All-in-One Korean Army Stew

If you are a big fan of Korean cuisine like me, I bet you have come across what Korean Army Stew is, which is also known as Budae Jjigae in Korean.

Budae jjigae is a savory yet spicy Korean-American fusion dish made from an umami-rich broth, Korean hot pepper paste, ramen, kimchi, tangled together with American Spam, beans and sausages.

Historically, budae jjigae was first invented during the Korean War. Due to shortage of food supply at that period, Korean armies decided to cook this stew using leftover ingredients with American army cheese, sausages, hams, and canned beans. While these ingredients were foreign to Koreans, they had to consume it out of necessity.

However, budae jjigae has now become one of the most popular dishes today with additional ingredients like kimchi, tofu, minced beef and mushrooms. Other than these ingredients, Korean rice cakes, instant ramen or any other suitable ingredients can be added into the dish too.

You can also make this dish if you want to save money because it is quite simple to prepare it at home as long as you have the ingredients and a large enough pot to make a batch big enough to feed an army.