Korean recipes:

Soondubu jjigae (soft tofu stew)

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Ingredients:

Prepare stock to make tasty Soon du bu:

  1. Pour 5 cups of water into a pot and add 12 dried anchovies after removing intestine part.
  2. Add half onion, some dried kelp (about 1/3 cup), 3 dried shiitake mushrooms, 5 cloves of garlic and boil it over high heat.
  3. Approximately 10 minutes later, lower the heat to low medium heat and boil it for another 20 minutes.
  4. Set aside the stock and take out the mushrooms and chop them into small pieces.
  5. Heat your earthen ware (or ceramic pot) on the stove and put 2 ts of olive oil.
  6. Chop 100 grams of beef and put it into the pot and stir it.
  7. Add the chopped shiitake mushroom and stir it.
  8. Add 2 tbs – 5 tbs (1/4 cup) of hot pepper flakes and keep stirring for 1 minute.
    *tip:
    2 tbs—mild
    3 tbs—medium
    4 tbs—hot
    5 tbs (1/4 cup)—suicidal hot ! : )
  9. Pour 2 cups of the stock you made. It will be sizzling. Don’t be afraid! It’s just TOFU stew! : )
  10. Add 1 cup of mixed seafood and 3 shirimp.
  11. Add 2 tbs of fish sauce.
  12. Cut the 2 tubes of Soon du bu (soft Tofu) in half and squeeze it out into the pot and break the tofu with a spoon several times in the pot.
  13. When it boils, add 2 chopped green onions and 1 green chili pepper.
  14. Crack eggs and drizzle some sesame oil before serving.

Enjoy it!

321 Comments:

  1. rona
    Posted October 13th, 2008 at 7:28 am | # |

    Hi I tried this soondubu last week I often watch your video since i came here in korea and i tried almost everything I see^^ turns out all deliciuos this kinda helpful for me as a wife of a korean, thanks for someone like you who made this blog

  2. JINI
    Posted September 22nd, 2008 at 4:13 am | # |

    i just finished making soondubu with your recipe, and addded kimchee and doenjang, and it was delicious! my sister and mother was impressed as well!
    thank you so much!!! i hope to learn more and more from your recipes!!!

  3. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 21st, 2008 at 12:35 pm | # |

    JINI
    Some people use bean paste (doenjang) in soondubu, but I don’t use it. You can modify my recipe to adjust your taste. Important part for you to make delicious soondubu is to make delicious broth or stock instead of using water. Thank you for your interest in my recipes!

  4. JINI
    Posted September 21st, 2008 at 12:17 pm | # |

    Your videos are amazing!!
    I have a question. The last time i made soon dubu jigae, it wasn’t wat i expected it to be. Some recipes tell me to use tenjian (the corean bean miso) but is that necessary?

  5. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 20th, 2008 at 6:35 am | # |

    michelle,
    Yes, I can make it without using dried anchovies, but it will not be tasty.

  6. michelle
    Posted September 19th, 2008 at 7:55 pm | # |

    can you make this without the anchovies?

  7. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 17th, 2008 at 7:29 pm | # |

    Joce,
    Use beef stock (or beef broth)instead of seafood stock then. Add some chopped beef to this recipe and don’t use hot pepper flakes. I’m sure it will be delicious.

  8. Joce
    Posted September 17th, 2008 at 6:51 pm | # |

    Hi – I just happened to find your site, and I’m so excited that i can now learn how to cook Korean! Thank you!! Question, though – My kids don’t like seafood but love the mild beef tofu stew from the tofu houses. Can you teach us how to make that one? I can’t find that recipe anywhere!

  9. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 13th, 2008 at 10:50 pm | # |

    Nick,
    Yes, I do. I don’t like budae jjigae, but many people have requested the stew. I will post it someday, thanks

  10. Nick
    Posted September 13th, 2008 at 8:56 pm | # |

    I plan on making this dish tomorrow for dinner! All of your recipes look so delicious, Maangchi.

    Do you happen to have a recipe for buddae jjigae?

  11. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 13th, 2008 at 6:56 pm | # |

    WinLovesRain,
    Yes, of course! I sometimes buy Tofu at a Chinese grocery store. Same!
    Check out my kimchi stew video where I posted beansprout side dish at
    http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/kimchi-chigae-kong-na-mool

  12. WinLovesRain
    Posted September 13th, 2008 at 3:36 pm | # |

    Hi Maangchi,

    I’m so glad to find your blog, always want to try the tofu dish! Is it ok if I use the Chinese tofu which comes in a square plastic box? As long as I use the soft kind?
    ps. do you have that bean sprouse side dish listed?
    Thank you!!!

  13. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 7th, 2008 at 7:04 pm | # |

    JIN,
    Thank you very much for your update.
    “soondae” (Korean style blood sausage)! I can’t handle blood. ooh!~ : )

  14. JIN
    Posted September 7th, 2008 at 5:38 pm | # |

    hello maangchi -
    i was surprised to find a korean cooking site in ENGLISH that was even better than most of the ones in KOREAN that i’ve been to :) 정말 감사합니다 ㅋㅋ
    the soondubu recipe came out wonderfully well – and i was glad because last time i made it – it had been a weird failure =_=;;; thank you so very much :)

    and i’d was also wondering if you took requests? i’m currently trying to find an easy to follow instructional recipe for soondae 순대, and im wondering you had one :) thanks!

  15. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted September 4th, 2008 at 5:16 am | # |

    Jodi,
    “I just about drooled all over my computer”
    Haha, you are so funny!

  16. Jodi
    Posted September 3rd, 2008 at 11:54 pm | # |

    Maangchi,

    This is by far my most favorite meal, it looked so good in your video and then you went and cracked the egg into the boiling goodness and I just about drooled all over my computer! I can’t wait to try this recipe!! Thank you so much for bringing the goodness that is Korean food to all of us!

  17. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted August 30th, 2008 at 11:43 am | # |

    cloud,
    Congratulation on your successful cooking!
    haha, you finished eating all snacks you bought while driving!

  18. cloud
    Posted August 30th, 2008 at 11:35 am | # |

    hi, i made it for lunch. it’s wonderful dish for rainy days! i daren’t put too much pepper powder and i omitted the green chili; but it turned out as i expected. also i shopped at woo-ri market while i was visiting a friend in northvale, nj bordering rockland county. this market is awesome, very,very fresh seafood and the storemade snacks were wonderful. never had a chance to bring back home because we finished them all in the car. maangchi, thanks for sharing, enjoy your site.
    cloud, ct

  19. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted August 28th, 2008 at 8:55 am | # |

    Emily,
    Use soy sauce or salt then. Thank you for your nice comment.

  20. Emily
    Posted August 28th, 2008 at 7:25 am | # |

    BTW Maangchi, is fish sauce important to this dish, my boyfriend don’t like the smell, is that will decrease the taste? Could I just skip it? Or what can I substitute for fish sauce?
    Thank you.

  21. Emily
    Posted August 28th, 2008 at 7:18 am | # |

    Hi Maangchi,
    I just found your blog yesterday and I am so happy to see so many Korean dish recipes. You are amazing and so kind to share so much with us; you are such a good teacher and make these dishes easy to follow. I love your website, there are so many recipes that I am looking for all the time. I am gona to try each dish you posted. Thank you so much Maangchi!!!!^^ You are the best!!

  22. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted August 23rd, 2008 at 6:24 am | # |

    Maly,
    yes, kelp is seaweed. Check out my ingredient blog where you will see what it looks like. Oh, well when I make good stock, I always boil it with other ingredients. If you can’t find it, what else could you do? Skip it, but I hope you use the other ingredients to make good stock.

  23. Maly
    Posted August 22nd, 2008 at 11:50 am | # |

    Is the kelp a very inportant part of the dish..I couldnt find any. Is kelp like seaweed?

  24. Maangchi My profile page joined 7/08
    Posted August 18th, 2008 at 4:36 pm | # |

    anonymous,
    I think you use 1 or 1.5 cup of chicken broth or beef broth and 1 or 2 cups of water depending on your pot size for this recipe.

  25. anonymous
    Posted August 18th, 2008 at 2:28 pm | # |

    how much chicken broth or beef broth do you recommend if substituing this for dried anchovies?

  26. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted August 18th, 2008 at 5:49 am | # |

    dona,
    oh, if you can’t get kelp, just skip it, then.

  27. dona
    Posted August 17th, 2008 at 11:10 pm | # |

    annyeong maangchi!
    i want to make this recipe but i can’t get the kelp.
    is there any way i can make substitute for kelp?
    or can i still do this without the kelp?
    i really want to make this dish…thanks maangchi!

  28. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted August 16th, 2008 at 8:31 pm | # |

    Jennifer,
    Sure, let me know how it turns out.

  29. Jennifer
    Posted August 16th, 2008 at 3:37 pm | # |

    Thanks I’m going to try those, I will let you know how it turns out!

  30. Maangchi New York City My profile page joined 8/08
    Posted August 16th, 2008 at 7:06 am | # |

    Jeniffer,
    If you can’t find dried anchovies, why don’t you use beef broth or chicken broth?

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