I invented this recipe. I use Korean classic ingredients to make the soup base and Chinese spices to season the meatballs. I have taken this soup to many potlucks. It was highly complimented by people. Many people have asked me for the recipe for this soup. Well… Here you go.

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Ingredients

• 16oz Ground Beef
• 32oz Napa Kimchi
• 3 cloves Peeled Garlic Pressed
• 1tbsp Gochujang Hot Pepper Paste
• 1/3 cup Oil
• 1 tbsp Light Soy Sauce (or Gluten-free Tamari Soy Sauce)
• 1 tbsp Shao Hsing Cooking Wine (or Gluten-free Mirin Cooking Wine)
• 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
• 1/2 tsp Chinese 13 Spices
• 1 tbsp Potato Starch (or an Egg)
• As needed Salt
• As needed Chopped Green Onion

Serving: 4 People

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Instructions:

Step 3

Add Shao Hsing cooking wine to the ground beef. For gluten-free version, use Korean or Japanese mirin cooking wine.

Step 4

Add potato starch to the ground beef. For the low carb version, use an egg to substitute the starch. Then mix the beef and spices well. The starch or eggs can make the meatball tender and moisture.

Step 5

Set a wok or pot at medium-high heat, and quickly add the oil, garlic, and Gochujang sauce. Stir the sauce till the oil turns red. This step needs to be quick, once the oil gets hot, the sauce will stick to the bottom of the pot.

Step 6

Quickly add the kimchi. Stir the kimchi with the sauce for 2 minutes. Once the kimchi is added, the mixture will not stick to the bottom of the pot anymore.

Step 7

Add water to cover the kimchi. Make ground beef to balls and add to the soup.

Step 8

Stir the soup gently now and then, till the beef color turns brown. Let the soup boil for another 3 minutes to make sure the inside of the meatball is fully cooked. Sprinkle green onion on the top of the soup. Then serve the soup with white rice. Enjoy!

Tips:

You might notice that I list salt in the ingredients, but my step instructions don’t use it. Salt is needed if you reduce the amount of Gochujang sauce, otherwise the soup is savory enough.

If you think this dish is too spicy, you can reduce the amount of Gochujang sauce. Or… buy mild Gochujang sauce. My stores carry mild, hot, and very hot Gochujang sauce.

Most Gochujang sauce is fermented with wheat. For a gluten-free version, look for Gochujang sauce fermented with brown rice, like the one in my picture in step 5. I did notice that the brown rice Gochujang sauce is spicier than the regular one. You can reduce the amount of Gochujang sauce and add a little bit of salt at step 8 if you think the gluten-free Gochujang is too hot.