Easy Camp Korean Army Stew, Budae Jjigae
Our go to camp meal: budae jjigae, Korean army stew
This is a meal for those lazy days at camp when you roll in late but need something that would hit the inner core of your being. Or, it’s for those colder nights when a sandwich just won’t do. It’s quick to put together, and quick to cook up.
When introducing this dish to anyone that haven’t had it before, I always tell them that this dish is a byproduct of American occupation.
It’s almost always proceeded with, “Oh man, am I about to cry?”
spam and hotdogs being prepared for budae jjigae, Korean army stew
Yes, occupation of a country by another sovereign state is usually not a good thing. But when it ends, what we end up with is a perplexing, yet strangely wonderful, melding of cultures. A large gamut of my people’s food was do in part of the French occupation of Vietnam; the ubiquitous bánh mì (baguette sandwich), bánh xèo (savory crepe), and the iconic phở (broth technique).
This dish, budae jjigae, or Korean army stew, is no different.
After the cease-fire of the Korean war, food was extremely scarce. But there was a huge surplus of processed meats and cheese on US military bases. Thus, this dish was born, and is now enjoyed all over Korea, and frequents our campsites very often.
gochugaru chili flakes give budae jjigae, Korean army stew, that beautiful color
Never enough garlic for budae jjigae, Korean army stew
Directions:
Start by cutting all the veggies into bite sized pieces, as well as the hot dogs. Cut the spam into nice long noodle-y stripes. It makes eating them so much more fun.
Put the ground pork into a medium sized pot. Then arrange in the mushrooms, spam, hotdogs, onion, and kimchi into the pot. Fill the pot half way with water. Add in the seasoning of soy sauce, and chicken bouillon. No salt is needed as the spam, hot dogs, and cheese, will supply a huge chunk of salt to this dish.
At this point, you’re adding in everything else to make the dish pretty for photos. Shake on the gochugaru chili powder the top of everything, then the green onions, then the huge heaping pile of garlic, and pepper.
Put the pot on high heat and bring everything up to boil. Once it’s boiling, place on the American cheese. Yes, American. Accept no other substitutes! Not having the overly processed nuclear yellow cheese would be a give this dish the homage it deserves.
American cheese is the only choice for budae jjigae, Korean army stew
Kimchi gives budae jjigae, Korean army stew, that special zing
Directions:
Start by cutting all the veggies into bite sized pieces, as well as the hot dogs. Cut the spam into nice long noodle-y stripes. It makes eating them so much more fun.
Put the ground pork into a medium sized pot. Then arrange in the mushrooms, spam, hotdogs, onion, and kimchi into the pot. Fill the pot half way with water. Add in the seasoning of soy sauce, and chicken bouillon. No salt is needed as the spam, hot dogs, and cheese, will supply a huge chunk of salt to this dish.
At this point, you’re adding in everything else to make the dish pretty for photos. Shake on the gochugaru chili powder the top of everything, then the green onions, then the huge heaping pile of garlic, and pepper.
Put the pot on high heat and bring everything up to boil. Once it’s boiling, place on the American cheese. Yes, American. Accept no other substitutes! Not having the overly processed nuclear yellow cheese would be a give this dish the homage it deserves.
Place the lid back on, let the cheese melt, take all the Instagrammy photos of the cheese melted on top, then stir everything together. Simmer for about 10-15 minutes. The stew is ready to eat at this point.
If your pot has room for the ramen noodles. Add those in and place the lid back on top. If not, eat some of the stew first, then when you do have room, add in the ramen, and bring the pot back up to a boil to cook the noodles through.
In an idea world, if you have a stove that can be place on top of your table to keep the pot slowly bubbling the whole time, that would up the enjoyment level to the max.
On a chilly camp night, budae jjigae, Korean army stew, hits the spot like no other
INGREDIENTS
SERVES 4
Prep time: 10 min
Cooking time: 15 min
1 lb ground pork
4 hotdogs
1 can of spam
1 tbsp chicken bouillon
4 slices of American cheese (there is no substitute)
a bunch of mushrooms of your choice
3 bags of instant ramen
1/2 an onion
2 stalks of green onions
2 bulbs of garlic
4 heaping tbsp of Korean gochugaru pepper powder
2 cups of kimchi
big pinch of pepper
4 tbsp of soy sauce
water
Bulgogi, traditionally enjoyed with rice or as lettuce wraps, is to Koreans what phở is to the Vietnamese, matzo ball soup to the Jewish, the taco is to the Mexicans, and spaghetti and meatballs are to Italian-Americans. It’s the single Korean dish that has transcended far beyond its humble, and also some royal roots. Everyone has their own rendition of this sweet and savory meat dish, there’s no single “this is it” recipe. It’s even been popularized by Korean-American chef and restaurateur, Roy Choi, when he opened up the Kogi BBQ Taco truck in Los Angeles where he combined the City of Angel’s two favorite foods, Mexican and Korean, together into a taco. And now, you too can enjoy this unique blend of cultures at camp.