Samgyetang Recipe : Korean Ginseng Chicken Soup, 삼계탕 (蔘鷄湯)

蔘: 인삼 삼 (Ginseng: Sam) , 鷄: 닭 계 (Chicken: Gye), 湯: 탕 (Soup: Tang)

Samgyetang. One of historical dish from Korea.

My dad used to take me to this Samgyetang restaurant in South Korea, where we lived every summer time. They serve a shot of ginseng liquor to every guests, even you are a kid. The ginseng shot is for the health, not to drunk purpose, so my dad always led me drink the ginseng shot first before the meal.

Ginseng warms your body from inside out as well as chicken. Usually summer time(when the weather is hot) our outer body is hot so our inner body is very busy to cool the body down. So drink or eating cold food makes our tummy even more colder. That is why people get sick easily with the food during the summer time. Some smart Koreans figured it out and recommended to eat warm and hot food during summer time.

So traditionally we eat Samgyetang 3 times during the summer. The beginning, the middle and the end.

Protein wasn’t always available for everybody back then in Korea, even 50, 60 years ago. So Samgyetang helped provide strength through out challenging hot weather. It is consider as a stamina food. 😉

I understand the Samgyetang herbal ingredient kit is hard to find in some places, so here are the links I found where you can buy from internet.

Amazon’s Samgyetang Herbal Ingredient Kit

Hmart’s Samgyetang Herval Ingredients Kit

You might can find better website that carries these ingredients, but I’m only willing to share those website where I can trust and the price is make sense.

Also, you can make this recipe without the kit. Just get fresh/dried ginseng and dried jujube. Those are the key herbal ingredients for Samgyetang.

Hope you try my Samgyetang recipe one day!

Samgyetang, Korean Ginseng Chicken Soup, 삼계탕 (蔘鷄湯)

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• Author: Seonkyoung Longest
• Total Time: 2 hours 30 mins

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Description

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Ingredients

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• 10 cups Cold water
• 4 Cloves garlic, 2 are smashed, 2 are whole
• 3 Green onions, 2 cut into halves, 1 chopped for garnish
• 1 Samgyetang herbal ingredient kit or 1 medium size ginseng root and 3 jujubes
  
• 2 lb. Whole young chicken or 2 cornish hens
• 1/3 cup Sweet rice, rinsed and soaked in cold water for 1 hour, drained

Dipping Salt

• 1Tbs. Sea salt
• 1 tsp. Black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. Toasted sesame seeds, smashed with fingers

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Instructions

1. In a large pot, add water, 2 smashed garlic, 2 green onions that cut into halves and Samgyetang herbal ingredients. Cover, bring it to boil and reduce heat to medium low, simmer for 10 minutes.
   
2. Meanwhile, let’s prepare chicken. Trim some fat on edge of chicken and wing tips with kitchen scissors.
   
3. Stuff chicken with 2 whole garlic cloves and sweet rice. It should be stuffed only 3/4 amount.
   Close openings with skewers or strings.
   
4. Place stuffed chicken into simmering broth with breast side up. Cover, increase heat to high; bring it to boil and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 1 hour or until chicken is fully cooked and tender.
   
5. Transfer to a serving bowl both chicken and soup. Garnish with chopped green onion and serve with dipping salt.
   

To Make Porridge with Leftover Samgyetang

1. Take leftover meats from chicken bones and take solid ingredients out from broth. Add 1 cup to 2 cups of cold sweet or stick rice (depending on how much soup’s left..) and simmer for 30 minutes.
   
2. Constantly stirring to prevent a burnt bottom.
   Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with chopped green onion, sesame seeds and sesame oil.
   

• Prep Time: 1 hour
• Cook Time: 1 hour 30 mins