Yukgaejang Korean Spicy Beef Soup

육개장 Alternate spellings: Yookaejang, Yukejon, Yuhkejahng, Yukaejang However you spell it, Yukgaejang is one of the more popular Korean Spicy Soups. Yukgaejang is a spicy, soup-like Korean dish made from shredded beef, scallions, fern sprouts, bean sprouts, sweet potato starch noodles, and other ingredients, which are simmered together for a long time. Yukgaejang is a variety of gomguk (thick soup) and was originally served in Korean royal court cuisine.

Servings: 10

Cooking Times

Cooking Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 28 hours

Ingredients

Broth

4 pounds beef soup bones

1 pound beef brisket (or your favorite soup cut of beef)

8 quarts water

Meat Seasoning Paste

3 tablespoons minced garlic

3 tablespoons Gochujang (Korean red pepper paste)

2 tablespoons Korean coarse chili powder

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Soup

1/2 pound bean sprouts

1 package (12 ounce) daeng myeon–Korean sweet potato starch noodle OR mung bean noodles

1 package (16 ounce water p package (16 ounce water packed) gossari (fern sprouts/fern brakken–often labeled as fern brake in Korean stores)

4 eggs

Optional

2 each small to medium white or yellow onion

4 each fresh red chile peppers

4 each green chili peppers

Garnish

1 bunch green onions

2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Procedure

INSTRUCTIONS

Preparation

Broth and meat

In a large stock pot, cover bones with water. Place on stove over high heat and bring to full boil.

Remove from heat, discard water, rinse and drain bones.

Return bones to stock pot, cover with 8 quarts water, and bring to a full boil over high heat.

Lower heat to medium low and add brisket. Cook at a simmer for three hours, skimmimg foam and oil as needed. Add water as needed to maintain original volume.

Cut brisket into large chunks.

Remove brisket and set aside, then continue cooking bones until liquid volume is reduced to about 3/4 of the orignal amount.

Remove broth from heat, and let cool, then remove and discard bones.

While waiting for the broth to cool, shred the meat into strips about 2 inches long by 1/8 inch thick.

Mix meat strips with all meat seasoning ingredients, then place in refrigerator for 24 hours.

Place broth in refrigerator for 24 hours.

Soup

Soak the noodles in cold water for about one hour before you begin the final cooking. Drain and rinse.

Soak dried gosari for about one hour.

Rinse bean sprouts in cold water, trimming “tails” and removing any loose shells.

Crack eggs into a mixing bowl and break all yolks, then swirl two or three times to get streamers of yolk into the whites.

Optional

Cut onion in half from top to bottom, then slice each half into about 1/8 inch thick slices.

Slice peppers on a diagonal.

Garnish

Cut green onions on a diagonal in about 1 inch sections.

Cooking

Remove broth from refrigerator and skim off any fat solids.

Place on stove over high heat and return to a full boil.

Add gossari, meat mixture, bean sprouts, fine ground chili powder, and optional onions, if desired, to the beef broth and cook on high heat for 20 minutes (25 minutes if skipping optional peppers).

Add optional peppers if desired and continue cooking for 5 minutes.

Add noodles and egg to soup and cook for another 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and transfer to a large family or individual serving bowl(s), garnish and serve.