Korean Boiled Chicken Soup
Dak-baeksuk is a Korean whole-chicken soup simmered for over fifty minutes with whole garlic cloves, jujubes, green onion, and ginger in a large pot of water. Skimming fat and foam throughout the cooking process is essential to achieving the signature clear broth - neglecting this step leaves the soup greasy and cloudy when reheated. The jujubes lend a subtle sweetness and the garlic, softened to a paste after the long simmer, dissolves into the liquid to create a mellow depth that needs nothing more than salt and pepper. The chicken is shredded against the grain for the softest possible texture, then returned to the hot broth so every bite of meat is saturated with the clean, aromatic stock.
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Instructions
- 1
Clean the whole chicken thoroughly and pat dry.
- 2
Boil water with ginger, half the green onion, garlic, and jujubes.
- 3
Add chicken and simmer over medium heat for 50 minutes.
- 4
Skim foam and excess fat during cooking for a cleaner broth.
- 5
Remove and shred chicken, then simmer broth with remaining green onion for 5 minutes.
- 6
Season with salt and pepper, return chicken to the soup, and serve hot.
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