Samgyetang

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Samgyetang

Korean name

Hangul	삼계탕
Hanja	蔘鷄湯
Revised Romanization	Samgyetang
McCune-Reischauer	Samgyet'ang

Samgyetang (pronounced [samgjetʰaŋ]), sometimes called chicken ginseng soup, is a Korean soup-based dish. It is basically a whole young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice and boiled in a broth of Korean ginseng, dried seeded jujube fruits, garlic, and ginger. Depending on the recipe, other medicinal herbs such as wolfberry (gugija), Codonopsis pilosula (dangsam), and Angelica sinensis (danggwi) may also be added. The dish's name literally means "ginseng chicken soup."

Samgyetang is traditionally served in the summer for its supposed nutrients, which replaces those that are easily lost through excessive sweating and physical exertion during the hot summers in Korea. Many Koreans enjoy it especially at three days in summer, these days are called "Chobok", "Jungbok", "Malbok", days that Koreans believe to be the hottest and most sultry of the year.

Like chicken soup, which is thought to help common sicknesses in the West, samgyetang is held to be not only a cure for physical ailments but a preventer of sickness. Proteins, minerals and hormones from the whole chicken mixed with the beneficial properties of the ingredients combined in the dish makes it a revered culinary item in South Korea. Only whole uncut ingredients are used for the dish, as they preserve the maximum amount of nutrients.

Specialty restaurants common in Korea serve nothing but samgyetang, having gained local popularity through their special recipe for the dish which are often kept secret. The dish is usually accompanied by side dishes and, in some restaurants, a small complementary bottle of ginseng wine is included.