Jjajangmyeon

Jjajangmyeon (noodles with black bean sauce)

Recipe by Maangchi

PREP TIME:

20 minutes

COOK TIME:

20 minutes

SERVING SIZE:

2-3 servings

Ingredients:

Jjajangmyeon noodles

½ pound pork belly, cut into ½ inch cubes (about 1½ cups’ worth)

1 cup of Korean radish (or daikon), cut into ½ inch cubes (about 1 cup’s worth)

1½ cups of onion chunks

3 tablespoons of vegetable oil

¼ cup and 1 tablespoon of black bean paste

2 tablespoons of potato starch powder, combined with ¼ cup water and 1 teaspoon of sugar in a small bowl, set aside

1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil

½ cup cucumber, cut into thin matchsticks for garnish

Water

Instructions:

1. Stir-fry the pork belly in a large, deep wok with 1 Tablespoon of vegetable oil for about 4-5 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.

Stir-fry pork

2. Pour out the excess pork fat.

3. Add radish and stir fry for 1 minute.

4. Add potato, onion, and zucchini and keep stirring for about 3 minutes until the potato looks a little translucent.

5. Clear a space in the center of the wok by pushing the ingredients to the edges.

6. Add 2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil to the center of the wok, then add ¼ cup of black bean paste and stir it with a wooden spoon for 1 minute to fry it. Then mix everything in the wok and keep stirring.

Mix ingredients

7. Add 2 cups of water to the wok and let it cook with the lid closed for about 10 minutes.

8. Open the lid and taste a sample of the radish and potato. If they’re fully cooked, stir in the starch water little by little. Keep stirring until it’s well mixed and thick.

Mix ingredients

9. Add the sesame oil and remove from the heat.

10. Boil and drain the noodles. Rinse and strain in cold water.

11. Put one serving of noodles onto a serving plate and add the jjajang sauce over top.

12. Garnish with cucumber strips and serve immediately with kimchi or yellow pickled radish.

Final jjajangmyeon