Galbi-jjim (Korean beef stew): This is a Korean traditional dish great for entertaining guests. Sweet and savory, it’s a favorite of young children and adults alike. Never left out from the traditional holiday table, galbi-jjim goes well with rice and lettuce, too.
Ingredients:
1kg beef short rib (cut into 5cm pieces)
1 chunk of Japanese radish (cut into 5cm chunks)
10 chestnuts
10 gingko nuts
10 dried dates
Sauce:
5 cups beef stock (water left over from boiling beef rib)
6Tbsp soy sauce
4Tbsp grated pear (preferably Korean pear)
2Tbsp corn syrup (or substitute with 6Tbsp of sugar)
1Tbsp minced garlic
1/2Tbsp minced ginger
1Tbsp sesame seed oil
black pepper
Direction:
1. First soak beef short rib pieces in cold water to draw out the blood. Trim off the fat and make little cuts on the rib so that the sauce can seep well into meat.
2. Cut Japanese radish into large cubes, about half the size of beef rib pieces. Peel the inner skin off chestnuts.
3. Peel off the outer skin of gingko nuts and stir fry them in oiled frying pan to eliminate the inner skin. You can easily peel off the inner skin if you rub the gingko nuts in paper towel.
4. Grate pear and strain it in cheesecloth to get only the pear juice.
5. In a large pot cook the rib pieces drained of blood. Once it boils, take the meat out of the pot and reserve about 5 cups of stock.
6. Mix only 2/3 of the sauce with the partially boiled meat and cook in a big pot with the reserved beef stock. Bring it to boil.
7. Add radish chunks, chestnuts, gingko nuts, and dates and put in the rest of the sauce, and mix well.
8. Let it simmer until the sauce boils down to half the amount. Garnish with pine nuts before serving.
Tips:
1. Beef rib may be tough to some people. You can soften beef effectively with grated pear, onion, pineapple or kiwi. When using kiwi, you have to remember that kiwi is a strong meat-softening agent, so use only one kiwi per 6 kilograms of beef.
2. You may add chunks of carrots, onions and black mushrooms to get more vegetables in your diet.
3. If you don’t like the rich flavor of beef, sprinkle a bit of lemon juice before serving.
