Hands up if you love Korean food! We definitely do, which is why we’ve rounded up a list of one-pot recipes for those busy weeknights you’re strapped for time but still want to enjoy Korean flavours 😋 From hearty stews to savoury noodles, you’ll be able to whip these dishes up just like that!
1. Budae jjigae
If you’re looking for a way to use that jar of kimchi that’s been sitting in your fridge for a while, kimchi jjigae is your answer. Spicy, soothing and superbly delicious, it’s a simple dish to make and perfect to chow down on a chilly day. Traditionally, kimchi jjigae uses pork shoulder or pork belly as one of its main ingredients since it pairs well with the soup. But it’s still possible to make a tasty dish using other meats! With this halal kimchi jjigae recipe, prepare to enjoy a mouthwatering bowl of kimchi stew whenever you want.
Ingredients (serves 2)
- 2 cups kimchi (diced)
- ¾ pound (340g) beef (cut into bite size pieces)
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- ½ onion (chopped)
- 1 tbsp gochujang
- 1 tbsp gochugaru
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp minced ginger
- 3 cups water
- ½ block tofu (slice about ½ an inch thick)
- 2 scallions (chopped)
- Oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Pour sesame oil into a pan and swirl it around. Add beef and cook over medium-high heat.
- Add kimchi to the pot and stir-fry for about 5 minutes. Add garlic, gochujang, gochugaru and soy sauce. Combine everything thoroughly.
- Pour water into the pot and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to simmer and let the stew cook for another 20 to 30 minutes. Add tofu after the first 10 minutes and scallions at the very end.
- Serve it with a bowl of white rice and enjoy!
2. Kimchi jjigae
Budae jjiage, also known as Korean Army Stew, is a hearty kimchi stew that is perfect to indulge on a chilly day. Traditionally, budae jjigae includes pork and processed meats (i.e Spam which is canned cooked ham) but the beauty of this one-pot meal is that you can get creative with the ingredients! So with a little tweaking and swapping around, this simple halal budae jjigae recipe is one that you can easily make at home and indulge in while you catch up on the latest K-drama.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 cups ground beef or chicken
- 3 green onions (chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 cup kimchi
- 2 tbsp Gochujang
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 4 cups chicken stock (or 4 chicken stock bouillon cube dissolved in 4 cups of hot water)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 block tofu
- 2 heads baby bok choy (or 2 cups thinly sliced cabbage)
- 2 packs instant noodles
Optional
- American cheese slice
- Baked beans
- Eggs
- Rice cakes
- Mushrooms (you can use enoki mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms or both!)
Directions
- Heat some oil in a pot over medium-high heat and cook the ground meat.
- Add green onions, garlic, kimchi and cook for about 1 minute.
- Add Gochujang and coat everything well for 30 seconds or so.
- Pour in chicken stock (or hot water followed by chicken stock bouillon cubes), then add soy sauce, sugar and tofu.
- Add baby bok choy and instant noodles. Cover the pot until the noodles become soft and veggies are cooked.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
3. Sundubu jjigae
If you’re a fan of savoury stews like kimchi jjigae and budae jjigae, then it’s only right that you treat yourself to a warm bowl of sundubu jjigae. This popular Korean soft tofu stew is made with everything that you can expect in a comforting meal – extra soft tofu, thinly sliced meat, kimchi and an amazingly flavourful broth 🤤 Perfect for a rainy day to warm you up, dive right into this halal sundubu jjigae recipe and whip up a bowl of yummy Korean stew at home.
Ingredients (serves 2)
- 1 package (12oz) extra soft tofu, cut into big chunks
- ⅓ cup kimchi, thinly sliced
- ½ cup beef, minced
- 3 tsp Gochugaru
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 cup water
- 3 tbsp juice from kimchi
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 scallion, finely chopped
- 1 egg
Directions
- In a pot over medium-high heat, combine kimchi, beef, Gochugaru, garlic and sesame oil.
- Stir-fry for about 3 to 4 minutes until the beef is almost cooked thoroughly.
- Add water and juice from the kimchi. Then bring it to a boil and let it boil for 3 to 4 minutes. Skim off the scum from the surface of the soup.
- Gently add chunks of tofu in and season the stew with salt and pepper. Allow the ingredients to cook for 4 to 5 minutes and add scallions just before removing the pot from the heat.
- While the stew is hot, crack an egg in the middle. Serve and enjoy!
4. Kimchi fried rice
Simple, delicious and foolproof – that’s the beauty of kimchi fried rice 😍 Whether you’re looking for an easy yet flavourful meal to make or just wanting to satisfy your Korean cravings, this dish is perfect for you. There are plenty of recipe variations on kimchi fried rice online, but as long as you have the basic ingredients like rice, kimchi and a few key pantry essentials that are important for Korean cuisine (e.g sesame oil, gochujang and gochugaru), you’re good to go! Of course, you’re more than welcome to add other things that you can find in your kitchen, which is what you’ll see in this easy kimchi fried recipe.
P.S. For more fried rice recipes, whip up these 8 delicious fried rice recipes from around the world.
Ingredients (serves 2)
- ¾ cup of diced kimchi (you can find halal kimchi on Shopee Malaysia and Singapore’s Fairprice)
- ¼ small onion
- 1 scallion chopped
- 1 small carrot finely chopped
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp gochujang (you can find halal gochujang on Shopee Malaysia)
- 2 ½ cup of cooked rice
- Oil for stir-frying
- ½ tbsp sesame oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Optional: Meat, dried seaweed, egg and gochugaru (you can find halal gochugaru on Shopee Malaysia and Shopee Singapore)
Directions
- Chop and dice the scallion, onion, carrot and kimchi.
- Lightly oil your skillet and heat it over medium-high heat. Then toss your onion and scallion in and stir-fry quickly over high heat.
- Add the kimchi, carrots, soy sauce and gochujang. Stir-fry for about 3 to 4 minutes until the kimchi turns soft.
- Add the rice and reduce the heat to medium-low. Break up any clumps of rice and stir until everything is well incorporated.
- Turn up the heat once again and continue to fry. Give it a little taste and adjust the seasonings to your preference with salt, pepper and sesame oil.
- Garnish with chopped scallion and top with the optional fried egg or dried seaweed.
Tips and tricks:
- Whenever you make a stir-fry of any kind, it’s always best to prep most of your ingredients in advance and scoot them into a pile on your cutting board.
- Use day old rice for better texture and so you can avoid any sogginess when cooking the dish. If you’re using freshly cooked rice, chill it in the fridge first for 5 to 10 minutes or spread the rice on a sheet pan at room temperature. It should be cool enough to touch before frying.
- If your day old rice is a little too hard after being in the fridge, heat it up in the microwave. Then, break it up before stir-frying with the kimchi.
- To make your dish spicier, add more gochugaru instead of gochujang. Too much gochujang will make your kimchi fried rice too salty.
- If using raw meat, season it with salt and pepper (a small amount of garlic works too!). Cook the meat first before stir-frying it with the kimchi.
5. Jjapaguri
Made with a combination of two types of instant noodles, Chapagetti and Neoguri, save jjapaguri (aka ramdon) for a rainy weeknight! This comfort food is one of the easiest things you can whip up yourself. Just follow Korean Bapsang’s recipe and you’re good to go. You can omit the beef or switch it up with another protein of your liking. Double or triple the recipe serving accordingly and dig into a perfectly hearty meal while you throw on Parasite (2019) on your computer screen.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces tender beef (such as sirloin, ribeye, NY strip)
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or other cooking oil
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly crushed – optional
- 1 pack Chapagetti (짜파게티)
- 1 pack Neoguri (너구리)
Directions
- Cut the beef into bite size pieces and generously sprinkle with salt and pepper. At this point, start boiling 4 cups of water in a medium size pot.
- Heat a pan with a tablespoon of olive oil or other cooking oil. Add the meat, and cook until the bottoms are nicely seared. Turn them over, and add the optional garlic. Cook/brown all sides to the slightly less than desired doneness.
- When water boils, add the noodles and the vegetable mix from the packets and continue boiling for about 3 minutes. The noodles should be al dente at this point because they will be cooked again.
- Transfer the noodles with a strainer to the pan with the steak, reserving the water. Pour a cup of the reserved water over the noodles. Turn the heat to medium. Add the entire packet of the Chapagetti sauce and 3/5 of the Neoguri sauce (or to taste).
- Stir everything well until the sauce is evenly distributed and slightly thickens, about a minute. Add more reserved water if needed. Turn the heat off.
- Stir in the oil from Chapagetti. Serve with pickled radish or kimchi.
Tips and tricks:
- Whenever you make a stir-fry of any kind, it’s always best to prep most of your ingredients in advance and scoot them into a pile on your cutting board.
- Use day old rice for better texture and so you can avoid any sogginess when cooking the dish. If you’re using freshly cooked rice, chill it in the fridge first for 5 to 10 minutes or spread the rice on a sheet pan at room temperature. It should be cool enough to touch before frying.
- If your day old rice is a little too hard after being in the fridge, heat it up in the microwave. Then, break it up before stir-frying with the kimchi.
- To make your dish spicier, add more gochugaru instead of gochujang. Too much gochujang will make your kimchi fried rice too salty.
- If using raw meat, season it with salt and pepper (a small amount of garlic works too!). Cook the meat first before stir-frying it with the kimchi.
6. Jjampong
For those who have attempted making their own halal jajangmyeon, it’s time to move onto jjamppong! This seafood noodle soup is a popular Korean-Chinese dish that’s packed with tons of flavours. Perfect for warming you right up, share this satisfyingly delicious meal with your family while you catch up on the latest K-dramas and reality shows at home (Seaosn 3 of Busted!, anyone 😁). Get started with this easy halal jjampong recipe.
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 4 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 ½ tbsp garlic, chopped
- 2 tsp ginger, chopped
- 1 cup green onion, chopped
- 1 medium white onion, chopped
- ½ cup chicken breast, chopped
- cabbage
- ½ medium carrot, chopped
- 4 tbsp Gochugaru
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp oyster sauce
- ¼ cup water
- 6 cups chicken stock
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 ½ lb seafood (squid, shrimp, mussels, clams – or any other kind of your choosing!)
- 2 portions of egg noodles
Directions
- In a large pot, add oil, garlic, ginger and green onion. Stir fry over medium heat for about 2 to 3 minutes until fragrant.
- Increase the heat, then add chicken, onion, cabbage and carrot. Combine the ingredients and add gochugaru and paprika. Stir fry for 30 seconds to 1 minute and add soy sauce and oyster sauce.
- Pour chicken stock in and bring everything to a boil. Add seafood and let the ingredients come to a hard boil until all the seafood is thoroughly cooked.
- Cook the egg noodles according to package instructions. Drain and rinse the noodles using cold water, then rinse with hot water at the last moment to warm it back up. Drain once more and place in a serving bowl.
- Pour the seafood soup over the noodles, serve and enjoy!
7. Dakdori
Also known as dakbokkeumtang (spicy chicken stew), this traditional Korean dish is the perfect one-pot meal to make on weeknights. Made with boiling chunks of chicken, vegetables and various spices, your whole family can enjoy this savoury stew alongside a bowl of white rice. Head over to My Korean Kitchen to check out the recipe.
With this list of Korean one-pot recipes, you’ll still get to enjoy a deliciously awesome meal at home even on busy nights where you’re strapped for time 😉
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 2.5 to 3 pounds bone-in chicken parts cut into small pieces (excess fat removed)
- 10 ounces potatoes cut into big chunks
- 1 medium size carrot (can be omitted) cut into big chunks
- 1/2 large onion cut into big chunks
- 7 to 8 plump garlic cloves
- 2 – 3 thinly sliced ginger pieces (about 1-inch round)
- 2 scallions cut into 2-inch lengths
- 1 red chili pepper – optional
Sauce
- 2 to 3 tablespoons gochugaru (Korean red chili pepper flakes) adjust to taste
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice wine (or mirin)
- 2 tablespoons gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste)
- pinch pepper
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Directions
- Prepare the vegetables by cutting up in big chunks.
Stovetop method
- Add 1.5 cups water to a large pot along with the chicken and the sauce (except the sesame oil and sesame seeds). Stir well. Bring it to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the vegetables (except the scallions). Cover, and cook for an additional 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Continue to cook, uncovered this time, until the chicken is tender and the sauce is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the scallions, optional chili pepper, sesame oil and sesame seeds right before turning off the heat.
Slow cooker method
Place the prepared chicken and vegetables (except the scallions) in the slow cooker. Add all the sauce ingredients (except the sesame oil and seeds). Stir well to coat the chicken and vegetables evenly.
Turn the slow cooker on high heat. Cover, and cook for about 4 hours. (You can cook on low heat if you’ll be out longer, about 6 hours). Stir in the scallions, sesame oil and sesame seeds. Skim off excess fat before serving, if desired.
This article was first published in : Have Halal Will Travel
