With the heat wave stretching on day after day, appetite and stamina alike are quick to fade. In a season of heavy sweating, nothing matters more than drinking enough fluids and eating a balanced diet. That is why, from long ago, Koreans marked sambok — the three hottest days of summer, known as chobok, jungbok and malbok — by eating restorative foods and seeking out cool waterside spots, a custom called bokdalim. Among the many restorative dishes, including eel, croaker, abalone and octopus, the one that has become the most popular bokdalim food today is samgyetang, or ginseng chicken soup.
Samgyetang is made by stuffing a young chicken with glutinous rice, ginseng, garlic and jujubes, then simmering it slowly. Many assume it has been eaten in its present form since the Joseon Dynasty, but the dish as we know it was completed relatively recently. During the Japanese colonial period, the name gyesamtang, which put the chicken first, was also used in some quarters. Later, as the poultry industry developed and refrigerated distribution made fresh ginseng easy to obtain, the name samgyetang and today's recipe began to take hold from the 1960s, and in the 1970s the dish became popular as a signature summer restorative meal.
With a few simple techniques, a clean and deep flavor can be achieved at home as well. Samgyetang typically uses a young chicken of about 700 to 800 grams. The chicken at the heart of the dish supplies high-quality protein. The glutinous rice adds carbohydrates, while ginseng, garlic and jujubes lend the soup its distinctive aroma and taste. Because chicken and glutinous rice are eaten together, the dish also works well as a single meal on a hot day for replenishing calories and protein.
Samgyetang is the leading example of iyeolchiyeol, the idea of countering heat with heat by eating hot food. A single bowl contains not only wholesome ingredients but also the wisdom of a food culture that sought to endure the hottest stretch of the year with a hearty meal.
