Sundubujjigae is a common, everyday food in Korea.
It’s a quick, affordable meal with lots of flavor and nutrition. When I was in high school, I used to take private art classes after school. I used to go to this tiny Tofu Stew restaurant that was adjacent to the art studio. I literally ate there at least once a week over the course of a few years. I never failed to clean up the pot of the stew =) What a delicious stew it must have been!
Enjoy this recipe and don’t forget to share how it turns out~
SIDE DISH PAIRING TIP: Kimchi and Rice
Korean Tofu Stew (Sun-Du-Bu-Jji-Gae, 순두부찌개)
[b]SERVES[/b] 2 [br[br]][b]Total:[/b] 30 minutes [b] Active:[/b] 25 minutes
Ingredients
- [b]VEGETABLE STOCK[/b]
- 1/3 medium onion with skin on, cleaned
- same part cabbage
- same part daikon radish, cleaned (substitue with red radish if needed)
- 2 green onion roots, cleaned (optional)
- 3 baby portabella mushrooms
- 3 cups water[br](*Vegetable scraps are perfect to make this broth. Be creative and play with different vegetable scraps)
- [br][br]
- 2 Tbsp. sesame oil
- 1 Tbsp. minced garlic
- ¼ cup minced stew beef (optional)
- 2 Tbsp. gochugaru (Korean chili pepper flakes -adjust this amount to your preferred spiciness)
- 2 Tbsp. sake or white wine
- 1-pound/440g package soft tofu
- 3 baby portabella mushrooms
- 1 Tbsp. fish sauce (substitute with 2 Tbsp. soy sauce if needed)
- 4 mussels in shell (optional)
- 3 medium size shrimps, peeled (optional)
- 2 green onions
- 1 egg
- salt to taste
Instructions
- To make the broth: Combine the vegetable stock ingredients in a pot. Bring it to a boil and cook for another 20 minutes on medium heat. Then, strain the stock and discard the solids. Set it aside.
- Meanwhile, slice the mushrooms and green onions. Mince the beef.
- In a small bowl, add the soft tofu and break it gently into chuncks by hand. Set it aside.
- Heat a soup pot over high heat. Drizzle the sesame oil to coat the bottom of the pot. Add the beef to brown for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, gochugaru and remaining sesame oil. Stir it constantly to prevent the gochugaru from burning. Cook it for 2 minutes. Add the sake and let it cook until sake is almost evaporated.
- Next, add the stock, tofu, mushrooms, and fish sauce. Once it comes to a boil, add the shrimp, white parts of green onions , and mussels. Cook until the mussels are open ~ about 2 minutes and the turn the heat off. Add the rest of the green onions and the egg. Stir it and season with salt to taste. Serve and enjoy.
Notes
[b]Gopher’s Tip:[/b][br]This stew is a versatile dish so add any toppings of your choosing. Make a vegetarian version with zucchini and cabbage, a mega seafood version with clams and squid, or a mushroom medley using a variety of mushrooms. Let me know what combinations you come up with![br]my video with your friends ~
Looking for a hot pot? Here is an online source for the Gopher’s hot pot recommendation
Related post you might like, Kimchi Stew
Another question…for vegetarian version, would you cook the vegetables in place of the meat? Or would you just put the vegetables in after the broth is added? Than you very much for your help in advance.
How should I adjust the recipe for a single serving?
how do you get that rich red color in your broth, mine keeps coming out orange. Should I switch to beef broth instead of chicken?
I made this tonight after getting home late from our country house…spectacular! Used homemade chicken broth, some turkey sausage, a bit of leftover fish and frozen clams, with greens for color and some crunch. Healthy and filling, this is a great go-to for a quick meal with what’s on hand. Oh…and used only 1 T of the gochugaru which made it plenty hot but not incendiary. Thank you..keep these ideas coming. ~Sherrill
i’m making this as we speak! i had to make a few substitutions based on what i had at home, but i can’t wait to see how it turns out. thanks for the recipe!
Hi Kazuyoshi,
It really depends on vegetables. If you want something meaty, I would try some hardy mushrooms to substitute the meat, such as shiitaki mushroom. I would treat it like meat. If you use more tender vegetables like bok choy, I would put it toward the end, so it will still have some crunchiness left. I hope this helps. Let me know how the stew turns out. I’d love to know^^,
Happy new year!
HG
Hi Kazuyoshi,
Since my recipe calls for 2 servings, you can either cut it in half or enjoy the leftover^^. Tofu stew will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of days. I hope this helps.
Good luck!
HG
Hi Heather,
The rich red color is mainly coming from Gochugaru, Korean chili pepper flakes. If you use less of it, the color will be less red. It also could be the quality of Gochugaru. The premium Gochugaru has its signature bright red color. I notice that once the stew cools slightly the color becomes more vibrant. So I don’t think the color of the broth matters much.
I hope this helps.
HG
It sounds like you made some killer Korean tofu stew, Sherrill!
Thank you so much for the comment ^^
Awesome!!! Thank you so much for trying my recipe, Jessica^^
We made it last night, its great!
Nice!
Hello, could the flakes be substituted with powder? thank you!
Hi Art,
Yes, definitely ^^
This looks great! But can I just leave the wine/sake out? And what should I substitute it with?
Hi ZA,
Just skip it. It’ll be still very tasty =)
HG
Alight, i’ll do that. Thank you!