Korean Army Stew aka Budae-jjigae

Budae-jjigae or army stew came about towards the end of the Korean War and was made using canned surplus ingredients (spam, ham, kimchi) typically found within army bases. You can pretty much find army stew in any Korean restaurant these days but we make it whenever we can because in terms of prep and actually cooking, it’s all pretty easy - we made it on a recent camping trip, just over the fire and it was a delight. While the processed meats are the stars of the dish, you can add in whatever you want, cheese is a must and corn when in season are delicious too.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 10 (a lot we know) but you can easily portion down for a smaller group or for two people

Stock

• 8 cups of chicken broth

• 1 palm sized piece of dried kelp (optional)

• 2 tbsp of gochujang (Korean red pepper paste)

• 2 tbsp of gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)

• 1 tsp of sesame oil

• 1 tsp of soy sauce

• 1 tsp of sugar

• 1 instant noodle seasoning packet of choice

• Salt and pepper to taste

Stew

• 1 can of spam, sliced

• 1-2 sausages, sliced

• ½ of an onion, sliced

• 1-2 cups of veggies of choice (cabbage, watercress)

• 1-2 cups of fishballs or fried tofu

• 2 green onions, roughly chopped

• 1 pack of instant noodles

• Fresh tofu (optional)

• Cheese (american, mozzarella, Swiss)

METHOD

• In a shallow pan, combine chicken broth, dried kelp, gochujang, gochugaru, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar, instant noodle seasoning packet and bring to a boil.

• If using dried kelp, keep on a low boil for 15-20 minutes and remove from the stock.

• Season with salt and pepper to taste.

• Add spam, sausages, fishballs, onions, tofu, veggies, instant noodles, green onions and cheese on top and bring back to a boil until cheese melts and noodles are soft.

• Serve directly from the pan with a side of fresh white rice.