Vegan & Demanding

Ok, this may not look like the most exciting dish you’ve ever seen but don’t be fooled, it’s a truly magical brew.

Kimchi jjigae is a popular Korean stew made with, you guessed, kimchi and various other ingredients. There are as many Kimchi jjigae recipes as there are Korean moms. This one is veganised and tweaked a little to suit my taste. Experiment with the ingredients ratio until you’re happy.

Best made with older kimchi that’s become a little too funky to eat on it own, this stuff is pungent, spicy, delicious and comforting. It will cure your winter blues as by enchantment and leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

Ingredients

• 5 ml (1 tsp) vegetable oil
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 250 ml (1 1/2 cups) vegan kimchi, cut into bite size
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 125 ml (1/2 cups) kimchi juice
• 500 ml (2 cups) water
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) ginger, grated
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) mirin
• 45 ml (3 tbsp) gochujang (Korean chili paste)
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) soy sauce
• gochugaru (Korean dried chili flakes) to taste
• 225 gr (8 oz) firm silken tofu, cut into bite size cubes
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) white miso
• 5 ml (1 tsp) Earth balance or other vegan “butter”
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced

Heat the oil in a cast iron pot and sauté the onion until translucent. Add the kimchi, shiitake and garlic, sauté 4-5 minutes until the cabbage becomes translucent.

Add the kimchi juice, water, ginger, mirin, gochujang and soy sauce, stir well. Adjust spiciness to taste by adding as much gochugaru as you like. Bring to a boil.

Add the tofu, turn down the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the kimchi is tender.

Remove from heat. Dissolve the miso in a little broth, add to the pot with the butter and stir well. Garnish with the scallions. Serve with rice.

Serves 4