Kimchi jjigae - No Recipe's recipe

Though I haven't yet got around to making my own kimchi, I didn't think that was a good reason not to try making Kimchi Jjigae myself.  I have no idea how authentic this recipe is, and it comes from the oddly named website No Recipes, so perhaps I should be dubious.  Nevertheless first impressions are that this is a really easy & really tasty dish to make.

Mostly following the recipe correctly, I think I did rather well.  I didn't have any Mirin and as I was told in clear terms that it was spicy enough I didn't add any of the (up to 2 tablespoons!) chilli powder.  Those tweaks aside, it was really good, I was surprised just how good in fact.

I think its the miso paste that brings the earthy flavours, and the kimchi mellows in a really interesting way when its cooked.  But either the choice of pork belly for the meat, or the cooking time allowed is an error I need to rectify next time around.

It might not be the traditional way but i'm thinking pork shoulder simmered gently over a couple of hours might be delicious.  Plus i'll boost the amount of garlic & add more fresh ginger instead of powdered.  This is going to be a winter staple - but next time I'll try to have some home-made kimchi ready.

http://norecipes.com/blog/kimchi-jigae-recipe-kimchi-soup/