Korean Soup Yukgaejang Recipe

Yukgaejang is a spicy Korean beef soup loaded with warm earthy vegetables like mushrooms, leeks, and gosari (described below). It should be simmered for two hours to infuse the flavors of the beef and vegetables. The meat also needs a moment to get tender. It’s worth the time and effort, especially since it will make a large batch to reheat for a few dishes. Serve it with a bowl of rice, as is traditionally done.

Important aside: my now-husband hit me up for his first bowl of yukgejang. Some tears about her were hot and spicy tears of joy in me.

Gochugaru has no choice.

Gochugaru, the Korean chili pepper, which gives yukgejang a hearty kick and bright red pepper oil. It’s essential for a Korean pantry. Gochu means “chili pepper” and garu means “powder”. To make gochugaru, red pepper is grown on the plant, seeded and sun-dried into flakes or powder before being ground. Either can be used in this recipe. It’s deep red, barely sweet and smoky, and ranges from mild to sizzling hot. Other forms of cayenne pepper such as crushed cayenne pepper, paprika, or cayenne pepper are too mild, too spicy, too coarse, too smooth, or not red enough to be suitable for this recipe.

Other notable ingredients:

Gosari is the immature fronds of bracken, a wild plant that grazes along the hills and mountains of Korea. It is usually served with banchan (a side dish) or yukgejang. It has a subtle but distinctly earthy smell. When shopping for it, try fernbracken, bracken, bracken fiddlehead or fernbrake. It is available dried, pre-soaked or fresh. I like them dry because they last forever in your freezer. It needs to be soaked in a hot water bath to get plump, soft and edible.

Dangmyeon are thin round chewy noodles made with sweet potato starch. For this recipe, first soak them in hot water to prevent the noodles from clumping together in the pot. Glass noodles, cellophane noodles or rice vermicelli are good options. Dangmyeon is usually sold in a huge bag, so make japchae next.

Why soak the beef?

When making soup, Koreans usually soak uncooked beef in cold water. Some blood comes out of it. The soaked beef is dried, rinsed and then boiled in water, resulting in a clear broth.

I use one pound of beef brisket in this recipe. It’s fragrant and has the perfect texture, but it’s definitely luxurious. As an alternative, any cut of tough meat that benefits from a long and slow cook – chuck, rump or round.

Have you tried this yet? Let us know what you think in the comments below!

Editor’s Note: A photo of this soup ran in our September 2022 Easy Soup Quarterly that featured the dish styled with parsley. Parsley is not an ingredient traditionally found in Korean cuisine. The online version does not use the material, and we apologize for printing errors. 

 

YIELDS:                                PREP TIME:             TOTAL TIME:

8 serving(s)                         30 mins                       3 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients

1 lb. beef brisket

1 peeled medium onion, half kept whole and half thinly sliced

6 dried or fresh shiitake mushrooms

3 tbsp. gochugaru

3 tbsp. sesame oil

2 tbsp. soy sauce

2 tbsp. minced garlic, from about 10 cloves

1 tbsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 c. dried gosari, soaked in hot water for 30 minutes and cut into 2-inch pieces

1 leek, quartered lengthwise and cut into 2-inch strips

6 oz. mung bean sprouts

1 c. dangmyeon, soaked in hot water for 30 minutes, optional

Cooked rice, for serving

 

Directions

Step 1

In a large pot, add beef brisket and enough cool water to fully cover it.  Let it sit for 30 minutes. Drain, rinse, and return beef brisket into the pot. Add 14 cups of water, halved onion, and shiitake mushrooms. Set over high heat until it comes up to a hard boil.  Lower heat to simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes without a lid on. Occasionally skim off fat and scum that comes up to the top with a ladle or large spoon.

Step 2

In a small bowl, combine gochugaru, sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, salt, and black pepper.

Step 3

Remove pot off heat. Scoop out beef brisket, onion, and shiitake mushrooms into a medium bowl and allow to cool. Discard the onion. Thinly slice beef brisket into bite-sized pieces, about 1/4-inch thick and 1 1/2-inches long. Thinly slice shiitake mushrooms. Return the beef brisket and shiitake mushrooms into the pot.

Step 4

Add sliced onions, gochugaru mixture, gosari, leeks, and mung bean sprouts into the pot. Stir to combine. Set over medium-high heat and boil for about 30 minutes. Optional: Add soaked dangmyeon for the last 10 minutes of cooking.

Step 5

Adjust seasoning with additional salt, if needed. Serve with cooked rice.