YukGaeJang, Spicy Beef and Vegetables Soup

육개장

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Spicyness:

Average: 3 (1 vote)

soup

prep time:

40 min

inactive time:

360 min

cooking time:

80 min

total time:

480 min

Craving a spicy and hearty soup? Yukgaejang is one of the dishes Koreans eat to regain stamina during the summer. But it's also great for winter, especially when you have a cold. This hot and spicy soup will clear your system and it is full of nutritious ingredients that will help replenish your strength. It was among the Korean royal cuisine back in the storied past,and is still widely loved by Koreans today.

Buy YukGaeJang ingredients online here.

INGREDIENTS

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Change to: Metric US

for broth
1 lb 5 oz	Beef, Brisket 앞다리 (can use flank or shank also)	Buy
½	Onion (Medium) 양파	Buy
1	Green Onion 파	Buy
½ oz	Peppercorn 통후추 (optional)	Buy
3 clove(s)	Garlic Clove (whole) 통마늘 (optional)	Buy
16 cups	Water 물	Buy
main ingredients
2 oz	Taro stem (To-ran-dae) 토란대	Buy
2 oz	Fernbrake or Bracken, Gosari 고사리	Buy
4 oz	Mung Bean Sprouts 숙주	Buy
5	Green Onion 파	Buy
7 oz	Korean Radish 무 (optional)	Buy
2 tsp	Salt 소금 (for blanching and final seasoning if needed)	Buy
for seasoning
1½ tbs	Gochugaru, Korean Hot Pepper Flakes 고춧가루	Buy
¼ cup	Sesame Oil 참기름	Buy
2 tbs	Soy Sauce for Soup (Gukganjang) 국간장	Buy
2 tbs	Garlic (minced) 다진 마늘	Buy
1 tsp	Salt 소금	Buy
1 tsp	Black Pepper 후추	Buy
for spicy oil
¼ cup	Vegetable Oil 식용유	Buy
1 tbs	Gochugaru, Korean Hot Pepper Flakes 고춧가루	Buy

tips:

Optional Ingredients and Substitutions
Peppercorn and Korean radish can be omitted.
You can use flank and shank instead of brisket, for beef.
Large Korean green onions are the best for this soup, but you can use regular green onions common in North America.

More questions? Please leave your questions below in the comments section. We will do our best to answer as soon as we can.

instructions	photos	summary
Ingredient amounts in the recipe instructions are for the default serving size.	Click to enlarge photos.	Ingredient amounts in the recipe summary are for the default serving size.
1. Soak taro stems & fernbrake Soak 50 g of taro stems in cold water - 6 hours to overnight is ideal but you can get away with an hour for this dish. Do the same with gosari (fernbrake) if you bought dried ones.		1 Soak 360 min 50g taro stems 50g fernbrake
2. Soak beef (optional) Soak 600g of beef brisket in cold water for an hour to remove some blood (optional). This helps remove the gamey smell and taste.		2 Soak 60 min 600g beef
3. Make beef broth In a pot, add beef, ½ onion, 1 green onion (cut into 3 large pieces), 3 cloves of garlic (optional), 1 tsp of peppercorn (optional) and 16 cups of cold water. Bring it to boil on high heat, then boil for another 30 min on medium heat with a lid.		3 Bring to boil beef ½ onion 1 green onion 3 cloves garlic 1 tsp peppercorn 16 cups water Let it boil Med Heat 30 min
4. Blanch taro stems and fernbrake Blanch taro stems and go sari (fernbrake) separately in boiling water with a pinch of salt for 5-7 min. (If you haven’t soaked for a long time, blanch for 20 min.) Then, rinse in cold water twice and squeeze out water. Cut into 10 cm pieces.		4 Blanch in boiling water taro stems fernbrake High Heat 7 min Cut into 10 cm pieces
5. Wash & blanch bean sprouts Wash 100g of bean sprouts in cold water and drain. Blanch in boiling water on high heat for a min, rinse and drain again. (Blanching is optional.)		5 Wash 100g bean sprouts Drain Blanch in boiling water (optional) High Heat 1 min Rinse Drain
6. Cut and blanch green onions Cut 5 green onions (or 3 large Korean green onions) into 7” (10 cm) pieces. You can also blanch the green onions very quickly, rinse and drain to get rid of bitter taste. Blanching is optional.		6 Cut 5 green onions into 7” (10 cm) Blanch (optional) High Heat 1 min Rinse Drain
7. Cut radish Cut 200g radish into thin bite size pieces.		7 Cut into bite size 200g radish
8. Tear beef into strips Remove cooked beef and vegetables from the broth and let it cool for 20-30 min. Discard the veggies from the broth and keep the broth. Tear beef into thin strips by hand. Yes, with your hands! Doing it with a knife is just not the same.		8 Remove beef & veggies from broth Cool down 30 min Tear into strips
9. Make spicy sauce In a bowl, mix 1½ tablespoons of red chili flakes, 4 tablespoons of sesame oil, 2 tablespoons of gukganjang (soy sauce for soup), 2 tablespoons of minced garlic, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of black pepper. You can add more red chili flakes if you like it extra spicy.		9 Mix 1½ tbs red chili flakes 4 tbs sesame oil 2 tbs soy sauce for soup 2 tbs minced garlic 1 tsp salt 1 tsp black pepper
10. Mix ingredients In a large bowl, mix all ingredients (taro stems, fernbrake, bean sprouts, radish and shredded beef) except green onions with ⅔ of the spicy sauce and let it sit for a few minutes if you can.		10 Mix all ingredients (except green onions) ⅔ of spicy sauce Let it sit 5 min
11. Boil the mix in broth Add the mix in the broth and boil with a lid on medium heat for 40 min.		11 Add mix to broth Boil with lid Med Heat 40 min
12. Make spicy oil In a small pot, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon red chili flakes and stir-fry on medium heat for 1 minute. Add 2 more tbs of vegetable oil and fry for another 1 min while stirring constantly.		12 Stirfry 2 tbs vegetable oil 1 tbs red chili flakes Med Heat 1 min Add 2 tbs vegetable oil Stirfry Med Heat 1 min
13. Strain spicy oil Strain the oil through a fine strainer or cheesecloth.		13 Strain oil
14. Add final ingredients and season Add green onions, the remaining spicy sauce and the spicy oil. Taste and season with salt. Add salt gradually. Boil with a lid on medium heat for another 10 min. If it’s too salty, add some water and bring it to boil.		14 Add green onions remaining spicy sauce spicy oil Season with salt if necessary Boil with lid Med Heat 10 min
15. Serve Serve the soup in a large bowl with rice and kimchi on the side. If you are using a stone bowl, boil the soup in the stone bowl for a few minutes for the bowl to keep the soup hot for a while.		15 Serve