Daegu Jiri-tang (Korean Clear Cod Soup)

• 2 litres water
• 300 g Korean radish (mu), thinly sliced
• a handful of medium dried anchovies (myeolchi), for the broth (lifted out)
• a handful of dried shrimp, for the broth (lifted out)
• 15 g dried kombu (dasima), for the broth (lifted out)
• 2 cheongyang green chillies, coarsely cut (lifted out)
• 1 whole fresh cod (about 1.3 kg), cleaned and cut into pieces
• 2 tsp (1 rice-spoon) ginger wine (or ginger juice), to sprinkle on the fish
• 1 tsp (½ rice-spoon) minced garlic
• 100 g soybean sprouts (kongnamul)
• 2 tsp (1 rice-spoon) mirin
• 2 tsp (1 rice-spoon) saeujeot liquid (salted shrimp brine)
• 4 tsp (2 rice-spoons) jip-ganjang (Korean soup soy sauce)
• 200 g tofu, halved and sliced
• a handful (about 50 g) minari (Korean water dropwort), cut into lengths
• 1 stalk daepa (Korean large green onion), sliced
• 1 red chilli, sliced, to garnish
• 1 tsp (½ rice-spoon) salt, or to taste

Method

The cook speaks Korean; every step is written here in English. Tap a time to watch that step on YouTube.

1. Put 2 litres of water on to heat. Slice the radish thinly and add it straight to the pot. 0:27
2. Microwave a handful each of dried anchovies and dried shrimp for 30 seconds and add them with the kombu and the coarsely cut green chillies to make the broth. 0:48
3. Meanwhile slice the daepa and red chilli, cut the minari into lengths and halve and slice the tofu. Lift the kombu out after a few minutes of boiling. 1:14
4. Sprinkle the cod with ginger wine, blanch it in hot water for about 30 seconds so the flesh firms and loses its fishy smell, then drain. 2:02
5. After about 10 minutes lift out the anchovies and shrimp. Add the minced garlic and stir for about 20 seconds just to release its aroma. 2:32
6. Turn up the heat, add the soybean sprouts and the cod, then the mirin, shrimp brine and soup soy sauce. Skim off any foam. 3:04
7. Add the tofu, minari, daepa and red chilli, cover and boil 3 minutes. Taste, season with about ½ rice-spoon salt, and remove the green chillies before serving. 4:02

Tip. Serves 5 (our estimate: about 600 g a bowl with 90 g cod). A clear, mild soup often eaten as a hangover cure, with rice on the side. Ask the fishmonger to clean and cut the cod; the head and bones flavour the broth.

The method is a summary in our words — the video shows every step.