Korean Chicken Soup (Dakgomtang)

Name: Korean Chicken Soup (Dakgomtang)
Total time: 150 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 360 g short-grain white rice; 1.8 kg whole chicken; 15 ea garlic cloves; 1 ea medium onion; 20 g fresh ginger; 2 ea large green onions; 21 g salt; 15 ml toasted sesame oil; 30 ml soy sauce; 15 ml vinegar; 1 ea green chili pepper; 40 g onion; 25 g gochugaru; 30 ml fish sauce

Recipe from Maangchi · original post · full recipe on maangchi.com

A light, clean, slightly milky Korean chicken soup made with one whole chicken, served over rice with shredded breast meat, plus the dark meat on the side with a soy sauce relish and a spicy seasoning paste.

Serves 4 150 minKid-friendly

Dairy freeChickenSoupAsian

Ingredients

short-grain white rice — cooked360 g
whole chicken1.8 kg
garlic cloves — 12 left whole and 3 thinly sliced15 ea
medium onion — halved1 ea
fresh ginger — peeled and minced20 g
large green onions2 ea
salt — 3 ½ tsp21 g
toasted sesame oil15 ml
soy sauce30 ml
vinegar15 ml
green chili pepper — chopped1 ea
onion — cut into small chunks

Cooking for a different diet?

Swaps that keep this dish what it is. The prices on this page are for the recipe as written.

Gluten-free
- 30 ml Tamari instead of soy sauce
Make the relish with tamari exactly as with soy sauce; nothing else changes.

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short-grain white rice · 360 g
whole chicken · 1.8 kg
garlic cloves · 15 items
medium onion · 1 item
fresh ginger · 20 g
large green onions · 2 items
salt · 21 g
toasted sesame oil · 15 ml
soy sauce · 30 ml
vinegar · 15 ml
green chili pepper · 1 item
onion · 40 g
gochugaru · 25 g
fish sauce · 30 ml

Method

Cook the chicken: wash the chicken under cold running water and put it into a large, heavy pot (about 8 litres). Add 3.8 litres water, the 12 whole garlic cloves, the halved onion, 1 tablespoon of the ginger and 1 large green onion. Cover and cook for 30 minutes over medium-high heat until vigorously boiling.
Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 40 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked. Turn off the heat and transfer the chicken and cooked vegetables to a large tray with a slotted spoon.
Add 1 tablespoon salt to the broth and stir. Cover the pot to keep the broth hot. Discard the cooked onion, green onion and ginger, but save the cooked garlic.
Separate the meat from the bones: shred the breast meat into long strips along the grain and place it on the tray. Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, the sesame oil and the reserved cooked garlic and gently toss to combine. Tear the darker meat from the thighs, drumsticks and wings into bite-sized pieces and arrange it on a serving plate. Discard the skin or serve it alongside, as you prefer.
Put the bones back into the pot, cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes (up to 1 hour for a richer broth), until the broth turns a little milky. Add water if needed to keep about 2.4 to 2.9 litres of broth.
Meanwhile, make the soy sauce relish: combine the soy sauce, vinegar, green chili pepper, onion chunks and sliced garlic in a small bowl. Stir and set aside.
Make the spicy seasoning paste: combine the gochugaru, 60 ml hot chicken broth from the pot, the fish sauce and the remaining 1 teaspoon ginger in a small bowl. Stir well and set aside.
Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer lined with a clean cotton cloth or cheesecloth into a large bowl to remove excess fat and impurities. Wash the pot and pour the strained broth back in.
Reheat the broth. Thinly slice the remaining large green onion. Divide the rice among 4 large bowls, top with the seasoned breast meat, ladle the hot broth over and top with the sliced green onion.
Serve with the plate of dark meat, the soy sauce relish, the spicy seasoning paste and ground black pepper on the side so everyone can season their soup to taste. Accompany with kimchi.