Dak Han Mari (Whole Chicken Soup) with Kalguksu
A nourishing whole chicken soup brewed clear with basic aromatic vegetables instead of medicinal herbs and served with kalguksu noodles.
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 →
Without using complicated medicinal herbs, a clean and rich broth is brewed using only large green onions, garlic, and onions. Enjoy the tender boiled chicken and fluffy potatoes, then finish with kalguksu noodles or rice for a hearty meal. Adding the seasoned sauce lets you transform the clear soup into a spicy broth for a completely different flavor.
- Servings
- 3–4 servings
- Cook time
- 50 minprep not included
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spiciness
- Mildly spicy
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Chicken1 whole, 1 kg
- Peeled garlic20 cloves
- Large green onion (daepa)1 stalk
- Onion2 (small)
- Water10–13 cups
- Salt1/2 tbsp
- Kalguksu noodles (knife-cut wheat noodles)
Seasoning sauce
- Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)2 tbsp
- Soup soy sauce (guk-ganjang)1 tbsp
- Regular soy sauce (jin-ganjang) (or brewed soy sauce (yangjo-ganjang))1 tbsp
- Minced garlic1 tbsp
- Mirin (cooking rice wine)1 tbsp
- I split the cleaned whole chicken in half.
- When boiling the chicken, you can also add whole black peppercorns or ginger, or add minced ginger and ground black pepper to the seasoned sauce.
Steps
Prepare the ingredients
I split the cleaned whole chicken in half.
Prepare 1 large potato (or 2 medium), 20 cloves of peeled garlic, 2 small onions, and 1 large green onion (daepa).
When boiling the chicken, you can also add whole black peppercorns or ginger, or add minced ginger and ground black pepper to the seasoned sauce.
Slice the potatoes
Slice the potato thickly into your desired shape.
Boil the chicken
Add the chicken, onion, large green onion, garlic, and salt all together into 10 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat.
Once it begins to boil, a lot of messy foam will form, so skim it off frequently.
Reduce the heat to low, simmer gently for at least 30 minutes, and skim off the rendered fat frequently.
Adjust the boiling time depending on the size of the chicken, and replenish the reduced liquid with boiling water halfway through cooking.
I added about 3 cups more and simmered further.
After about 40 minutes, the vegetables were cooked down until tender and the meat was cooked very tender.
I took out the onion and large green onion, added the potato, and simmered for about 10 more minutes.
Boil the noodles and make the sauce
Boil the noodles separately in a different pot and mix together the seasoned sauce.
Finish
If you want to enjoy it with noodles, you will need plenty of chicken broth, so make sure to replenish with water as it boils.
For garnish, garlic chives (buchu) or scallions (jjokpa) are great, along with a light sprinkle of ground black pepper.
I finished by thinly shredding large green onion and briefly cooking it in the broth.
Stir in the seasoned sauce to make it spicy, scoop out and eat the noodles first, and enjoy the chicken meat.
My mother had it with rice instead of noodles.
My mother and I thoroughly enjoyed half a chicken together.
The dak han mari recipe uses simple ingredients and is easy to make, making it great to enjoy anytime, not just on hot summer Sambok days.
Ppunwife's tips
- Once it begins to boil, a lot of messy foam will form, so skim it off frequently.
- Replenish the reduced liquid with boiling water halfway through cooking.
- If you want to enjoy it with noodles, you will need plenty of chicken broth, so replenish with water as it boils.
FAQ
Are there any aromatic ingredients that are good to add when boiling the chicken?
To suit your taste, you can add whole black peppercorns or ginger to the broth to boil together, or mix minced ginger and ground black pepper into the seasoned sauce.
How do you replenish the broth if it boils down?
If the liquid reduces while simmering the chicken thoroughly, you can adjust the broth volume by pouring in boiling water periodically.
Can kalguksu noodles be boiled directly in the soup broth?
Boiling the noodles separately in a different pot, draining them, and then adding them to the broth keeps the soup clean rather than thick and cloudy.
Can I use other add-ins instead of kalguksu noodles? AI-generated
You can mix in rice instead of noodles or add rice cakes for a filling, hearty meal.
