In the summertime, we can often see streams of people queuing up around samgyetang restaurants, especially during the three -bok days in the heart of summer: Chobok (초복, 初伏), Jungbok (중복, 中伏) and Malbok (말복, 末伏). This year they fall on July 17, July 27 and Aug. 16, respectively. Despite the heat wave, people are willing to wait their turn to eat one special summer specialty in particular: samgyetang.

Samgyetang is a dish made with a young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice, ginseng, jujubes and garlic, and boiled in water with milk vetch roots. It's the best-known summer dish and it's said to give you a boost in energy. Samgyetang makes people feel hotter and makes them sweat in order to ward off the heat. By eating this dish, people can get more energy and prevent exhaustion during the scorching heat waves of summer.

The two main ingredients, chicken and ginseng, warm the inside of the body and complement nutritional elements that could easily be lacking during the summer. Chicken is rich in protein, good for the digestion and relieves tiredness and stress. When consumed with ginseng, it boosts the appetite and enhances the immune system. Young chicken in particular, the type of chicken most commonly used in samgyetang, has tender skin and meat, which creates a wonderful aroma. Other ingredients, such as the milk vetch root and garlic, also help to protect the internal organs and help to recover one's strength to better cope with the heat. Glutinous rice also helps with digestion.





** Ingredients
4 young whole chickens (2.2 kilograms)
1 cup of glutinous rice (180 grams)
20 grams of milk vetch root (4 sticks)
4 garlic cloves (20 grams)
4 jujubes (16 grams)
1 egg (60 grams), 1/2 tablespoon of cooking oil (6.5 grams)
1/2 tablespoon of salt (6 grams), 1/8 teaspoon of ground pepper (0.3 grams), 20 grams of green onion





** Preparation
1. Wash and clean the whole chicken by removing the inner organs and fat under the stomach.
2. Wash the glutinous rice and soak it in water for 2 hours. Using a strainer, drain the rice for a full 10 minutes to make sure all the water is gone.
3. Wash the milk vetch roots and soak them in water for 2 hours.
4. Clean the ginseng roots, cut off the heads and trim them to shape. Wash the garlic and jujubes. Make an egg garnish by frying the egg whites and yolks separately. Cut them into 2-centimeter long diagonal shapes.
Clean the green onions and cut them into 0.2-centimeter thick pieces.





** Recipe
1. Put water and the milk vetch root into a pot and boil it over high for 12 minutes. Boil it over medium for 40 minutes. Drain the water using a strainer to make the stock for samgyetang.
2. Stuff the chicken stomach with glutinous rice, ginseng, garlic and jujubes. Cross the chicken legs and tie closed the stomach to prevent it from leaking.
3. Put the water, chicken and the stock in a pot to boil over high for 20 minutes. When it boils, lower the heat to medium and boil it again for about 48 minutes. Add salt and ground pepper to taste. Boil it for 2 more minutes.
4. Serve the dish in a bowl with the fried egg whites and yolks and green onion pieces as garnish.

Managed by Yoon Sojung / Korea.net Staff Writer
In cooperation with the Institute of Traditional Korean Food (ITKF)
Recipe from “The Beauty of Korean Food: 100 Best-Loved Recipes”
arete@korea.kr