Yakuzen (Medicinal Dishes), Part II Sam Gye Tang (chicken and ginseng soup)

Asians have always considered food to be medicine and categorized it according to its properties as they do to medicinal herbs. For example, chickens have a Warm nature and a propensity for Spleen and Stomach channels. In real English, this means that chickens have nourishing and vitalizing properties that are especially beneficial for our digestive systems. You all know about this because of the chicken noodle soup that you eat when you are sick.

Yakuzen is a type of food that involves cooking with medicinal herbs. In this article, I would like to introduce you to a famous Korean dish, Sam Gye Tang (chicken and ginseng soup). Ginseng (panax ginseng) is probably the most famous tonic in Eastern pharmacopeia because of its strong vitalizing effect on the human body and its effectiveness in strengthening the digestive system. It is commonly used in many formulas for patients to give them extra energy to recover from illness or surgery, to boost their immune systems, to improve their digestion, etc.

In Korea, Sam Gye Tang is very popular among overworked business people. This dish is perfect when you are exhausted and have no appetite, which you need in order to get over the exhaustion. All the ingredients in this dish aid digestion, and a healthy digestive system helps you to absorb the strong, tonic essence of ginseng. I have had this dish a few times. It definitely felt like my body temperature warmed up, and I felt energized after eating it.

Caution: this dish is not recommended for people with high blood pressure!

Sam Gye Tang
Ingredients (4 servings)

• One whole young chicken
  
• 3 tbsp. sweet rice
  
• One piece of ginseng root (You can buy this at a Chinese herb store. It comes in many different grades; this dish does not require an expensive kind.)
  
• One clove of garlic
  
• One dried date (jujube, Chinese date)
  
• One chestnut, peeled
  
• Dipping sauce (combination to taste of: powdered chili pepper, soy sauce, green onion, toasted sesame seeds, salt, and pepper)

Cooking method
If the ginseng is store-bought and dried, soak it in water overnight.

• Soak the date in water for 30 minutes. Rinse the sweet rice and soak it in water for 30 minutes.
  
  
• It is best to use a fresh young chicken that has been gutted. Rinse it thoroughly. Tie the neck cavity closed with a string and stuff the chicken with all of the above ingredients except for the dipping sauce. Seal the abdominal cavity with more string.
  
  
• Place the chicken in a large clay pot and add water until the entire chicken is covered. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once the water boils, turn the heat down to low. Cut a piece of aluminum foil to be slightly smaller in diameter than the pot and set it inside of the pot onto the surface of the soup. Simmer for 3 hours; skim the surface occasionally and add water, if needed.
  
  
• Done! Serve it with the dipping sauce and enjoy.