Korean Budae Jjigae Recipe [Rich Umami Soup]

Korean Budae Jjigae Recipe [Rich Umami Soup]

Budae jjigae is the most popular soup dish in Korea.
What will it taste like when kimchi soup mixes with ham? Be sure to try it.
This post shares in detail how to make Budae jjigae, why it is called Budae chigae, and how to make Budae jjigae more delicious.

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Index

• Why is it called Budaejjigae?
• Budae Jjigae [ How to make Budae Jjigae flavor ]
• Budae jjigae Recipe [ Ingredients, Seasoning ]
• Steps for Making Budae Jjigae
• Conclusion

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Why is it called Budaejjigae?

Budae Jjigae, also known as Army Stew, originated after the Korean War (1950-1953).
During that time, many Koreans suffered from hunger and malnutrition.

Meanwhile, U.S. military bases often discarded uneaten Spam, sausages, and bacon.
To escape hunger and malnutrition, Koreans began collecting the discarded Spam.

Since Koreans traditionally enjoy soups, they decided to cook the Spam with kimchi.
The result was a surprisingly delicious dish.

Over time, the recipe for Budae Jjigae was upgraded, leading to the version we enjoy today.
The name “Budae Jjigae” comes from “budae,” meaning military base, and “jjigae,” meaning stew, reflecting its origins from the ingredients sourced from U.S. military bases.

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Budae Jjigae [ How to make Budae Jjigae flavor ]

Step 1: Flavor Upgrade
Dissolve the beef bone powder well in the water in the pot.

Step 2: Flavor Upgrade
Add kimchi, sausage, and Spam, which provide the second layer of umami flavor.

Step 3: Flavor Upgrade
Add onions and green onions and boil them together. As the onions cook, they release a sweet flavor into the broth.

If you boil the green onions with the soup, the aroma and taste of the green onions will seep into the soup, making it even better.

Step 4: Flavor Upgrade
Check the taste of the broth. If it is too bland, gradually add salt to make it slightly salty.

Then, add a small spoonful of MSG to enhance the umami flavor.
The slight saltiness from the salt transforms into a sweet and Umami flavor, making the dish more appetizing.

A slight saltiness has the characteristic of stimulating the appetite.
Adding more umami transforms the taste into something that strongly entices the palate.

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Budae jjigae Recipe [ Ingredients, Seasoning ]

In Korea, when it’s hot, we eat something hotter (Yiyeolchiyeol) and when it’s cold, we eat something warmer to keep ourselves warm.
To boil Budae jjigae, you just need to chop up various ingredients in a 12-inch pot and boil them.

Budae jjigae recipe is not difficult.
We provide recipes and videos below.

Budae jjigae Seasoning

◎ 1 tbsp soy sauce
◎ 1/2 tbsp cooking liquor
◎ 1/5 tbsp black pepper
◎ 1 tbsp red pepper powder
◎ 1 tbsp minced garlic
◎ 1 tbsp red pepper paste
◎ 1/2 tablespoon soybean paste

Budae jjigae Ingredient

◎ Ham
◎ Spam
◎ Vienna sausage
◎ 1/2 tofu
◎ 1/2 onion
◎ kimchi
◎ 1/3 green onion

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Steps for Making Budae Jjigae

A. Put all the seasoning in a bowl as written in the seasoning section above and mix well.

B. Cut the ingredients listed above into bite-sized pieces and place them in a pot.

C. Put 500ml of water in a separate bowl and dissolve 1 tablespoon of beef bone powder.

D. Add beef bone broth to the pot.

E. Add 1 tablespoon of the prepared seasoning.
If the taste is bland during boiling, add a little more seasoning.

F. The taste of the soup should be slightly salty.
If it is bland, add salt little by little to make it slightly salty.

G. Add MSG 1 teaspoon at a time.
Add MSG until you feel it is right for you.

I think 2 teaspoons of MSG Maximum would be appropriate.
Budae jjigae soup should have three flavors: sweet, spicy, and savory.

There is a reason why it is not possible to accurately explain how many grams of kimchi, how many grams of MSG, or how many grams of salt air.
When making kimchi for the first time, the seasoning varies slightly depending on the region.

And this is because we cannot know exactly how many months the kimchi to be used has been aged.
If you follow the recipe I gave you, you can get more flavor than the basic one.

If you look at YouTube or other blogs, there are people who say they did it the same way but said it didn’t taste good.
This is not because the recipe was not followed, but because of ingredients such as kimchi.

However, to make it more delicious, you need to add seasoning little by little to find the taste.

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Conclusion

Army stew contains the painful past and memories of war!
The recipe was upgraded over a period of time to create the current Budae Jjigae.
We will continue to introduce healthy Korean food and ingredients, as well as all ingredients and recipes.

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Articles that are better read together

The Best Cucumber Kimchi Korean Recipe