Friday, May 29, 2009

Korean Beef Stew (Yukkae Jang Kuk)



Here in Manila, we do not usually stew beef in soy sauce (adobo). Pork adobo, yes. Chicken adobo, yes. Beef adobo? Very rarely. We always cook our beef as steaks, or in soups, or smothered with tomato sauce or peanut sauce (as in Kare-kare). But then, my knowledge of Filipino food is limited to the Tagalog and the National Capital region :)

The Koreans have this mildly spicy and sweet soy sauce braised/stew beef dish. The sauce is so delicious and flavorful with rice. The kids love it. The good news is, this is so easy to prepare at home. Just dump all the ingredients in a pot and simmer away. :) Or you can add all the ingredients in a slow cooker in the morning before you go to work, (or when you do your errands) and when you come back, you will have melt-in-the mouth beef stew that goes very well with fragrant jasmine rice. :)


1 and 1/2 kilo beef ribs or beef shank, chopped (I used beef shank)
1 C soy sauce
1/2 C sugar (or more - up to 1 cup, if you prefer sweeter sauce)
1 whole garlic, peeled, chopped coarsely
1 onion, chopped
1 large knob of ginger (about 2 inches), sliced
3 -4 pcs green peppers (siling haba) or jalapeno peppers (more or less according to taste)

2 pcs radish, sliced
salt and pepper to taste
2 stalks spring onions, chopped
2 T sesame seeds
dash of sesame oil, optional


1. In a deep pot, add in the beef, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, onion, ginger, and green peppers. Add enough water (around 1 to 2 cups) to cover the beef pieces. Bring to boil and simmer for 1 to 1 and a half hours until beef is soft. Alternatively, you can use slow cooker and simmer for 4 hours or longer.

2. Add in the radish and cook radish in beef for 15 minutes more. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Ladle up in a serving dish. Add in a dash or two of sesame oil. Sprinkle sesame seeds and spring onions. Serve hot with rice.




Other Korean dishes I have made:

Korean Bulgogi
Korean Chap Chae (Noodles with Beef)
Kimchi Fried Rice


Sharing this melt-in-the mouth beef stew with Regional Recipes, a food event created by Darlene of Blazing Hot Wok. This edition's host is Wandering Chopsticks. Please check out her blog after June 15 for the round-up of delicious Korean recipes.

12 comments:

  1. I love adobo dishes, they remind me of Indonesian semur. I don't know why but I wasn't so crazy about kare kare...maybe I should try more.

    I hardly try cooking korean dishes at home. I probably should go for it ^_^

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  2. Never tried Korean dishes but it does sound delicious. I've heard of the word adobo before but didn't know what it means until just now.

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  3. I'll wager this was just delicious. It certainly looks as though it would be. Have a great day.

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  4. This is my favorite dish in Korean restaurants! Thanks for sharing the recipe!

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  5. hubby's favorite... gotta try this soon... :)

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  6. Wow.. My aunt loves this.. Now I can try to cook it for her..

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  7. Ya, Rita! Go for it! :)

    Hello Ivy! Adobo is a popular Asian dish. No wonder you've heard of it even if you are halfway across the globe :)

    Yes, Mary, it was delicious! Have a great day, too! :)

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  8. Hi Galatians! Yes, this is popular in restaurants and it is easy to cook at home! I hope you try it! :)

    Hi Mikky! I hope you try it soon! :)

    Hello Hyperbaby! Wow! You are going to surprise your aunt! :)

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  9. I should try to do a Korean beef stew. . .I know that it will be popular with the family. This looks great!

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  10. Thanks JS! You can adjust the seasonings according to your family's taste :)

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  11. Beef stew is good stuff. I especially like the crockpot idea. Then I can have beef stew even in the middle of summer!

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  12. Sorry, what you're describing is more akin to kalbi jjim.

    Yukkye jang is a hot spicy soup, with gochukaru and sweet potato noodles. It is not even close to sweet, no soy sauce, no ginger, and definitely no radish!

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