Kimchi Jjigae Recipe.

Out of all the things I can cook, I felt like the first recipe that I have to share in my blog was my Kimchi Jjigae recipe. Because, a) I have been told that I make good Kimchi Jjigae and b) I personally love my own Kimchi Jjigae and trust me, I have tried a lot of Kimchi Jjigae. 

Actually, Kimchi Jjigae was the first Korean dish I have ever tried which was recommended by one of my high school friend. After having it, it was like I was introduced to a whole new world. Then I got into the whole Korean culture thanks to KPop, and my love for Korean food just developed further and further. However, no matter what, I always fall back to Kimchi Jjigae whenever I crave for Korean food because it is really easy to make. This, I really kid you not. 

Honestly, when I cook, I always 'agak-agak' with the amount of ingredients I put in. Basically it means, I just estimate based on how much I cook and experiences so the ingredients that I will be sharing will not be precise. I also believe the key to cooking is not really about being accurate with the amount of ingredients but to always make a habit to try from time to time the thing you are cooking, so you'll know what it is lacking.

Ingredients:

• Kimchi (Preferable the chopped ones, so you can save the hassle of chopping one)
• Gochujang (Red Pepper paste)
• Garlic 
• White onion 
• Pork (Belly part) 
• Soy sauce
• Sesame oil 
• Water 
• Pepper for seasoning 

My first step is always to marinate the meat. If you don not consume pork, you can always replace it with other meats like chicken or beef, but I personally feel that Kimchi Jjigae tastes so so much better with pork. Usually, people would recommend to use the belly part of the pork because of the fats, but I always use other parts like the ribs because I prefer less fatter meat. The first step is always to marinade your meat with some sesame oil, soy sauce and pepper for at least one hour. As always, the longer the marination, the better. 

Once you think that the meat is marinated enough, then it's time to cut the garlic and onions. To prepare a pot full of Kimchi Jjigae, I used 9 cloves of garlic and 1/2 a white onion. The best Kimchi Jjigae that I have tasted was this shop at Namdaemun and I realize, it tasted so good because it had a lot of garlic in it. If you dislike garlic, you can reduce the amount, but you might regret :P 

After done cutting them, throw them some oil into the pot and slowly stir fry the garlic and white onion until its light golden in colour.

Next is to put in the meat into the stir fried garlic and onions and continue to stir fry all of the ingredients for about 3-4 minutes. After that, pour water into the pot and wait for it to boil. 

Once it's boil, it should look something like the picture on the far left. The next step is to add the chopped kimchi, kimchi juice (from the kimchi packet) and the Gochujang. I usually also put lot of kimchi, because I like my soup to taste strong. As for the Gochujang, for that pot I put 2 tablespoon full. If you can't take spicy, I suggest to reduce the amount of Gochujang. 

After that, it should look something like that and all you have to do after that is turn the fire down and let it boil. The longer you boil it, the better taste and there you have it. It is as easy as that and also the ingredients are so easy to find. 

Hope this recipe helps :)

Yeoh Eening