In summertime, many people look for food to boost their stamina in order to complement the loss of energy, as they sweat a lot due to the hot weather. Many of these foods make them feel hotter and make them sweat in order to ward off the heat. Others, however, don't prefer such hot foods. Chogyetang is a good choice for such people. It's a chilled chicken soup and is considered one of summertime's special menu items that people can enjoy as they cool down in the heat waves and protect their health.

Chogyetang was originally a local specialty in Pyeongan-do Province in what is now North Korea. “Cho” means vinegar while “gye” is a word from the local dialect for mustard in the Pyeongan area. Therefore, the two words together indicate a "food with vinegar and mustard." Chogyetang was also enjoyed as a special dish during banquets in the Joseon court, as the food is served with shredded chicken flesh served in a chilled chicken broth with vinegar and mustard. This way, you don't have to remove the bones to eat. In fact, there are records that show that the dish was served during the 60th birthday banquet for Queen Hyegyeonggung Hong (혜경궁 홍씨, 惠慶宮 洪氏) (1735-1815), the mother of the 22nd Joseon monarch, King Jeongjo (정조, 正祖) (1752-1800).





The main ingredient of the dish, chicken, is rich in protein, good for the digestion and relieves tiredness and stress. Chicken protects the stomach and bowels and doesn't cause any indigestion if consumed cold. Vinegar also helps with the digestion, cleans the blood, eases tiredness, and has anti-bacterial effects. Why don’t you try a bowl of chogyetang to wisely ward off the heat, while complementing the nutrition and enjoying a gourmet meal?

** Ingredients
450 grams of chicken, about half a chicken
7 cups of water (1.4 kilograms)

Seasoned green leaves:
20 grams of green onions
20 grams of garlic
80 grams of onion, about half an onion

Seasoning 1:
1/4 teaspoon of salt (1 gram)
1 teaspoon of sesame salt (2 grams)
1 teaspoon of sesame oil (4 grams)
50 grams of chopped beef, rump preferred

Marinade 1:
1/2 teaspoon of soy sauce (3 grams)
1/2 teaspoon of sugar (2 grams)
0.1 grams of ground pepper
1 teaspoon of sesame oil (4 grams)
40 grams of soaked sea cucumber
1/4 teaspoon of salt (1 gram)

300 grams of mung bean jelly
60 grams of oyster mushrooms
2 cups of water (400 grams)
1/4 teaspoon of salt (1 gram)

Seasoning 2:
1/4 teaspoon of salt (1 gram)
1 teaspoon of sesame salt (2 grams)
1 teaspoon of sesame oil (4 grams)

3/4 cucumber (150 grams)
1/4 teaspoon of salt (1 gram)
1 tablespoon of cooking oil (13 grams)

1/5 pear (100 grams)
1/4 cup of water (50 grams)
1/4 teaspoon of sugar (1 gram)

Mustard sauce:
1 tablespoon of fermented mustard (13 grams)
1/2 tablespoon of soy sauce (9 grams)
2 teaspoons of salt (8 grams)
1 tablespoon of sugar (12 grams)
3 tablespoons of vinegar (45 grams)


** Preparation
1. Remove the inner organs and fat of the chicken and wash it clean. Trim the seasoned green leaves and wash them clean.
2. Remove any blood from the chopped beef and marinate it with seasoning 1 to make eight meatballs.
3. Wash the soaked sea cucumber and cut it into 4-centimeter long and 0.5-centimeter wide pieces. Add some salt for flavor.
4. Cut the mung bean jelly into 5-centimeter wide and 0.5-centimeter thick pieces. Wash the oyster mushrooms.
5. Rub the cucumber with salt to make it clean. Halve the cucumber and cut it diagonally in 4-centimeter long and 0.3-centimeter thick slices. Salt the cucumber pieces for 20 minutes and remove the water. Wash the pear and cut it into slices that are 4 centimeters long, 1.5 centimeters wide and 0.3 centimeters thick. Soak the pear slices in sugared water.
6. Make the mustard sauce.





** Recipe
1. Put water in a pot with the chicken and cook it over high for 9 minutes. When it boils, lower the heat to medium and cook it for 20 minutes. Add the seasoned green leaves and cook it all together for 10 minutes. Take the chicken out and cut the meat into slices that are 5 centimeters long and 0.5 centimeters thick. Marinate the meat with seasoning 1.
2. Cool the broth and drain it with a strainer with a cotton cloth. Add the mustard sauce to make the broth for the soup.
3. Put water in a pot and boil it over high for 2 minutes. When it boils, add salt and the mung bean jelly to cook together for 30 seconds. Put in the oyster mushrooms for 1 minute and cut them in 0.5-centimeter thick slices. Add seasoning 2 and mix it all together.
3. Heat a frying pan with coil. Fry the cucumbers over high for 30 seconds and cool them. Cook the meat balls over high for 1 minute. Fry the sea cucumbers over medium for 1 minute.
4. Serve the cooked chicken meat in a bowl with the meat balls, sea cucumber, oyster mushroom, cucumbers, and pear slices with the chilled soup.