Doenjang Jjigae Korean Soybean Paste Stew 🍲🫘

Description

A deeply savory Korean doenjang jjigae with tofu, zucchini, mushrooms, and potato in a clean kelp broth, finished with scallions for a premium, comforting stew that tastes like Seoul at home. 🥄

Hook ✨

If you want a top searched Korean comfort stew that is naturally meat free and still tastes bold, doenjang jjigae is pure umami with simple pantry technique. 🔥

Ingredients

• Stew base
• 🌊 900 ml water (3¾ cups / 30 fl oz)
• 🌿 10 g dried kelp (dashima), 1 piece (0.35 oz)
• 🧅 120 g onion, diced (1 cup / 4.2 oz)
• 🥔 200 g potato, small cubes (1½ cups / 7 oz)
• 🥒 200 g zucchini, half moons (1½ cups / 7 oz)
• 🍄 150 g oyster or shiitake mushrooms, sliced (1½ cups / 5.3 oz)
• 🌶️ 1 green chili, optional, sliced (1)
• 🧄 12 g garlic, minced (4 cloves / 0.4 oz)
• 🫚 6 g ginger, minced, optional (2 tsp / 0.2 oz)
• Seasoning
• 🫘 45 g doenjang (3 tbsp / 1.6 oz)
• 🌶️ 20 g gochujang, optional (1 tbsp / 0.7 oz)
• 🥣 15 ml soy sauce, optional (1 tbsp / 0.5 fl oz)
• Tofu and finish
• 🧊 350 g firm tofu, bite size cubes (12 oz)
• 🧅 60 g scallions, sliced (1 cup / 2.1 oz)
• ⚫ 6 g toasted sesame seeds, optional (2 tsp / 0.2 oz)

Preparation

1. 1️⃣ Build the kelp broth
2. Add water and kelp to a pot, bring to a gentle simmer for 8 min, then remove the kelp so the broth stays clean, not bitter. 🌊
3. 2️⃣ Dissolve the paste
4. Lower heat to medium, whisk in doenjang until fully dissolved, then add gochujang if using. 🫘
5. 3️⃣ Start the vegetables
6. Add onion and potato, simmer 10 min until the potato is just tender at the edges. 🥔
7. 4️⃣ Add quick cooking veg
8. Add zucchini and mushrooms and simmer 6 min until glossy and tender. 🍄
9. 5️⃣ Add aromatics
10. Stir in garlic, ginger if using, and green chili if using, cook 1 min until fragrant. 🧄
11. 6️⃣ Add tofu gently
12. Slide in tofu and simmer 4 min, keeping the bubble soft so the cubes stay intact. 🧊
13. 7️⃣ Balance the finish
14. Taste and add soy sauce only if needed for salt depth, then fold in scallions and turn off heat. 🧅
15. 8️⃣ Rest and serve
16. Rest 2 min, then ladle into bowls and sprinkle sesame seeds if using. 🍲

Total Time

⏱️ Prep: 15 min
🔥 Cook/Bake: 25 min
🛋️ Rest: 2 min
⏰ Total: 42 min

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