Budae Jjigae, a unique Korean hotpot, gathers a variety of ingredients such as kimchi, luncheon meat, sausages, mushrooms, instant noodles, and cheese. Its rich and delicious broth is unforgettable with just one bite. In South Korea, it is a national level delicacy, and globally, it has also gained the love of countless diners. Family and friends sit together to share this pot of food, warm and comfortable. ​

1、 The Past and Present Lives of the Army Pot

Army pot, also known as military stew or military base stew. In Korean, “unit” represents a military base, and “pot” refers to soup or stew. Back in the early 1950s, when the Korean War had just ended, South Korea was extremely short of materials. The surplus lunch meat, sausage, canned baked beans, cheese chips and other processed foods in the U.S. military base became a valuable source of nutrition for South Koreans, and the military pot also came into being. In the vicinity of the US military base in South Korea, located one hour’s drive north of Seoul, the military pot here is the most authentic and well-known. Making a military pot is super simple, mainly by carefully matching the ingredients and adding or removing them according to personal taste. ​

2、 Food preparation (for 4 people)

（1） Main ingredients

4 cups (1 liter) of chicken soup * (see notes for specific instructions)

200 grams (7 ounces) of SPAM luncheon meat, sliced thinly

4 Frankfurt sausages (150 grams, 5.3 ounces), thinly sliced diagonally

250 grams (9 ounces) of tofu, cut into slices about 1.5 centimeters (half an inch) thick

200 grams (7 ounces) of enoki mushrooms, remove the roots and spread the stems apart

200 grams (7 ounces) of shiitake mushrooms, sliced vertically into thin slices

100g (3.5 oz) mushroom lid, sliced thinly

Half a cup of aged kimchi, cut into small pieces

110g (3.9oz) convenient Lamian Noodles

50 grams (1.8 ounces) of Korean soup rice cake (if frozen, soak in cold water for 15 minutes in advance)

30 grams (1 ounce) of scallions, thinly sliced diagonally

1 to 2 slices of cheese

（2） Sauce (mixed in a small bowl)

2 tablespoons Korean chili flakes (Gochugaru)

2 tablespoons rice wine (miru)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Half a tablespoon of sugar

Half a tablespoon of Korean chili sauce (Gochujang)

Sprinkle a little black pepper powder on it

Annotation:

I recommend using commercially available chicken soup. It takes a long time to make by yourself, but buying ready-made chicken soup can save at least 30 minutes. Common commercially available chicken soup packaging shows that 98% of its ingredients are chicken soup (including water, chicken, carrots, celery, cabbage, onions, sage extract, parsley), as well as salt, sugar, and yeast extract. ​

Different brands of chicken soup have different tastes. If you are worried about the soup being too strong, you can mix it in a ratio of 2 cups of water to 2 cups of chicken soup to blend the soup flavor. ​

You can also use homemade dried seaweed and anchovy soup, or beef soup as a substitute. To make beef soup, you can refer to the recipe for rice cake soup. However, it is not recommended to use commercially available beef soup to make military pots, as the taste is often salty. ​

3、 Production steps

Put all the main ingredients except for instant noodles, rice cake, scallions, and cheese into a shallow pot, pour the prepared sauce into the center of the pot, pour the broth into the corner of the pot, cover the pot, turn on medium high heat, and bring the broth to a boil, which takes about 8 minutes. ​

Next, put the instant noodles, rice cake, scallions, and cheese into the pot without covering it. Cook until the noodles are fully cooked, about 2 to 3 minutes. If you use a portable stove to cook and eat on the dining table, turn down the heat at this time. ​

Finally, pour the soup, meat, and vegetables from the pot into your own bowl, pair it with steamed rice, and add a few Korean side dishes to enjoy the delicious military pot to your heart’s content! ​

Reminder: As can be seen from the ingredients, the calorie content of the military pot is not low, and it is easy to become addicted after eating. It is recommended to arrange some exercise after eating to burn calories!