Spicy Level : 1/3*
Weirdness Level : 1/3*
What Is It?
Chicken Soup (Samgyetang, 삼계탕, also known as chicken soup) is a popular dish in the summer in Korea. It is a possum (a young chicken) stuffed with ginseng, rice, garlic and jujube. Remember on Thanks Giving day, we eat turkey and the stuffing? Instead of stuffing the turkey, Koreans stuff the possum.
Then the possum is boiled with water and the soup thickens. Some restaurants put chicken powder to make it taste nicer, but the authentic ones would just boil the water as it is.
Chicken Soup, Samgyetang, Is a Popular Cuisine Using Possum and Stuff with Ginseng and Rice
Koreans usually eat it during the hottest day of the summer- early, mid and late hot days of summer. If you want to understand more about the weather in Korea, please read here. It is important to understand the weather, because it is very distinctive, and will affect what you want to achieve in Korea.
RELATED: TOP KOREAN CUISINE IN SEOUL AND THE BEST RESTAURANTS
Because of the ginseng inside the chicken, the chicken soup is known to give a lot of stamina and energy. I would think people eat it during cold winter, because the soup is hot. But it is more popular during summer because of the benefits of eating Samgyetang.
July and August is one of the worst weather in Korea as you will be exhausted and tired from the heat. If you do feel exhausted try Samgyetang.
Koreans Eat Samgytang During the Hottest Day of the Year to Gain Back Energy and Stamina
Samgyetang has been around the block for more than 300 years, and it was a cuisine for higher class citizens as meat was a scarce resource. But it wasn’t known to be eaten during the hot summer.
This might be shocking to a lot of people, but Koreans used to eat dogs, because it was also known to give you energy. So during the 3 hottest days in Korea, the commoners used to eat dog soup (f.y.i., the dogs are not the pets we think, but more like a wild dogs).
And the rich would eat a soup called Yukgaejang (I will write about it soon). But generation after generation and the society changing, people started to move away from dog and started eating chicken.
Where Should I Eat Samgyetang in Seoul, Korea?
There are many places you can find Samgyetang as it is a common food now in Seoul, Korea. Koryo Samgyetang is probably the most famous restaurant in Seoul. It is the first restaurant to commercialize Samgyetang.
There is Hosoo Samgyetang which has a thicker soup base. They put perilla in the soup and it has a stronger taste than other restaurants. If you want to know more about these two restaurants, please let us know below comment.
If you are worried about the language barrier and ordering, you can go with KLOOK
. All you need to do is show the voucher to the waiter, and they will just set it up for you. Very easy breasy process.
I haven’t tried the restaurant, but the reviews seemed to say it is really good.
Tosockchon Is Well Known among Koreans to be the Top 3 Samgyetang Restaurant which Former President No Enjoyed Occasionally
Even though the other restaurants are excellent, I want to talk about Tosokchon in Seoul, Korea.
Tosokchon has been around for more than 50 years, and it was famous for the former president No’s favorite restaurant. In my opinion, it is perfect for travelers.
They are foreigner friendly, and it is close to all the tourist attraction like Gyeongbokgung palace. But most importantly, the food is prepared with the best quality, and fresh ingredients.
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How to Go to Tosokchon from Gyeongbokgung Palace?
Koryo, Hosoo and Tosockcon Samgyetang are called the Historical Top 3 Samgyetang in Seoul, Korea. But Tosokchon has been popular among travelers because of the proximity of all the tourist attraction. It is almost a staple to visit Tosokchon after visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace or Buckchon Hanok Village. If you are DIY traveler, it can be hard to find it. So we drew a map for you.
Tosockchon from Gyeongbokgung Palace Is Only a Five Minute Walk
Why You Should Eat It?
If you like your chicken soft and moist, this is it. Fried chicken might be the most famous Korean cuisine around the world, but samgyetang is more heartily prepared and more traditional. It can be a weird concept for a whole chicken to be in a soup, and too much work to peel it, but it is worth it.
It is also nutritional. People with hypotension will enjoy this soup. Because of the ginseng, it will bring up your appetite and help circulate your blood.
How Does It Taste Like and How Do You Eat It?
Before we talk about how it tastes like, let’s talk about how to eat it.
- Everybody will get a Ginseng shot. Take a shot which is suppose to help your blood circulate and bring your appetite back after all that exhaustion from the heat
Ginseng Shot - You will have an empty bowl so you can put Kimchi next to you. Only serve an amount you can eat 🙂
- The rice will not usually come with samgyetang, because it is already stuffed with rice, but you can ask more if you are hungry
- You should use your hands to remove the bones in the chicken (It is not barbaric, but the easiest)
- After eating all the chicken, dig in the rice that has been stuffed
- Eat the ginseng if you are feeling tired. It will bring back your stamina
- Rember to bring your number to pay the bill. If you are curious about how to pay the tips and bill in Korea, please check my other post here.
Samgytang taste like chicken noodle soup. But I will say it is better. They put more time and effort into preparing one chicken. They empty the possom. Fill it in with high quality ginseng, jujube and rice. The soup is thick and heavy.
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* 1 (Non Spicy or Weird) – 3 (Super Spicy or Weird)