Hearty Jjimdak (Braised Chicken with Vegetables)
A hearty braised chicken dish simmered in a soy sauce seasoning with spicy chili peppers, sweet potato glass noodles, and rice cakes.
Translated from Korean by AI and not yet checked by a native speaker. Amounts and numbers are taken directly from the original recipe. Read the Korean original →
This jjimdak features a savory soy sauce base made pleasantly spicy with dried red chili peppers and Cheongyang chili peppers. The key is briefly parboiling the chicken in boiling water to thoroughly remove excess fat and any gamey odor. Packed with sweet potato glass noodles, rice cakes, and plenty of vegetables, it is great for 3 to 4 people to enjoy as a filling meal.
- Servings
- 3–4 servings
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spiciness
- Spicy
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Chicken600 g (medium-sized chicken)
- Potato1 (large)
- Carrot1/2
- Onion1/2
- Cylindrical rice cakes (garae-tteok)2
- Sweet potato glass noodles (dangmyeon)50 g
- Large green onion (daepa)1/2 stalks
- Dried red chili pepper2
- Cheongyang chili pepper (hot green chili)2
- Kelp broth3 cups
Seasoning sauce
- Regular soy sauce (jin-ganjang)5 tbsp
- Oyster sauce1 tbsp
- Mirin (cooking rice wine)2 tbsp
- Dark brown sugar2 tbsp
- Corn syrup (mulyeot)1 tbsp
- Minced garlic1 tbsp
- Ground black pepper0.5 tsp
- Toasted sesame oil
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Chop into bite-sized pieces, make shallow cuts into the thick parts of the drumsticks, trim off excess fat, and soak in water to draw out the blood.
- Add dried kelp (10 cm square) to 3 cups of water and steep for about 1 hour.
- Chicken broth works wonderfully, but if you do not have any, you can use kelp broth like I do.
Steps
1. This is a medium-sized chicken. Cut it into bite-sized pieces and make shallow cuts into the thick parts of the drumsticks.
Trim off excess fat and soak in water to draw out the blood.
Drawing out the blood like this gets rid of most of the chicken's gamey odor.
2. In a pot of rolling boiling water deep enough to submerge the chicken, add 4 tbsp of soju and parboil the chicken.
This is just to remove excess fat, so blanch for only 1 to 2 minutes, then discard the water.
3. Drain the parboiled chicken in a colander.
4. Soak the sweet potato glass noodles in cold water.
5. Add dried kelp (10 cm square) to 3 cups of water and steep for about 1 hour.
Chicken broth works well, but if you do not have any, you can use kelp broth like I do.
6. Add and mix all seasoning ingredients except toasted sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds.
7. Here are the soaked sweet potato glass noodles and 2 cylindrical rice cakes, each about a handspan long. Cut the rice cakes into bite-sized pieces.
Slice the large green onion into thick diagonal pieces.
8. Cut the potato, carrot, and onion into thick slices.
For a spicy kick, prepare the spicy dried red chili peppers and Cheongyang chili peppers, and cut them into thick diagonal slices.
10
9. Place the chicken in a cooking pan, pour in 3 cups of kelp broth mixed with the sauce, and let it sit for about 30 minutes so the seasoning absorbs.
10. Bring to a boil over high heat with the potato, carrot, and dried red chili peppers.
Once the chicken, potato, and carrot are partially cooked...
Add the onion, large green onion, Cheongyang chili peppers, rice cakes, and sweet potato glass noodles, stirring as everything cooks through.
Finish by drizzling toasted sesame oil and sprinkling toasted sesame seeds at the end.
Ppunwife's tips
- Soaking the chicken in water to draw out the blood gets rid of most of its gamey odor.
- The purpose is to remove excess fat, so blanch for only 1 to 2 minutes, then discard the water.
FAQ
How can I reduce the gamey odor and excess fat from the chicken?
Trim off excess fat from the chopped chicken, soak it in cold water to draw out the blood, and briefly blanch it for 1 to 2 minutes in boiling water with 4 tbsp of soju added.
I do not have chicken broth. What can I use as a base broth?
When you do not have chicken broth, you can use kelp broth made by steeping a 10 cm square piece of dried kelp in 3 cups of water for about 1 hour.
How do I get the seasoning to absorb well into the chicken?
Add the prepared chicken, kelp broth, and sauce into the pan, and let it marinate for about 30 minutes before turning on the heat so the flavors soak in.
Can I use tteokbokki rice cakes or sliced rice cakes instead of cylindrical rice cakes? AI-generated
Yes, you can substitute other types of rice cakes by adjusting their cooking time accordingly.
