This chicken and chicken soup called Yeonggye-baeksuk in Korean (영계백숙) is a simple, communal dish that’s delicious, filling, and easy to share with many people. It uses a young chicken between 3 and 4 pounds which is boiled and then served with a rice porridge made from the broth.
I remember my grandmother on my father’s side making yeonggye-baeksuk when I was young. She had dozens of chickens running and playing in her yard, and she would pick one out, kill it by twisting its neck with her bare hands, and then put it in hot water to remove all its feathers before cutting it open and removing all its guts. My grandmother was a tough woman! I felt sorry for the the chicken but I was excited to have chicken and chicken porridge for dinner. When the chicken was boiling with lots of garlic, the smell spread through her whole village! I use ginseng in this recipe to boost your energy and to remove the chicken’s gamey flavor, but if you don’t have it you can skip it, it’s not essential.
You might be wondering what’s the difference between this recipe and the classic Korean ginseng chicken soup called samgyetang. They are similar in some ways but samgyetang is made with small cornish hen, about 1 to 1½ pound chicken, and each diner gets a small hen in their bowl. The hen is usually stuffed with rice and jujubes and ginseng is not skippable in that recipe. It’s also served all at once in a bowl, where yeonggye-baeksuk is traditionally served in stages.
I made a video for yeonggye-baeksuk when I travelled to Costa Rica in 2010 (woohoo! Time flies!) but I figured it was time to update and refine this recipe with exact measurements and film a new HD video for it. In that video I focused on the chicken soup, which is called dakjuk in Korean, but really this dish is all about the chicken we eat and the soup.
By the way, whenever I remake a video for a recipe, you can always find the old video linked from the sidebar. I can’t get rid of those videos, they are my life’s work and precious to me! I had a great time in Costa Rica.
I hope you enjoy this recipe with your friends and family!
Ingredients (Serves 4)
- a 3½ to 4 pound whole chicken, cleaned and pat dried
- 1 cup sweet rice (or substitute short grain rice), rinsed and soaked in cold water for 1 to 2 hours
- 2 large fresh ginseng roots (optional)
- 1 cup garlic cloves (150 grams)
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
For the onion mix dip:
- ½ cup sliced onion
- 4 green onions, sliced thinly diagonally
- 2 green chili peppers, chopped
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon Korean hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)
For the salt dip:
- 1 tablespoons kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Optional vegetables
- 1 cucumber, cut into about 3 inch sticks
- 4 to 5 crispy and mild green chili peppers
- About ¼ cup ssamjang
Directions
Cook the chicken:
- Place the chicken in a large heavy pot. I use my 6½ quart heavy pot.
- Add garlic, ginseng, and 10 cups of water. Cover and cook for 20 minutes over medium high heat until vigorously boiling.
- Reduce the heat to medium low and cook another 50 minutes until the chicken is tender and fully cooked. While it’s cooking you can make 2 kinds of dip.
Onion mix dip:
- Combine onion, green onion, green chili pepper, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame seeds, sugar, and hot pepper flakes in a bowl.
- Mix it well with a spoon.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready for use.
Salt dip:
- Combine salt, ground black pepper, and sesame seeds in a small bowl.
- Mix evenly and set aside.
Take out the chicken and make soup:
- Transfer the chicken along with the ginseng to a large platter. Place it on the table and let it cool down.
- Remove any floating fat with a large spoon and discard.
- Drain the rice and add it to the broth. Stir it a few times with a ladle or a wooden spoon.
- Cover and cook for 20 minutes over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until the rice is fully cooked and tender.
Serve the chicken first:
- While the chicken soup is boiling, serve the chicken with the 2 kinds of dip, kimchi, vegetables, and ssamjang. Prepare individual plates so that they can take some of the chicken and dip it. Be sure to eat the ginseng.
Serve the soup:
- Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped green onion. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with the chicken and side dishes already in progress.
This porridge is excellent! Sundays are typically my day to stay home and try out new recipes or just cook and enjoy. I already tried a couple of your other recipes, and I had been eyeing this one for quite some time now. So, I made this yesterday, and it turned out wonderful! I was a little skeptical with all the garlic, but it really has a good flavor once you boil it with the chicken and rice. I smashed most of the cloves once I removed the chicken to cool, and they seemed to thicken the porridge a bit. I have shared this with friends, who also enjoyed it. Thanks again!
I’m glad you have been enjoying my recipes!
Hey! I’m trying your recipe and it smells and looks good! But i have put slices of ginger at the beginning then i took them out after 40min. Is it still good even if you didn’t put some in your video recipe?
Greetings from France
great great!
I was actually thinking the same, in chinese congee, we always put ginger into our congee (porridge) and it tastes great! chicken + ginger = can never go wrong!
You are sooo cute!!!! I was looking for a salmon jook recipe for my 7 month old baby, but this dakjuk looks soooo good! I love all jooks, but dakjuk is definitely one of my favorites!
This juk will be a good choice for your baby.
Hi Maangchi!
I actually found out about you through browsing randomly on Youtube. Upon browsing your website I found myself longing for the Korean food that I used to get to eat as a kid. SO I DECIDED.
I ran to the store and bought the ingredients for Dakjuk! Of all the foods I used to eat, this was my favorite “winter time” dish. It’s cooking right now too. :) But seeing as it’s only me at home right now, I am using chicken breasts instead of a full chicken. Haha.
I can’t wait to eat it, it smells HEAVENLY.
Use lots of garlic when you make this porridge. It will turn out delicious! Cheers!
Made this tonight because its exams week! Love your recipes!
Eat well and study hard! : )
Cooked this tonight for a husband who just had all his wisdom teeth taken out. It was delicious! Followed the recipe,except we used chicken parts, as there were only two of us. I’ve so far done this and mak kimchi, and plan to try out the other dishes – your recipes are very easy to follow. Thanks!
“…his wisdom teeth taken out” ouch! Making dakjuk was a great choice! Congratulations!
hello maangchi, i just came across your website and want to say a big thank you! i have cooked two of your amazing recipes over the last week, kam ja tang on Sunday and dak juk tonight. You make it so so easy to follow and understand. At the moment, it’s winter here in Australia, and being able to cook both of these soups really warmed us up and they turned out really well. I am so happy i found your website, I hope that you can come to Australia sometime and visit :)
gajatang is a little difficult to make for a beginner cook but it sounds like you made good one! Congratulations! Making Dakjuk (porridge with chicken) is a piece of cake, right? : )
Sure I love to visit Australia someday. Happy cooking!
I just made this porridge this morning for my husband and I. I was surprised how tasty the porridge was with just 1 tbs of salt for seasoning.
awesome!
would using chicken pieces instead of whole chicken be okay?
yes, you can.
i tried this out with half the quantity of ingredients and chicken pieces.
it was easy, tasty and subtle.
I thought the garlic would overpower everything and that would be all i could taste, but i was wrong.
The garlic was light, the chicken soft and lightly flavoured and the rice porridge/soup was warm and filling.
A wonderful start for anyone wanting to begin korean cooking!
Thank you.
That looks like wonderful “comfort food”. One question: Why do you add salt at the end? Wouldn’t the chicken be more flavorful if it simmered in salted water?
You can try pre-season the whole chicken with 2 tbs of salt and leave it to aside for cooking several hours later. Add salt to porridge according to your taste after it is done.
i just make this right now, and wooow. it’s soo good.
i didn’t know my mom can’t eat meat today so she couldn’t try it but she saw it and she said she can’t wait to try it tomorrow^_^
i especially love how the chicken came out, it’s very tender and dipped in the sauce, delicious.
thanks so much for the recipe maangchi ! 감사합니다 ! ^_^
Tomorrow when you take it out of the refrigerator, you will see it gets thicker. Then add water and reheat it. Stir it with a wooden spoon and add more salt if needed. Awesome news!
Hey Maangchi,
There is a greek version like this one that my greek granny used to make for me.She passed away a few years ago so I asked my dad to make it…..My dad always underestimates himself so it didn’t turn out soo good.But now with your recipe,I could make a Korean version that will practically taste the same as the Greek one!:D Thanks for the recipe!
oh, yeah? I agree that there are so many similar food in different cultures. When I traveled to Barcelona, I met a man who ran the Youth hostel where I stayed. He made African style chicken porridge for us. I was very surprised when I tasted it because it was exactly like Korean style chicken porridge! (dakjuk). It was made with rice, garlic, and whole chicken. : )
Maangchi,
I am doing a cooking show. Is it okay if I use your recipes?
(It is okay if I can’t)
btw your food looks delicious! :D
cooking show? What kind of cooking show?
my mom always put the rice inside the chicken so it had that nice chicken juices inside. she also put in prunes. but the egg is something i havent tryed before! i should try it out!
yes, I use rice when I make samgyetang, too. Mom’s food is the best! right? : )
https://www.maangchi.com/recipe/samgyetang
Oh Maangchi,
This was the BEST dish for me 3 days ago when i came down with the flu! So nourishing and heart-warming. It is such mum-food.
Woe, you made this porridge even though you were sick! I’m glad to hear that you love this recipe! Thank you!