1/4 small brown onion (30 g / 1 ounce), thinly sliced
- 1/2 stalk small green onion (5 g / 0.2 ounce), thinly sliced
- 2 small shiitake mushrooms (50 g / 1.4 ounces), stems removed, thinly sliced
- 150 g firm tofu (5.3 ounces), sliced into 1cm thickness rectangles, or other shapes you may prefer
- 1 cup water
- 1 Tbsp Korean chili flakes (gochugaru)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp Korean chili paste (gochujang)
- 1/4 tsp minced garlic
- 3 sprinkles ground black pepper
- Marinate the pork belly with the rice wine and the ground black pepper for about 15 mins.
- Cook the Kimchi in a skillet until soft. (You could do this in the pot where you will make this jjigae. Do this only if the pot is big enough to manoeuvre around.)
- Put the marinated meat into the bottom of the pot. Add all the other ingredients (Kimchi, onion, mushrooms, tofu and the base sauce) except for green onion into the pot.
- Boil the pot on medium high heat initially then reduce the heat to medium once it starts boiling. Cook further until the meat is cooked. (It takes 10 to 15 mins from the beginning of step 4.) Make sure the sauce is well blended into the rest of the ingredients. (This can be done by gently mixing the sauce around the soup with a small teaspoon and splashing the soup over other ingredients every now then). When the meat is cooked, add the green onion and turn the heat off.
- Serve with rice (and other side dishes).
hi sue..
I gave your recipe a try and it was so good. My husband loved it. Thanks for sharing this recipe. You are awesome! God bless!
Thanks, Pam! That’s good to hear. 🙂
I make this stew over and over again! It is so fabulous! Thanks for being you.
That’s great to hear! Thanks for your feedback! 🙂
Hi Sue!
I really love Kimchi and I saw on a Korean tv show the Kimchi Jjigae dish. I really want to try this recipe but I don’t know where to get the ingredients. I’m not Korean, and I live in Canada. I have access to stores such as Sobeys, Safeway, Canadian Superstore, Co-Op, Costco, etc. Can you please email me where best to get these ingredients?
Thank you!
Jania
Hi Jania, Korean ingredients are rare to find at a regular grocery store. (Though you might be able to get gochujang / Korean chili paste at a Costco.) Try visiting a large Asian grocery store or Korean grocery store. Google a Korean grocery store in your area. Also try Amazon CA. Some Korean items are available there too. Enjoy!
Finally! This recipe tastes very similar to the jjigae served in Ktown restaurants in Houston, TX . I’ve tried to copy my mother-in-law’s recipe but, as is common, she never measures anything 😉
Thank you, Sue, you’ve saved my marriage 😂
Glad to hear that! 😁
Thanks I made it tdy. Good tasting
Awesome! 🙂
Hi there.. just wanna ask. Can i omit the “rice wine”? Or are there any substitutes that i can use? Since i don’t consume alcohol 😅
If you must, yes, you can omit it. Some of my muslim readers have substitute with grape / lemon juice in other recipes, but I’m not sure how it will affect the taste in this recipe. Anyway, hope it turns out well. 🙂
Sue, I Made this today…kimchi-jjigae is one of my favs from my time spent in South Korea. I used pork stew meat in lieu of pork belly. Everything else was the same. I cooked everything in a standand sauce pot as I don’t have the appropriate dol-sot. Great recipe, thanks. Dan from Texas.
Great to hear that, Dan!
Yums!! Made this twice in one week already. I used cayenne pepper as that’s what I had on hand and it turned out great, also browned the pork before adding to the stew and used my Chinese clay pot. Thanks for this wonderful recipe – a definite keeper! 😉
Hi Rachael, It’s good to hear your Kimchi Jjigae turned out well, even though you used non-Korean chili flakes! 🙂
I love kimchi jiggae and have used your recipe a few times and it’s perfect every time. Since I don’t have Korean chili flakes I tend to use whatever I have at home. But the end product tastes fantastic and my family thanks you for it.
That’s great to hear! What types of chili flakes do you use then? Just curious to know. 🙂
This was awesome!! I love kimchi so I thought I would give this a try, so glad I did! It was so easy to make, what a great recipe!!! I cant wait to try more of your dishes!!!!!
Great to hear Lisa! 🙂
Hi Sue, can you pls tell me what soy sauce brand you are using? Cheers
Hi Daniella,
For this recipe, I used Kikkoman soy sauce (http://amzn.to/1sxFucE). That is what I use for my day to day cooking. Sometimes, I use Korean soy sauce for soup (http://amzn.to/24DB1kw), then I make sure I mention this on my recipe. Hope this helps! 🙂
I’ve already made this twice. It’s soooo good.
I recommend substituting some of the water with kimchi juice though if you want a more intense sour flavor.
Forgot to rate 🙂
Thanks, Melody! 🙂
Sue, another great recipe! I made it tonight. I did tweak it a bit by adding potatoes. Mahalo!
Thanks, Esther! Glad to hear you enjoyed it. 🙂
I am hooked! This soup goes so well with fatty pork. I cooked the pork on pan together with kimchi then add the rest after pork is done and kimchi is soft. Heavenly! Thank you so much for this great recipe!
Thanks Juwi! Happy to hear you enjoyed my Kimchi Jjigae recipe! 🙂
Ate this the first time in an Auckland foodcourt and was blown away. Now that I’m back in Germany I thought I’d never come to eat it again until I found your beautiful site. Considering that I can’t get my hands on some really good Kimchi and I don’t eat it in NZ, the homemade stew is almost as good as it was back then 😀 Love the site, the layout and the videos! Keep up the good work!
Thanks, Viktor! Glad to hear you enjoyed your first homemade Kimchi Jjigae! 🙂
I love your tutorial video. What a neat way to show how to cook Kimchi Jjigae!
Thanks Holly! 🙂
This looks amazing! Your photos make me want to buy one of those black bowls just to cook Korean soups :). Can’t wait to try it.
Thanks Frances! I hope you give this a try! Yes, all Korean stew/soup taste special in this black pot. 🙂