The Drama: An Incomplete Life, A Complete Bowl
It’s 7:48 PM on a Tuesday. The fluorescent lights of the office have finally stopped humming. Jang Geu-rae sits alone at a plastic table in a baekban-jip — one of those no-frills Korean lunch restaurants that serve a set meal for 6,000 won. In front of him: a stone pot of doenjang jjigae, still bubbling from the kitchen, a bowl of white rice, and three small side dishes he barely touches.
He eats slowly. Not because he’s savoring it, but because he has nowhere else to be.
This is Misaeng (미생, 2014) — a drama with no murders, no love triangles, no amnesia. Just the quiet devastation of ordinary working life in a Korean corporation. Based on Yoon Tae-ho’s webtoon of the same name, Misaeng follows Jang Geu-rae (played by Im Si-wan), a former Go player who failed to go pro and enters the corporate world as an unpaid intern at a trading company. He has no degree, no connections, no skills that translate to spreadsheets. He is, in the language of Go, misaeng — an incomplete stone, a piece not yet alive on the board.
The drama doesn’t glamorize office life. It shows the 12-hour days, the hierarchy that crushes individuality, the senior who takes credit for your work, the coworker who sees you as competition rather than a colleague. And through it all, the characters eat. They eat baekban lunches in the company cafeteria. They drink soju at team dinners they didn’t want to attend. They slurp convenience store ramyeon at midnight because the last subway has already left.
But the meal that appears most consistently — the one that grounds these exhausted people back to something real — is doenjang jjigae. Not the fancy kind. The kind that comes in a stone pot at a 6,000-won set lunch. The kind your mother made on weekday evenings. The kind that smells like fermentation and earth and something older than memory.
In Misaeng, doenjang jjigae isn’t comfort food. It’s survival food.
The History of Doenjang Jjigae
What Is Doenjang Jjigae?
Doenjang jjigae (된장찌개) is a Korean stew made with doenjang — fermented soybean paste — as its primary seasoning. It’s simmered with tofu, vegetables, and sometimes meat or seafood in an earthenware pot called a ttukbaegi. The result is a bubbling, deeply savory stew with a complex umami flavor that comes from months (sometimes years) of fermentation.
If kimchi jjigae is Korea’s bold, spicy personality, doenjang jjigae is its quiet, steadfast soul.
A Stew Older Than Memory
Doenjang itself dates back to the Three Kingdoms period of Korea (57 BC – 668 AD). The process of fermenting soybeans into meju blocks, brining them, and separating the liquid (ganjang, soy sauce) from the solids (doenjang, soybean paste) has remained essentially unchanged for over a thousand years.
Every spring, Korean families traditionally set large earthenware onggi jars in their jangdokdae — the terrace of clay pots you see on rooftops and courtyards across Korea. The paste ferments for months under the sun, developing the deep, earthy, slightly funky flavor that defines Korean home cooking. A family’s doenjang was considered so important that it was often listed as part of a bride’s dowry.
Doenjang jjigae as a distinct dish became widely popular during the mid-18th century, evolving from simpler soybean paste soups into the vegetable-and-tofu-laden stew we know today. By the 20th century, it had become the single most common home-cooked meal in Korea — the dish that appears on dinner tables more than any other.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Origin | Korea, Three Kingdoms period (fermented soybean tradition) |
| Base ingredient | Doenjang (fermented soybean paste) |
| Serving vessel | Ttukbaegi (Korean earthenware pot) |
| Typical proteins | Tofu, clams, shrimp, beef, or pork |
| Essential vegetables | Zucchini, onion, green chili, green onion |
| Best liquid base | Rice-rinsing water (ssalddeumul) |
| Cultural status | Korea’s most frequently home-cooked stew |
Why Doenjang Jjigae Is Korea’s Real National Dish
Ask a Korean what they’d eat for their last meal, and many won’t say BBQ or fried chicken. They’ll say doenjang jjigae with fluffy white rice. It’s the first real food many Korean babies eat — mashed into rice by their mothers. It’s the dish that greets adult children when they come home for holidays. It’s the taste of an ordinary Tuesday evening, and that’s exactly why it matters.
In Misaeng, this matters more than plot twists or dramatic revelations. The drama understands that for millions of Korean salarymen and women, the small ritual of sitting down to a bowl of doenjang jjigae at a cheap restaurant near the office is the only moment of peace in a 14-hour day.
The Recipe: Everyday Doenjang Jjigae
This is the unfussy, weeknight version — the kind you’d find at a baekban-jip near any Korean office building. No premium ingredients needed. Just good doenjang and honest vegetables.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons doenjang (Korean fermented soybean paste) Amazon →
- 1/2 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes, optional) Amazon →
- 1/2 block firm tofu, cubed (150g)
- 1/2 zucchini, half-moon sliced
- 1/2 onion, sliced
- 1 green chili pepper, sliced
- 1 red chili pepper, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 green onion, chopped
- 1 small potato, cubed (optional)
- 80g pork belly or beef, thinly sliced (optional)
- 400ml rice-rinsing water or anchovy stock
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar (to cut bitterness)
Equipment
- Ttukbaegi (Korean earthenware pot) Amazon →
- Small saucepan (if not using ttukbaegi)
Video Tutorial
Video by 백종원의 요리비책 Paik’s Cuisine
Instructions
Step 1: Prepare Rice-Rinsing Water When washing rice for your meal, save the water from the second or third rinse — it should be cloudy but not opaque. This ssalddeumul adds starch that binds with the doenjang and gives the broth a silky body. If you don’t have it, plain water or anchovy stock works.
Step 2: Sauté the Meat (Optional) If using pork or beef, place the meat in the ttukbaegi over medium-high heat and sauté for 2 minutes until lightly browned. This builds a savory base.
Step 3: Add Liquid and Doenjang Pour in the rice-rinsing water. Add doenjang and stir to dissolve it evenly. If using gochugaru, add it now. Bring to a boil.
Step 4: Add Hard Vegetables Add potato (if using) and onion first — they take longer to cook. Boil for 5 minutes.
Step 5: Add Remaining Vegetables and Tofu Add zucchini, chili peppers, and garlic. Gently slide in the tofu cubes — don’t stir too aggressively or the tofu will crumble. Add sugar to balance the doenjang’s natural bitterness. Simmer for 5-7 minutes.
Step 6: Finish and Serve Scatter green onion on top. The stew should still be actively bubbling when it reaches the table — that’s non-negotiable. Serve immediately with steamed white rice.
Tip from Baek Jong-won: season only with doenjang, not with salt or soy sauce. If it’s bland, add more doenjang. If it’s too salty, add more rice-rinsing water. The doenjang should do all the work.
FAQ
What’s the difference between doenjang and Japanese miso?
Both are fermented soybean pastes, but they differ significantly. Korean doenjang is fermented with meju (soybean blocks inoculated with wild Bacillus subtilis) and has a stronger, earthier, more pungent flavor. Japanese miso uses koji (Aspergillus oryzae) and tends to be milder and sweeter. They are not interchangeable — miso will produce a completely different-tasting stew.
Can I use store-bought doenjang?
Yes, and most Koreans do. Look for brands like Sempio or Haechandle at Korean grocery stores or online. For the best flavor, choose one that lists soybeans and salt as the primary ingredients, without too many additives. Jip-doenjang (homemade-style) varieties tend to have deeper, more complex flavors.
Why use rice-rinsing water instead of plain water?
The starch in rice water acts as a natural thickener and emulsifier, giving the broth a silkier texture and helping the doenjang integrate more smoothly. It’s a technique passed down through generations of Korean home cooks — simple, free, and effective.
What protein works best?
Doenjang jjigae is remarkably flexible. Popular protein additions include pork belly (for richness), beef brisket (for depth), clams (for sweetness), shrimp (for brininess), or just tofu alone for a vegetarian version. Each creates a subtly different character.
How do I fix doenjang jjigae that tastes too bitter or harsh?
Add half a teaspoon of sugar. This is Baek Jong-won’s signature tip — the sugar doesn’t make the stew sweet, it rounds off the sharp edges of the fermented paste and creates a smoother, more balanced flavor.
What does Misaeng have to do with doenjang jjigae?
Misaeng is a drama about the unglamorous reality of Korean office life. Doenjang jjigae appears as the everyday meal that sustains the characters through 14-hour workdays — not as a special occasion dish, but as the quiet constant that keeps them going. The stew represents the dignity of ordinary life.
Should doenjang jjigae be served bubbling?
Absolutely. A ttukbaegi retains heat so well that the stew should still be actively bubbling when it arrives at the table. This isn’t just tradition — the boiling action keeps the flavors integrated and the aroma alive. If it stops bubbling, briefly return it to the heat before serving.
Make It Tonight
Misaeng doesn’t offer the fantasy of a better life. It offers something harder and more honest: the insistence that this life — the one with the crowded subway, the demanding boss, the 9 PM dinner alone — has dignity. That even an incomplete stone on the board is still in the game.
Doenjang jjigae is that same kind of honesty. It’s not trying to impress you. There’s no truffle oil, no dramatic plating, no Instagram angle. It’s just soybeans and vegetables in a clay pot, bubbling the way they’ve bubbled for a thousand years. And when you sit down to it after a long day, spoon the broth over hot rice, and feel the warmth spread through your chest — you’ll understand why Koreans say they could eat this every day and never tire of it.
You don’t need to be complete to be alive on the board. You just need to keep playing.
오늘 밤, 미생 정주행하면서 뚝배기에 끓인 된장찌개 한 그릇과 함께하는 건 어떨까요?
Hero image: “Doenjang-jjigae” CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Part of our K-Drama Kitchen series — cooking the dishes that made us hungry while watching.
