When I saw that a pork-free kimchi stew won a best recipe award on The Guardian website, I figured it was time to use up the rest of my 2018 batch of kimchi and grab a box of tissues.
The spicy stew is supposed to be earthy and rich and deep, but my versions in the past have been superficial, mostly because I don’t eat pig (the base is often some form of pork) and because the commercial doenjang (Korean bean pastes) are usually chock full of MSG and/or corn syrup, so I usually leave them out. But bean paste and pork are are awfully flavourful, and I’ve yet to find the perfect replacement (I’d make my own bean paste, but it’d take about a year in a temperature controlled space, I think – more on that to come with my review of Miso, Tempeh, Natto and Other Tasty Ferments by Kirsten K Shockey and Christopher Shockey). I also don’t love shrimp paste because of the questionable sustainability of the shrimp.
So instead, I used miso in place of doenjang and anchovy paste in place of shrimp paste (much more sustainable), as well as a homemade chicken stock instead of the anchovy stock (purely for richness) called for the Observer food Awards recipe on the Guardian site. Then I threw in some chicken thighs, all of which added necessary body and depth of flavour.
I used tempeh instead of tofu. Some people like the smooth texture of bland tofu that soaks up the kimchi flavour, but tempeh is just as good a sponge and I like its chewiness and nuttiness. Basically, this ended up being a tempeh stew with chicken, not a traditional kimchi jigae at all. But the theory is correct: spicy kimchi, rich broth, plenty of nose-blowing.
Here’s my version:
Serves 2
A handful of dried shiitake mushrooms
1 tbsp sesame oil
5 green onions, chopped (some green parts reserved for garnish, or use pea sprouts if you happen to have them, as I did)
200g kimchi, drained, chopped (the older the better) and juices reserved
½ tsp sugar
2 cups chicken stock
1 tbsp gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)
1/2 tbsp miso
1 tbsp fish sauce
¼ tsp anchovy paste
2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into bitesize pieces
1 package tempeh, cut into cubes
Steamed rice, to serve
Soak the dried shiitakes in a cup of hot water. Heat the sesame oil in a large pot over medium heat and fry the white parts of the green onion for a couple of minutes. Add the chopped kimchi and its juices, along with the sugar and most of the white parts of the green onions. Reduce the heat to medium-low and gently sauté until softened, a few minutes.
Add the stock, gochugaru, miso, fish sauce, anchovy paste, chicken thighs and shiitake mushrooms along with their soaking liquid. Bring to a gentle simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the tempeh and add salt or miso to taste. Cook for 10 more minutes and add more gochugaru, fish sauce or miso to taste. Ladle into bowls, top with the remaining green onions and serve with steamed rice.
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