Cho-(go-chu)-jang Sweet & Spicy Red Chili Pepper Sauce 초(고추)장

Cho (gochu) jang (or chojang for short) is a unique spicy-sweet red chili pepper sauce.  It gives off a sweet, spicy flavor and goes well with all kinds of mixed rice dishes such as bibimbop and hweh dupbop or even noodle dishes such as jangban guksu.  It can also be used as a vegetable dipping sauce or a spicy salad dressing.  Alternatively, when eating hweh (sashimi), chojang can be used as a dipping sauce as opposed to the standard soy sauce mixed with wasabi.

It’s a very simple sauce to make using few ingredients such as gochujang, vinegar, and sugar.  Other optional ingredients can include sesame oil, minced garlic and even finely chopped green onions.  Depending on the brand of gochujang, more or less vinegar and sugar may be used, depending on the preference in the level of thickness as well as spiciness.  Chojang can also be purchased in squeezable bottles much like ketchup at your local Korean supermarkets.

Recipe Ingredients

5 tbsp gochujang (red chili pepper paste) 1 tbsp sugar (honey can be used as a substitute) 3 tbsp rice vinegar (white wine, rice or brown rice) 2 tsp minced garlic (optional) 1 tsp sesame oil (optional) 2 stalks of green onion, chopped (optional)

Cooking Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together until well-blended.
2. If sauce consistency is too thick, thin out with some warm water.
3. Use immediately or refrigerate for later use.

Tuk-bok-ki Spicy Rice Cake w/ Vegetables 떡볶이

Tukbokki is one of Korea's popular snacks that are loved by teenagers as well as adults.  It is made from garaetuk, a chewy long cylindrical rice pasta (or "rice cake") that is cut into many pieces and cooked with various ingredients.  It is a stir-fry dish which is cooked with gochujang (red chili pepper paste) along with garaetuk, seasoned beef, fish cakes and assorted vegetables such as green onions, carrots and onions.

A spicy version of tukbokki is very popular but less spicy ones can be also requested to meet everyone's taste buds.  In Korea, this snack is commonly purchased from street vendors much like hotdog vendors in New York City. However, it can be found in Korean fast food venues as well as some restaurants outside of Korea.

Recipe Ingredients

10 oz garaetuk ⅓ onion 1-2 stalk(s) carrots 1 tsp of gochujang or more, depending on how spicy you want the dish to be 1 tsp sugar 1 green onion 1 tsp garlic Sesame seeds

Cooking Directions

1. For preparation, make sure the garaetuk is soft and chewy for cooking.
2. Cut the onion and carrot into widths of ½ inch and lengths of 1 inch.
3. Mix the ketchup and hot pepper paste in a pot, then boil it with added sugar, lastly sprinkle in some sesame seeds.
4. Pour oil into a pan with garlic and green onions then fry the onions, carrots, and cabbage.
5. When the vegetables are lightly fried, put the garaetuk with the mixed sauce for 5-8 minutes.
6. Serve hot.

Pa-jeon Korean-Style Pancake 파전

Pajeon is a traditional Korean-style pancake which is a very popular appetizer or snack.  It is made with pancake mix batter, eggs, and green onions/scallions, served with a mixture of soy sauce & vinegar for its dipping sauce.  In translation, jeon (pronounced jun) is the actual battered ingredient and pa means scallions in Korean. The basic type of this dish consists of just scallions along with pancake mix and eggs but endless variation of this dish can exists by simply adding other ingredients such as seafood, kimchi, or vegetables.

To cook, the batter is poured into an oiled pan and fried to a golden crisp on a frying pan. Just like a pancake and one of the key to this dish is the egg which contributes to the crispness in texture. The most popular pajeon dish is the seafood hae-mul pajeon, which usually consists of little bits of oysters, fresh baby clams, shrimps and even squids. It’s nothing compared to pancakes most frequently found on North American breakfast tables as a regular pan of pajeon is big enough to feed three hungry mouths.

Recipe Ingredients: Dipping Sauce

¼ cup soy sauce ½ tbsp vinegar (distilled white) 1 stalk scallion, minced 1 clove garlic, minced ½ tsp gochugaru, red hot chili pepper flakes (optional) ½ tsp sugar 1 tsp sesame oil

Recipe Ingredients

2 cups pancake mix 2 cups water 2 eggs 1 bunch scallions Vegetable oil Salt & pepper to taste To make Hae-Mul Pajeon also add: 1 cup oysters 1 cup chopped clams, fresh 1 cup baby shrimps

Cooking Directions: Serving 4 Pancakes

1. In a large bowl, mix pancake mix, water and egg until it's smooth. Add more mix or water if needed to get the consistency of a thin pancake batter.
2. Stir in half the chopped scallions and season with salt and pepper. Let set for about 10-15 minutes.
3. Heat a skillet over medium flame and a little oil.
4. Pour about ¾ cup batter into the skillet, tilting the pan to cover the bottom.
5. Sprinkle over a few of the scallions and let cook for 6-8 minutes until the bottom is lightly browned.
6. For Hae-Mul Pajeon (seafood & scallion pancake): Sprinkle about ¼ cup of clams, oysters, chopped squid, shrimp or other seafood over the batter as you make each pancake.
7. Flip and brown the other side and cook for another 6-8 minutes. Make sure all surfaces contact the skillet with a spatula.
8. Wipe the skillet with the oily paper towel and repeat with the rest of the batter.
9. When ready to serve, cut the pancake into 8 pieces resembling a pizza pie.
10. For its dipping sauce, mix the sauce ingredients together.
11. Serve pancakes warm.

O-jing-uH Ti-Gim Deep Fried Battered Squid 오징어 튀김

Ojinguh tigim is a popular Korean appetizer before a meal or while drinking a cold mekju. Very much like the Western calamari dish, it consists of batter-coated, deep fried squid that are served plain with a dipping sauce. However, unlike popular dipping sauces such as tartar or marinara sauce found alongside calamari, this Korean version is usually served with soy sauce mixed with vinegar and crushed red pepper flakes (gochugaru) which will add some spiciness to each bite.

The body (mantle) can be stuffed whole, cut into flat pieces or sliced into rings. The arms and tentacles are also fried since it's edible; the only parts of the squid that is discarded are its beak and gladius.

O-jing-uh Dried Squid 오징어

 

Ojinguhs are popular dry food snacks and it’s the closest equivalent of a Korean beef jerky. Instead of beef, however, ojinguh’s are dried squids which are readily available in the packaged goods section of your local Korean supermarket. This snack is enjoyed by Koreans of all ages but especially popular while drinking beer or soju as “anju” or drinking snacks. 

To prepare them at home, they can be easily be cooked on gas stovetops over low to medium flames and/or using frying pans over electric stovetops. Both sides are evenly cooked and then stripped into thinner pieces to be eaten plain or dipped in mayo and/or gochujang as its dipping sauce. Other popular dipping sauce can be mustard or even tobasco sauce.

Man-doo Korean Dumpling 만두

Mandoo is a Korean dumpling consisting of minced meat and vegetables wrapped in a thin piece of dough. Popular meat fillings include shrimp, ground beef, pork or fish. And popular vegetables ingredients can include bean sprouts, green onions, shredded kimchi and much more.

Korean mandoo can be cooked in several ways where it is simmered in beef stock, steamed or fried.  It is usually dipped in soy sauce mixed with vinegar and served with kimchi on the side.  Crushed or powder red chili pepper flakes (gochugaru) can be added to the mixture of sauces to add an extra kick.  Traditionally, mandoo dumplings were made at home but nowadays, it is readily available in Asian supermarkets and/or convenience stores in the frozen foods section.

Mandoo is usually enjoyed as an appetizer or as a snack but almost all Korean families prepares this dish on the first day of any New Year by simmering mandoo's in a beef stock to make mandoo guk.

Fact: In Chinese, dumplings are called jiaozi and in Japanese, it's gyoza.

Kang-Poong Sae-Woo Spicy & Sweet Shrimp 깐풍새우

Kangpoong saewoo is another popular appetizer enjoyed by Asians at Korean/Chinese restaurants much like tangsuyuk. It's definitely a crowd-pleaser, consisting of a pile of battered, crispy fried shrimp in a spicy garlic sauce containing hot chili peppers and sprinkles of scallions. It is usually eaten as an appetizer, ample enough for a quartet of diners to share. Shrimps are usually dipped in soy sauce mixed with vinegar and crushed or powder red pepper flakes (gochugaru) which will add additional kick to each bite.