{"id":32385,"title":"Authentic Andong Jjimdak","modified":"2025-05-27T10:54:31+02:00","plain":"The server places a dish as wide as a wok on the table, from which a fragrant, warm aroma of soy sauce and ginger escapes. Pieces of chicken glisten under a mahogany-colored glaze; translucent noodles curl like glass ribbons around fist-sized potatoes, and long green peppers float on the surface, their reddish seeds glistening through the steam. \n\n\n\nIf this dish reminds you of my japchae recipe, it's not a coincidence!\n\n\n\nEven before the first bite, the aroma alone - sweet, salty, slightly peppery - is enough to explain why this once-modest market dish has become the country's favorite comfort food on rainy days. But how did an inexpensive braise, born in a provincial alley, acquire cult status from Seoul to New York? The answer lies in the late 1980s, in the bustling market of Andong.  \n\n\n\nFrom Market Improvisation to National Icon Status\n\n\n\nIn the late 1980s, the old shopping arcade in downtown Andong, nicknamed \u201cChicken Alley\u201d, was facing trouble. Western-style fried chicken shops were siphoning off customers, and local vendors needed a heartier, cheaper, and easily shareable dish.  \n\n\n\nTheir solution: merge the familiar technique of dakjjim, \u201cslow-cooking a whole chicken, bones and all, with the sweet-salty accents of the galbi marinade already revered in Korea. Into the pot, they threw a generous amount of vegetables and a handful of glass noodles to stretch the protein portion, while keeping it affordable enough for a group of\u201d students. \n\n\n\nThe Famous Bulgogi Beef\n\n\n\nWord spread quickly. By the mid-1990s, the recipe had reached Seoul's university districts. In Andong, Chicken Alley officially renamed itself \u201cJjimdak Alley\u201d in the early 2000s.   \n\n\n\nIts fame skyrocketed after a KBS report in 2001 hailed it as a \"revolution in traditional cuisine,\" and franchise chains soon blossomed across the peninsula. What was once a market improvisation now regularly ranks just behind bulgogi (and ahead of many other more famous dishes) in tourist surveys of \"must-try\" foods, proving Andong's talent for transforming necessity into national identity. \n\n\n\nWhat is Jjimdak? \n\n\n\nThe Dark Brown Soy Sauce Base\n\n\n\nAn authentic jjimdak bathes in a sauce as dark as aged soy sauce. Ganjang (Korean soy sauce) is mixed with brown sugar or malt syrup, minced garlic, ginger, and sometimes a splash of rice wine.  \n\n\n\nSome Andong cooks caramelize a spoonful of sugar (or even add a dash of cola) before adding the chicken, in search of that almost black, lacquered shine. The flavor balances on a wire: sweet, salty, and garlicky - never burning, never greasy. \n\n\n\nKalguksu also uses Korean soy sauce\n\n\n\nThe Power of Whole Chilies\n\n\n\nInstead of the scarlet roar of gochujang, jjimdak relies on the discreet authority of whole chilies. A few dried red chilies bring a smoky heat, while slit Cheongyang green peppers infuse the broth with a clean, sharp heat. As the peppers remain whole, the sauce stays brown: each person can avoid them or bite into them as they wish, thus modulating the spiciness without tinting the dish red.  \n\n\n\nDangmyeon Noodles: Non-Negotiable\n\n\n\nSlipped into the wok during the very last minutes, these sweet potato starch noodles drink up the concentrated sauce until they take on a bark-like hue and an elastic chew. Many Koreans claim that the soul of jjimdak is these noodles, not the chicken; remove them and the Andong \"ajummas\" will shake their heads. \n\n\n\nThe supporting roles are equally important: a whole chicken cut up with bones for depth, the quartet of potatoes-carrots-onions-cabbage that adds substance to the dish, and a brief sprinkling of minced chives and toasted sesame that awakens the palate just before serving. Well, here we substitute with chicken thighs, but you get the idea. \n\n\n\nThe Main Ingredients of Jjimdak\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLight soy sauce: Light soy sauce, widely used in Asian cuisine for its salty taste and lightness, serves here as the salty base for the sauce.\n\n\n\nDark soy sauce: Dark soy sauce, thicker and sweeter than light soy sauce, brings color and depth to the sauce.\n\n\n\nShaoxing wine: Chinese rice wine used for its aromatic richness, it flavors the sauce while helping to tenderize the chicken.\n\n\n\nSesame oil: Fragrant oil with a nutty flavor, it adds a final aromatic touch to the sauce.\n\n\n\nSesame seeds: Sprinkled at the end, they add crunch and a nutty note.\n\n\n\nGlass noodles: Translucent noodles made from starch (sweet potato, for example), also called glass noodles, they absorb the sauce and add texture to the dish.\n\n\n\nDried red chili: Adds moderate heat and a slightly smoky aroma to the preparation.\n\n\n\n\n\n\tAuthentic Andong Jjimdak\n\t\t\n\t\tA delicious Korean braised chicken recipe originating from Andong\t\n\t\n\t\tWok\t\n\t\n\t\t1 kg of chicken (preferably thighs, with skin)700 ml water90 g of glass noodles (dry weight)1 potato (in large cubes of about 1 inch)1 onion (sliced)1 carrot (sliced)2 green onions (In segments)1 dried red chili (In segments)3 cloves garlic (sliced)Sauce4.5 tablespoons light soy sauce1 tablespoon dark soy sauce3 tablespoons shaoxing wine3 tablespoons of dark brown sugar1.5 tablespoons garlic (chopped)1.5 teaspoons sesame oil0.25 teaspoon black pepper2 pinches of ground gingerGarnishgreen onions (thinly sliced)white sesame seeds\t\n\t\n\t\tBlanch the chicken for 1 minute to remove some of the fat and impuritiesDrain the water and set the chicken asideSoak the glass noodles in hot water while preparing the other ingredientsMix all sauce ingredients in a bowlPlace the chicken and garlic in a large pan heated over medium-high heatBrown the chicken for a few minutesPour the sauce and water over the chickenBring to a boil, then reduce to medium heat and let cook for 15 minutesAdd the potato, onion, carrot, and chili to the panCook over medium-high heat for 15 to 25 minutes, until the ingredients are almost cookedAdd the drained noodles and green onionsCook for another 10 to 15 minutes over high heat or until the liquid has almost evaporated, then turn off the heatBe sure to stir regularly to prevent the bottom from burningGarnish with sesame seeds and sliced green onions\t\n\t\n\t\tMake sure the water evaporates well \n\t\n\t\n\t\tMain courseKoreanHuile de s\u00e9same, Nouilles, Poulet, Sauce soja dark, Sauce soja light","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32385\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}