"HOT" DISH BUT HAS COOLING EFFECT
Ginseng chicken stew (samgyetang) is a famous traditional Korean dish, often used to improve health and strengthen the immune system. This dish is made by stewing a whole chicken with ginseng, red apples, chestnuts, glutinous rice,...
What is special is that ginseng chicken stew is often served in a thermos bowl, helping to preserve the flavor and heat of the dish. However, contrary to popular belief, this "hot" dish has an effective cooling effect on the body in the summer.
EXPLAINING THE "PARADOX" OF CHICKEN STEWED WITH GINSENG TO COOL DOWN
According to Korean belief, the human body has a tendency to "attract like". Therefore, to combat the sweltering heat of summer, they use hot foods to stimulate the body to sweat, thereby helping to cool down and purify the body.
In addition, ginseng chicken stew also contains many vitamins, minerals and compounds that have the effect of detoxifying, purifying the body, helping to cool down and strengthen the immune system. In particular, ginseng in this dish has the effect of nourishing blood, increasing blood circulation, helping the body to cool down more effectively.
THE SECRET TO ENJOYING GINSENG CHICKEN STEW PROPERLY
The main ingredient of the dish is young chicken stewed in Astragalus (a type of herb). The chicken's belly is stuffed with glutinous rice, small ginseng, jujube, garlic and seasoned with spices. The chicken is stewed until the broth thickens and smells fragrant. The dish is usually sprinkled with chopped green onions before serving and served in a Ttukbaegi bowl or unglazed earthenware bowl. Food in this bowl has the ability to keep hot for a long time.
Ginseng chicken soup is created based on the principle of "fighting poison with poison" or "fighting heat with heat". The chicken soup is eaten hot in the middle of summer, making diners sweat, helping to reduce body temperature. Koreans believe that samgyetang has the effect of strengthening the immune system, restoring energy and eliminating fatigue. It has the effect of reducing bloating and increasing appetite in the hot summer. People often eat it with kimchi, radish, fried chicken and cold beer.
SAMGYETANG - THE KOREAN SECRET OF "FIGHTING POISON WITH POISON"
Samgyetang is also known as "mother-in-law's" dish. According to ancient Korean tradition, when a son-in-law visits the house, the mother-in-law will kill one of the chickens in the garden to prepare a feast. Therefore, for Koreans, Samgyetang is also considered a dish that shows a mother's love.
"Sam" here means "ginseng", "gye" means "chicken" and "tang" means "soup". So, Samgyetang here is a ginseng soup and the main ingredient is chicken. The chicken here must be a young chicken between 3 and 6 months old and has never laid an egg. After the chicken has been cleaned, people will stuff ginseng, herbs, jujubes, garlic, ginger, glutinous rice... into the chicken.
The chicken is then put into a stone pot or earthenware bowl and boiled for an hour. Nowadays, in addition to traditional ingredients, Koreans also use many other ingredients such as chestnuts, pine nuts, abalone, octopus, crab... so samgyetang has more and more diverse flavors and is more delicious.
Korean dishes to cool down in hot summer
According to the explanation of Oriental medicine, in the hot summer, the blood flow in the body will circulate close to the skin to cool the body effectively. This causes the blood flow to the internal organs in the body to be deficient and also become cold. Therefore, the human body in the summer is very easy to lose appetite and exhausted. And Koreans believe that hot nutritious dishes like samgyetang can increase blood circulation in the internal organs and help restore appetite as well as the body's energy better. In particular, when eating samgyetang, the eater will sweat more and help cool the body effectively.
Samgyetang is also known as "mother-in-law's" food. According to old Korean tradition, when a son-in-law visits, the mother-in-law will kill one of the chickens in the garden to prepare a feast for him.
The wonderful flavor and aroma of ginseng chicken soup makes diners unable to forget the sensations on the tip of their tongue when eating this dish. Ginseng chicken soup is truly a delicious and nutritious dish created by Koreans, becoming a specialty in this country.
Not only is it a delicious and nutritious dish, ginseng chicken stew also has an effective cooling effect, helping you cope with the sweltering heat of summer. If you have the opportunity to visit Korea, don't forget to enjoy this unique dish!
