Samgyetang is a whole young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice, ginseng root, garlic, and jujube, slow-simmered in a clear medicinal broth until tender.
Where to eat it: 1 restaurant across 1 city.
Samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) is a dish rooted in the Korean concept of iyeol chiyeol, treating heat with heat: eating a hot soup in the hottest days of summer to restore vitality lost through sweating. It is traditionally eaten on the three bok days of the Korean lunar calendar, the hottest days of summer. The dish uses a whole poussin (young chicken) stuffed with glutinous rice, ginseng root, garlic, and dried jujube dates. Tosokchon in Seoul, set in a cluster of traditional hanok buildings near Gyeongbokgung Palace, has become the most visited samgyetang restaurant in the city.
Common allergens: None significant (naturally gluten-free if no soy used)
Tip from the editors. Do not overcrowd the pot. Each chicken needs space to be submerged in the broth. The glutinous rice absorbs the broth and swells, so the chicken cavity should be only two-thirds filled.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
The most visited samgyetang restaurant in Seoul, set across several traditional hanok houses near Gyeongbokgung Palace with a long daily queue before 11:30.
Signature: Samgyetang, Black chicken samgyetang
Order: Samgyetang: whole young chicken packed with glutinous rice, ginseng and garlic inside renovated hanok buildings with courtyard seating.
Tip: Come at opening on weekdays; queues are shortest before 11:30.
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