Photography by Selina S. Lee
You guys! I finally finished my first 4 pillars project! Beginning of last year, I embarked on this project that I created for myself – I ask myself, why do I create more work for myself? I wanted to work on iconic Korean recipes and wanted to explore and experiment them. First project was all about Korean stews ‘Jjigae’ and I have shared all 4 stews here including this one, Soft Tofu Stew (Soondubu Jjigae), Kimchi Jjigae, Soy Bean Stew (Ddenjang Jjigae), Gochujang Jjigae. Recipes are still not perfect but I think they are good guidelines. I’m sharing few notes and tips that I’ve learned by trial and error. Hope you get to try them and enjoy them for the remaining cold and rainy season. Now onto my next 4 pillars project, SOUPS! Stay tuned.
Soft Tofu Stew ‘Soondubu Jjigae’ (순두부 찌개) – 4 Servings
INGREDIENT
1½ tubes soft tofu or 1 box silken tofu
¼ cup chopped thin beef brisket (차돌박이)
¼ cup diced bella mushrooms
1 scallion
1 green chili pepper (풋고추)
¾ cup water or stock
1 egg – optional
SEASONING FOR TOFU
1½ tbsp shim’s sweet sauce
½ tbsp soy sauce for soup
salt
SEASONING FOR STEW
2 tbsp gochugaru
2 tbsp soy sauce for soup (국간장)
1 tbsp shim’s sweet sauce
2 tbsp water
PREPARATION
Make a small slit on the middle of tofu tube to cut in half and take it out of the package. This will retain the shape. If you prefer cottage cheese like texture, you can make a small slit on the top of the package and squeeze out the tofu. Marinate the tofu with shim’s sweet sauce, soy sauce and pinch of salt. This will also help extract some liquid out of the tofu. Chop and dice beef brisket and bella mushrooms. Chop scallions and prepare seeded chopped green chili peppers. These Korean green peppers are not as spicy so you can use them more for your liking.
COOKING INSTRUCTION
1. In a medium size pot (I use clay pot), add gochugaru, water, shim’s sweet sauce and soy sauce and mix them off heat.
2. Over heat, cook both beef and mushrooms in the seasoning until beef is cooked through. Add ¾ cup water or any type of stock (beef, vegetable) and boil it for few minutes. NOTE: water level should be low as tofu will add more liquid to the stew.
3. Drain tofu and add it to step 2 to boil it on high heat for about 5 min. Add chopped scallions and chili peppers and boil in lower heat for additional 2-3 min. If needed, season with soy sauce to taste. Take it off the heat. Crack an egg in the middle while it’s still boiling before serving.