Chogye-tang (초계탕, Chilled Vinegar Chicken Soup)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •5 to 6 quart heavy pot
• •Fine sieve
• •Shallow container for fast chilling
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Small nonstick skillet for jidan
• •Four chilled stainless or porcelain bowls

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the broth

   Pat the chicken dry and trim away the yellow fat near the cavity and tail. Put the chicken and cold water in a heavy pot and bring it slowly to a bare simmer over medium heat. Skim the gray foam as it rises, then add the onion, garlic, ginger, scallions, peppercorns, and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Cold water pulls flavor from the bones; gentle heat keeps the broth clear.

2. 2

   Poach gently

   Keep the pot at a quiet simmer, only a few bubbles breaking the surface. Pull the breast pieces when the thickest part reaches 160°F, usually 25 to 30 minutes after the simmer begins, and let them rest so they carry to 165°F. Continue cooking the leg pieces 10 to 15 minutes longer, until the thigh meat reaches 175°F and loosens at the bone. A hard boil makes cloudy broth and dry meat, and cold soup forgives neither.

3. 3

   Strain and chill

   Lift out the chicken and strain the broth through a fine sieve. Do not press on the aromatics, or the broth turns muddy. Measure 6 cups of broth; simmer it down if you have more, or add a little boiling water if you have less. Set the broth in a shallow container in an ice bath for 20 minutes, then refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. Skim off every cap of fat once it hardens. A hot chicken soup tolerates a little fat. A cold one lets it sit on your tongue.

4. 4

   Shred the chicken

   Remove the skin and bones from the cooled chicken. Shred the meat by hand into thin, even strands, about 3 cups total. Toss it with 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons of the chilled broth. This small seasoning keeps the chicken from tasting separate and plain when it meets the cold soup.

5. 5

   Season the broth

   Stir the Korean mustard powder with the warm water, cover it, and let it bloom for 10 minutes. Whisk 5 1/2 cups of the cold skimmed broth with 3 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 teaspoons sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 2 teaspoons of the bloomed mustard paste. Taste it with one ice cube in the spoon. It should be a little sharper and saltier than you expect, because ice and cold chicken will soften it. If it tastes flat, add rice vinegar 1 teaspoon at a time, up to 1 tablespoon. If it tastes dull, add salt 1/8 teaspoon at a time, up to 1/4 teaspoon. Keep the remaining mustard for the table.

   Half-freeze 1 cup of the seasoned broth in a shallow dish and scrape it into slush before serving. This is a safe modern corner to cut with your freezer. The clear broth and the mustard balance are not corners.
6. 6

   Season the vegetables

   Toss the cucumber matchsticks with 1/4 teaspoon salt and let them stand 10 minutes, then squeeze gently. Toss the radish with 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and let it stand 20 minutes, then drain. Cut the pear just before serving so it stays pale and crisp. Each garnish is seasoned alone because each one gives the bowl a different kind of cold: cucumber clean, radish sharp, pear sweet.

7. 7

   Make the garnish

   Beat the egg yolks and whites separately, each with 1 teaspoon water. Wipe a small skillet with the oil and cook the yolks and whites into thin sheets over low heat, then cool and slice into fine jidan (egg garnish) threads. If using shiitake, soak the mushrooms in warm water for 20 minutes, remove the stems, slice the caps thinly, and simmer them 5 minutes with 1/2 cup broth, the soup soy sauce, and 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Chill them before they go into the bowl.

8. 8

   Assemble cold

   Chill four bowls for 10 minutes. Divide the shredded chicken among them, then arrange cucumber, radish, pear, jidan, and shiitake over the top in separate small piles. Pour about 1 1/4 cups of seasoned broth into each bowl and add ice or the half-frozen broth slush. Scatter pine nuts if using. Serve at once with extra vinegar and the remaining mustard on the side, so each person can sharpen the bowl without drowning it.

Chef Tips

• •Buy a small chicken, not a heavy roasting bird. A big chicken gives plenty of meat, but the strands turn coarse and the broth needs more water than flavor. If you do not want to cut up a whole bird, use 1.2 kg bone-in chicken legs and thighs with 2 split breasts, and pull the breasts early.
• •Korean mustard powder is different from mild yellow mustard. Bloom it with warm water and give it 10 minutes to develop its heat. If you only have prepared gyeoja in a tube, start with 1 1/2 teaspoons in the broth and serve more at the table.
• •The broth must be seasoned colder than you think. Cold dulls salt, acid, and mustard, and ice dilutes them further. Write down your final vinegar and salt amounts after tasting over ice. 손맛 is real; I measure it anyway.
• •To make chogye-guksu, add rinsed cold somyeon or naengmyeon noodles to each bowl. Season the broth slightly harder, adding 1 teaspoon rice vinegar and 1/8 teaspoon salt per extra cup of broth, because noodles drink up the sharpness.

Advance Preparation

• •Poach the chicken and chill the broth up to 24 hours ahead. Keep the shredded chicken and broth in separate covered containers, and skim the broth only after the fat has hardened.
• •The seasoned broth can be mixed up to 4 hours ahead and kept very cold. Add ice or broth slush only at serving, or the balance thins before the table sees it.
• •Jidan and shiitake garnish can be made the morning of serving. Salt the cucumber and pickle the radish within 4 hours of eating, and cut the pear last.
• •Keep the chicken and broth refrigerated below 40°F and eat within 2 days. This is a cold poultry dish, so cleanliness and fast chilling are part of the recipe, not kitchen fussing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 600g)