This Weight Watchers Korean Braised Rooster Is Superb

Korean Braised Rooster, or dakjjim, is a comforting, flavorful stew that brings the magic of Korean delicacies to your kitchen. Tender hen is simmered with healthful greens in a savory-sweet sauce with only a trace of spice. Sweetened with Splenda, this Weight Watchers-friendly dish delivers all of the daring flavors with out further factors.

Completely balanced with candy, salty, and spicy notes, dakjjim is hearty but gentle, making it a satisfying 1-Level meal for any event. Prepared in beneath an hour, it’s straightforward to organize and filled with taste in each chunk. Discover this and different Weight Watchers dinner recipes for extra scrumptious inspiration!

Why must you strive Korean Braised Rooster?

1. Easy Components, Extraordinary Taste: At first look, Korean Braised Rooster makes use of acquainted stew elements—hen, potatoes, carrots, and onions—however the addition of mushrooms, ginger, scallions, and a contact of spice elevates it into one thing extraordinary. Mirin (a candy rice wine) provides sweet-tangy taste, however should you don’t have it available, vinegar works instead.
2. Wholesome and Weight Watchers-Pleasant: This model skips sugar and makes use of Splenda to maintain the sweetness with out the energy. It’s an ideal approach to get pleasure from a comforting dish whereas staying aware of your factors.
3. Excellent Steadiness of Candy, Savory, and Spicy: Korean delicacies is understood for combining these flavors fantastically, and dakjjim is not any exception. The spice may be adjusted based mostly in your desire—go delicate or add a fiery kick with chili peppers.

Preparation Time: quarter-hour

Cooking Time: 30-35 minutes

Whole Time: 45-50 minutes

Servings: 4

Serving Measurement: About 1.5 cups (350 g)

1 WW Level Per Serving. You’ll be able to view the recipe on the WW App right here. (WW login required.)

Components

• 1 lb (450 g) boneless, skinless hen breast, minimize into giant chunks
• 3 medium carrots, minimize into giant cubes (1 1/2 cup, 200 g)
• 1 medium potatoes, minimize into giant cubes (3/4 cups, 120 g)
• 1 giant onion, minimize into chunks (1.5 cups, 200 g)
• 2 inexperienced onions (scallions), chopped (half for cooking, half for garnish)
• 1 cup (150 g) mushrooms (shiitake, cremini, or button), halved
• 1-inch piece of ginger, grated (1 tablespoon, 15 g)
• 2 Korean chili peppers (elective), sliced for spice
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) mirin (candy rice wine)
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) oil (vegetable or impartial)
• 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) salt, or to style
• 1/4 teaspoon (1 g) black pepper
• 2 packets (2 g) Splenda (sugar substitute)

Directions

1.      Put together the Components

• Start by reducing the hen breasts into giant, even chunks. This ensures that they cook dinner evenly and stay tender throughout the slow-cooking course of.

• Chop the carrots and potatoes into thick cubes to stop them from turning into too delicate. Slice the onion into giant chunks, and minimize the inexperienced onions into small items, separating half for the cooking and the opposite half for garnish.
• For those who’re including Korean chili peppers, minimize them in half to launch the warmth into the stew.

2.      Make the Sauce

• In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, mirin, grated ginger, Splenda, and sesame oil. Stir till the Splenda is absolutely dissolved. Style and modify seasoning if wanted—you’ll be able to add a pinch of salt or extra Splenda for sweetness.

3.      Assemble the Components within the Sluggish Cooker

• Place the carrots, potatoes, onions, and mushrooms on the backside of the sluggish cooker. Layer on high of the hen chunks. Add half of the chopped inexperienced onions and the chili peppers if utilizing.

4.      Pour the Sauce

• Pour the sauce evenly over the hen and greens within the sluggish cooker. Use a spatula or spoon to softly combine every thing in order that the sauce coats the elements.

5.      Prepare dinner the Dish

• Cowl the sluggish cooker with its lid. Prepare dinner on Low for 4 hours or on Excessive for two.5 hours, relying in your time desire.
• Keep away from stirring throughout the cooking course of to permit the potatoes to naturally thicken the sauce.

6.      Last Touches

• As soon as the cooking time is full, examine the hen and greens for tenderness. The hen ought to shred simply with a fork, and the potatoes and carrots needs to be delicate however not mushy.
• Stir gently to mix the sauce with the hen and greens evenly.

7.      Serve

• Switch the Sluggish Cooker Korean Braised Rooster to a serving dish. Sprinkle the remaining chopped inexperienced onions excessive for garnish.
• Serve heat as is, or pair it with steamed rice for an entire and hearty meal.

Variations and Substitutions

Korean Braised Rooster is splendidly versatile, and there are a number of well-known variations you’ll be able to strive:

1. Andong Jjimdak: This model comes from the town of Andong and is understood for its clear, spicy taste. As an alternative of utilizing Korean chili paste (gochujang) or chili flakes (gochugaru), it will get its warmth from dried pink chili peppers and contemporary scorching chilies. The result’s a dish that’s candy and completely spicy with out being overly wealthy.
2. Vegetable-Packed Dakjjim: For a nutrient increase, add extra greens to the dish. Asian greens like bok choy or kale work fantastically. Bell peppers, zucchini, or daikon radish are additionally nice additions that complement the sauce.
3. Noodle-Topped Dakjjim: Some variations embody delicate glass noodles or crispy fried angel hair noodles for further texture. Whereas I’ve chosen to skip these for the sake of factors, they could be a scrumptious addition should you’re on the lookout for one thing particular.

Suggestions and Tips for making Korean Braised Rooster

1. Sluggish Cooker Suggestions: For those who’re utilizing a sluggish cooker, one of the frequent questions is, “How a lot liquid ought to I add?” The reply: as little as doable. The magic of sluggish cookers is that they extract moisture from the elements, so further liquids aren’t all the time essential.
2. Adjusting Spice Ranges: For those who love the stability of candy and spicy however desire a milder model, go for Anaheim or poblano chilies as an alternative of hotter varieties. This retains the flavour intact with out an excessive amount of warmth.
3. Style Your Marinade: The important thing to excellent dakjjim is balancing the flavors of the sauce. Style it earlier than including salt—the soy sauce already offers loads of saltiness, so that you would possibly want lower than you assume.
4. Don’t Skip the Mushrooms: Shiitake mushrooms (contemporary or dried) add a wealthy taste to the stew. For those who can’t discover shiitake, use cremini or button mushrooms instead.