[Food]

[Food] Too BUSY to grab a bite? Here's some Biji-Jjigae. (비지찌개, Biji (Soybean Pulp) Stew)

Biji-Jjigae (비지찌개, Biji (Soybean Pulp) Stew)

Biji is not commonly eaten by the younger Korean generation. They may know 'dubu' (tofu/bean curd), which is a very common, cheap and delicious food. Biji is the product of bean curd, like dofu is to soybean. For a long time it's been eaten by poorer households who are unable to afford bean curd, but many Koreans love it today for its savory and mild flavor which often tastes better than bean curd.

Koreans use biji as a side dish and stew; Biji-Jjigae (비지찌개, Biji (Soybean Pulp) Stew) is one of them. Biji-Jjigae is also one of my favorite Korean foods. A typical Biji-Jjigae recipe uses pork and fermented kimchi to add some spice and a deep savory flavor.

It may look very creamy and crunchy, but it gives you a traditional, savory, mild and soft soybean flavor :) I'm sure that the older poorer generation who only survived on biji wouldn't have imagined that their future generation would eat biji as gourmet cuisine :)

Biji (비지, Soybean Pulp)

Biji-Jjigae (비지찌개, Biji (Soybean Pulp) Stew) with Kimchi in it

It's not hard to find biji or biji-jjigae at the grocer's or restaurant in Korea as it's a typical Korean food but is not well-known to non-Koreans and the younger Korean generation. I think the reason is that there are more delicious and better foods and ingredients than biji today :)

However, biji and biji-jjigae is still a great Korean dish that I want to introduce you to because it is a hearty and warm meal for Koreans who have had to go through all kinds of hardship even until now :)

Bon Appétit!