Yangnyeom gejang (spicy marinated raw crabs)

Yangnyeom gejang (Korean Bapsang)

Gejang is a traditional dish that is marinated in a salty soy sauce brine as a way of preserving the crabs for a long time. These days, the crabs are lightly preserved, in either a mild soy sauce-based brine (ganjang gejang) or in a spicy sauce (yangnyeom gejang), to be consumed within a few days. 

The most important thing is to buy the freshest crabs. Freezing them will help with cleaning. Clean the crabs very well under running water.

Making the spicy version is fairly simple. Prepare the seasoning (yangnyeom), clean the crabs, and mix with the seasoning. For ganjang gejang, the whole crabs are soaked in a soy brine. On the other hand, for yangnyeom gejang, the crabs are opened and cut into pieces before being marinated, for the sauce to coat and penetrate the crabmeat. 

This salty, spicy marinated crab dish will certainly live up to its reputation for being a “rice thief.” Be ready to enjoy with lots of rice! 

Ingredients:3 to 4 small to medium kkotge or blue crabs

Seasoning:
3 tablespoons gochugaru (or more to taste)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon soup soy sauce, guk ganjang 
2 tablespoons rice wine
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1 tablespoon of plum syrup (maesil chung), or 2 tablespoons of grated pear 1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons finely grated (juiced) ginger
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 scallion, finely chopped

Put the live crabs in the freezer for an hour or two (longer is fine as well). Combine all the seasoning ingredients and mix well. The seasoning can be prepared a day or two in advance. It will further develop flavor as it sits. 

Plunge the frozen crabs in cold water to thaw. Separate the top shell and remove the gills. Clean the shell part of the crab thoroughly, with a kitchen brush or a toothbrush, under running water.

Break (or cut) the body in half (or quarters). You can cut off the sharp end of each small leg with a pair of kitchen scissors if preferred. Drain well in a colander in the fridge. It’s important to minimize the time that the crabs are out at room temperature. 

Combine the crabs and seasoning, and toss to coat well. Spoon some sauce into the top shells. Marinate for a few hours at least or up to a couple of days in the fridge. These spicy crabs are best eaten within a couple of days.

Home Cooking: Dak Kalguksu

This boiling hot noodle soup is a popular summertime dish in Korea. 

Kalguksu literally means “knife noodles”, but it actually refers to a steaming hot noodle soup that’s traditionally made with handmade, knife-cut noodles. 

There are many variations using different ingredients for the soup base or for the dough. Dak (chicken) kalguksu is made with a rich chicken broth, and shredded chicken meat. 




For convenience, you can use commercially packaged fresh kalguksu noodles available in the refrigerated section of Korean markets. Parboil the noodles in a separate pot before adding to the chicken broth. Otherwise, the soup can get very thick from all the starch the noodles release while cooking. 

Dak kalguksu is traditionally made with a whole chicken. It’s a cheap way to feed more people, not to mention the stock will be more flavorful. You can cut up a whole chicken before boiling if you want it to cook a little faster. If you want to use cut chicken pieces, leg quarters and chicken wings will be good for a flavorful stock. 

For the soup:1 small whole chicken, or bone-in cut pieces (about 1.2 kilogram)
1/2 medium onion
8 plump garlic cloves
3 to 4 thinly sliced ginger pieces
2 white parts of scallions
1 3-inch square dried kelp 
1/4 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon soup soy sauce

For the meat:1 teaspoon minced garlic
salt (about 1/2 teaspoon) and pepper to taste

For the vegetables:1 medium zucchini, julienned
2 scallions, finely chopped

For the noodles:1 package fresh kalguksu noodles 

For the sauce (Yangnyumjang) - Optional: 
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon Korean red pepper flakes (gochugaru)
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 – 3 scallions, finely chopped

Place the cleaned chicken in a stockpot large enough to hold the chicken and 12 cups of water. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and scallions, and 12 cups water. Bring it to a boil over medium high heat. Skim off any foam on top. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, covered, for about 40 minutes. Adjust cooking time for cut pieces. 

Sprinkle the julienned zucchini with salt for about 15 minutes and squeeze out the water. Briefly sauté in a heated pan with a little bit of oil. Set aside.

Cut through the thickest part of the breast, with a knife, to see if the chicken is cooked and tender. Turn the heat off and carefully remove the chicken. 

When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat off the bones. Shred the meat into small bite size pieces. Add the garlic, salt and pepper to the chicken. Combine well. 

Strain the broth and remove the excess fat. You can line the strainer with a paper towel or use a fat separator. 

Return the broth back to the pot. Add the dried kelp, onion slices, and soup soy sauce. Bring it to a boil and boil for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the kelp. 

Meanwhile, in another pot, boil water to cook the noodles. Parboil the noodles. 

Remove the noodles with a strainer and add to the pot with the broth. 

Continue to boil until the noodles are cooked through. 

To serve, ladle the noodles and soup in a serving bowl, top with the chicken pieces, zucchini and chopped scallion.

Gamjajeon (potato pancakes) Gamjajeon is a variety of Korean savory pancake made with grated or ground potatoes

Gamjajeon is a variety of Korean savory pancake made with grated or ground potatoes. It’s a humble dish that can simply be made with potatoes. But, a little bit of onion helps prevent discoloring of the potatoes without overpowering their flavor. This is a basic recipe, but you can add other vegetables such as garlic chives (buchu), chili peppers, and/or perilla leaves (kkaennip) if you like.


You can grate the potatoes or grind them in a blender or a food processor. I like to grate them on a grater for a coarse texture. Whichever method you use, you need to remove some water content from the grated potatoes, or it will be too watery for a pancake batter. Do not throw away the drained water since it contains valuable starch. Let the starch water sit for a while until the starch sinks to the bottom and forms a dense, white layer. Carefully pour out the water, and use the starch in the batter. This is the traditional way to make a potato pancake batter without adding flour or powder starch. 

Makes 2 large pancakes

Ingredients:

1/4 medium onion

2 large or 3 medium potatoes

1/4 teaspoon salt

oil for pan frying

Peel and grate the onion (about 2 to 3 tablespoons). Place in a large bowl. Peel and grate the potatoes, capturing the liquid. If using a blender or food processor, grind the onion and potatoes together.

Drain the grated potato in a bowl lined with a strainer, reserving the liquid. Immediately transfer the potato to the bowl with the grated onion, and mix well. 

Let the reserved potato liquid sit for about 10 minutes. The starch in the liquid will sink to the bottom. Carefully pour out the water, saving the starch. Add the starch and salt to the potato mix. Stir to combine well. 

Heat a skillet with two tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add 1/2 of the batter, and spread it evenly into a round shape. You can make smaller pancakes if you like. Reduce the heat to medium low, and cook until the bottom is light golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Repeat the process with the remaining batter. Serve hot with a dipping sauce. 

Tteokgalbi (short rib patties)

These fancy beef patties are called tteokgalbi, literally translated to rice cake ribs. But don’t expect any rice cakes in the dish. The name comes from the way the minced meat is kneaded and shaped as rice cakes are made in Korea. 

Tteokgalbi is made with beef short rib meat. The meat is separated from the bones, finely minced and then marinated. The marinated meat can be attached back to the rib bones before being cooked. Here, I simply shaped them like burger patties. 

Beef short ribs are an expensive cut of meat. Substitute with cheaper cut of meat if you want. The meat is traditionally hand-minced, but you can use a meat grinder or food processor instead. It’s also very common to use ground beef (or pork, or a combination) to make tteokgalbi.

These tasty, tender patties can be broiled, grilled or pan-fried. They will be great for your summer grilling as well! 

Ingredients:

About 1.5 kilogram beef short ribs (or 1 kilogram boneless beef chuck or brisket)

Marinade:

4 tablespoons soy sauce 

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons rice wine (or Mirin)

3 tablespoons grated Korean/Asian pear (or apple) grated

1/2 medium onion, finely chopped

3 scallions, finely chopped

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced ginger

1 tablespoons sesame oil

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Soak the ribs in cold water for 20 to 30 minutes to remove some blood. Drain. 

Trim excess fat. Remove the meat as much as possible from the bones. Keep the meat in the freezer for about an hour.

Grind the meat using a meat grinder or a food processor. If mincing by hand, thinly slice the meat, cut the slices into thin strips, and then cut crosswise into small pieces. Mince the meat by rocking the blade back and forth into the smallest pieces possible.

Mix all marinade ingredients well. 

Add the marinade to the meat, and then mix very well. Knead the meat until it becomes a bit sticky, 2 to 3 minutes. Marinate the meat for at least 2 hours (overnight for best results). 

Shape the meat, pressing tightly your palms, into round or oval patties. 

Set the oven to broil and preheat. Lay the meat in a broil pan and place it on the top rack of the oven, usually about 15 centimeters below the broiler. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully flip them over and cook for an additional 3 -4 minutes until nicely charred. You can also grill over a charcoal or gas grill. Grill over medium to medium-high, turning only once, 2―3 minutes on each side.

Mini gimbap

This mini gimbap uses minimal ingredients, which takes no effort to roll up. I used three ingredients here ― pickled radish, carrot and spinach. This gimbap is called ggoma gimbap because of its small size. Ggoma means a little one or little kid in Korean. It’s also known as mayak gimbap. Mayak means narcotics, so the name comes from this gimbap’s reputation for being addictive. It’s a specialty of Gwangjang Market, a bustling, crowded market in the center city of Seoul, where the merchants came up with the idea to serve these little guys with a sweet and tangy hot mustard sauce. 


A typical hot mustard sauce includes hot mustard called gyeoja, vinegar, soy sauce and sugar. Here, I tried it with dijon mustard and added finely ground sesame seeds for extra nutty flavor to pair with the sesame oil laden gimbap. It’s addictive! 

Makes 16 pieces

Ingredients:

● 1-1/2 cups uncooked short grain rice (standard measuring cup not the cup that comes with a rice cooker) 

● 2 teaspoons sesame oil 

● salt to taste (start with 1/3 teaspoon)

● 1 small bunch spinach

● 1 teaspoon sesame oil

● salt to taste ― about 1/4 teaspoon

● 1 large carrot, julienned 

● 4 yellow pickled radish (danmuji) strips, precut for gimbap

● 4 gim (dried seaweed) sheets

Sauce:

● 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, finely ground in a spice grinder or mortar bowl

● 1 tablespoon vinegar

● 1 teaspoon soy sauce 

● 1 teaspoon dijon mustard (or Korean hot mustard, gyeoja)

● 1/8 teaspoon salt

● 2 teaspoons sugar

Cook the rice using a little less water than usual. (Fresh cooked rice is best for gimbap.)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and prepare an ice bath. Blanch the spinach, place immediately in the ice bath, then squeeze the water out. Run a knife through the squeezed spinach a couple of times. Season with the sesame oil and salt.

Julienne the carrots. Heat a lightly oiled pan over medium high heat. Stir-fry the carrots until slightly softened. Lightly season with a pinch of salt.

Cut each strip of pickled radish crosswise in half, and then cut lengthwise in half.

When all the ingredients are ready, remove the rice from the rice cooker. While the rice is still hot, add the sesame oil and salt. Mix well by lightly folding with a rice paddle or spoon until evenly seasoned. 

Cut four sheets of nori into quarters. 

Put a quarter sheet of gim, shiny side down and shorter side toward you, on a cutting board. Spread 1 tablespoon to 1-1/2 tablespoons of rice evenly over the gim, leaving a little bit of space on the side away from you. Do this with your fingers. Keep a wet towel handy and wipe your fingers frequently to keep the rice from sticking to your fingers. Lay the prepared ingredients on top of the rice, closer toward you. 

Lift the entire bottom edge with both hands and roll over the filling away from you, tucking in the filling with your fingers.

Rub or brush the roll with a little bit of sesame oil for extra flavor and a shiny look. 

Kimchi sundubu jjigae (kimchi soft tofu stew)

Sundubu jjigae is a stew made with uncurdled tofu. Here, the tofu is paired with kimchi and meat. You can use any meat you want. Mushrooms are a good substitute if you don’t like meat. For the best results, always use fully fermented kimchi to cook with. Also, if you have some salted shrimp (saewujeot) leftover from making kimchi, use a little to season the stew instead of salt. It adds a wonderful layer to the flavor. Keep a package or two of sundubu in the fridge and whip up this bubbling pot of flavorful jjigae when you want something warm and comforting. 

Kimchi sundubu jjigae (Korean Bapsang)

Ingredients:

● 1 package (350 grams) sundubu (extra soft/silken tofu)

● 1/3 cup thinly sliced kimchi

● 60 grams beef or pork 

● 1 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes (gochugaru) ― add more for a spicier stew

● 1 teaspoon minced garlic

● 1 teaspoon sesame oil (use a little more if using more gochugaru)

● 1 cup water (or anchovy broth) 

● 2 to 3 tablespoons juice from kimchi

● 1/2 teaspoon saewujeot (salted shrimp) or salt

● pinch black pepper

● 1 scallion, finely chopped

● 1 egg (optional)

Cut the meat and kimchi into small thin strips. Add the kimchi, meat, red chili pepper flakes, garlic and sesame oil to a small pot and place it over medium heat. 

Stir-fry until the meat is almost cooked, 3-4 minutes.

Pour in the water (or broth) and juice from the kimchi. Bring it to a boil, and continue to boil for 3-4 minutes. Skim off the scum. 

Add the soft tofu in big chunks. Stir in the salted shrimp or salt to taste (start with 1/4 teaspoon) and black pepper. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the chopped scallion just before removing the pot from the heat. If desired, crack an egg into the stew while it’s still boiling hot.

Asparagus with gochujang sauce

Here’s a quick and easy Korean side dish you can make with spring asparagus. Simply blanch the asparagus and dress with a sweet and vinegary gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste) sauce, called cho-gochujang. 

Cho-gochujang is used in various dishes. It’s also popular as a dipping sauce for vegetables and seafood such as squid and raw fish (saengseon hoe). Everyone makes the sauce a little differently, but the key ingredients are gochujang, vinegar, and sugar. Adjust the amount of vinegar or sugar to your taste. 

This sauce is also great with other spring vegetables such as dureup and dolnamul. 

Asparagus with gochujang sauce (Korean Bapsang)

Ingredients:

● 450 grams asparagus

● 1 tablespoon salt

Cho-gochujang (sweet and sour gochujang sauce):

2 tablespoons gochujang, Korean red chili pepper paste

2 tablespoons vinegar 

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic 

1 teaspoon sesame oil 

1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds

Remove the tough ends of the asparagus. Cut into about 5 centimeter lengths. 

Blanch them in salted boiling water until softened, about 1 to 3 minutes. Remove with a strainer, and shock in cold water. Drain very well. 

Mix the sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Pour over the asparagus, and toss well to mix.