Bring on the banchan, pt 1
For a food blog being run by a Korean-Australian, the number of Korean recipes that have appeared on this website is utterly abysmal. Therefore, I’ve decided to make a conscious effort to document a lot more from here on, covering everything from the simplest banchan (Korean side dishes) to more elaborate dishes such as yook gae jjang (spicy beef & bracken fern soup).
Though I’ve already covered these three banchan as part of the previous bibim bap post, I thought I’d give them their own entry to make them easier to track down for those who are just after these individual recipes…particularly as that post is such a dastardly long one to work through!
You can see some of the recipes that will be appearing on the site in the near future on the recipes index of the site, recipe names in pink are ones that just need to be photographed before appearing. If you have a Korean dish that you’ve tasted and would like the recipe for, check whether its on the list, and if not, feel free to drop me a line and I’ll get to it as soon as I can! 
Pyogo Bohsot
(Stir-fried shiitake mushrooms)
Ingredients
9-10 dried shiitake mushrooms
2 tbsp soy sauce
1-2 tsp sesame seed oil
1. Bring a pot of water to the boil, then add the dried shiitake mushrooms and boil till well softened.
2. Rinse in cold water then drain well, squeezing out any excess liquid, and remove the fibrous stems and cut into strips about 3-4mm thick.
3. Preheat a frying pan, then add the mushrooms, soy sauce and sesame oil and stir fry over high heat till the mushrooms have heated through and absorbed all the soy sauce and oil.
4. Set aside till needed.
Sukju Namul Muchim
(Seasoned Mung Bean Sprouts)
Ingredients
500g fresh mung bean sprouts
2x cloves garlic, minced
Salt
3-4 spring onions
Sesame seed oil
Toasted sesame seeds
1. Bring a pot of water to the boil, then blanch the mung bean sprouts by adding them to the water and leaving them for a minute or two, till they begin to soften. Immediately drain them but DO NOT RINSE1! Instead, leave them to cool in the colander, occasionally giving them a toss.
2. While they’re cooling, rinse the spring onion and slice them on the bias into pieces about 2-3mm thick. Add these to the blanched bean shoots, along with the garlic, salt, sesame seeds and sesame oil, then lightly toss through with your hand till they are evenly coated.
3. Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container.
1 - The reason that you do not refresh the bean shoots in cold water after blanching is that this causes them to retain more moisture, weighing down the shoots and making them soggy.
Shigemchi Muchim
(Sauteed Spinach)
Ingredients
1x bunch spinach
Salt
Sesame seed oil
Toasted sesame seeds
1. Remove the roots from the spinach, then give them a thorough rinse to get rid of as much dirt as possible.
2. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, then add the spinach and make sure it is submerged for a few minutes (or till wilted but not completely cooked).
3. Drain spinach and rinse thoroughly in a few changes of cold water, till the colour is a vibrant green and there is no more green in the rinsing water.
4. Drain well, then take small handfuls and squeeze out as much water as you can, whilst being careful not to mush the spinach entirely.
5. Roughly chop into easy-to-eat lengths, then put into a bowl, along with enough salt to season and the sesame seeds and sesame oil.
6. Toss through evenly, then store in an airtight container once cooled.
Technorati Tags: Korean, Asian, recipes, vegetables, banchan, side dishes
Sorry to any readers who’ve had the website go a bit berkers on them recently - as part of updating Wordpress, I also was fiddling around with some plug-ins and trying to tidy things up! However, all my mucking about is done for now, and hopefully you’ll enjoy some of the changes I’ve made, including the updated recipes page (which I think is far more user-friendly) and the ability to edit your comments just in case you make any boo-boos whilst typing (something I’m far too prone to, I’m afraid!)
Also, as the photography tips series is over for now (unless anyone has a request for another particular topic to be covered), the photo editing series was meant to begin, but I’m at the end of my semester and snowed under with work so I have to put it on hold for a month or so. However, I am considering offering my photo retouching skills as a means of helping me keep this site running (as I’m due to renew my webspace soon), probably at about $10 per photo (and this is for any photos, not just food). What do people think?
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Comments
Hilda This is fabulous, I’m going to bookmark everything in the Korean series. Hopefully I’m going to have time at some point soon to do a Persian series on my blog.
Jerry I’l;l be aking the second two of these in the near future. (I’ll skip the 1st, as I have never developed a taste for dried shitake. Sad really, as I can by them for $1.00 per package.)
cindy Ha I can learn Korean, photography, and cooking skills from your blog,
One stop for all,
How wonderful!
Ran When i go to korean bbq, all the side dishes taste like there is sugar or vinegar in it but yours just seem to be sesame oil… do any have sugar or vinegar? I remember a red pickled cabbage thing that is yummmmmmmm
steamy kitchen Thank you for these recipes! We do Korean bbq all the time and I buy my banchan (expensive) - now I know how to make.
hey- can you email me a couple titles of good Korean cookbooks? I don’t have any good ones.
Ellie Helen - Yay! Hope you liked the dishes And I’m so glad that you like the shots
Kat - My pleasure
Hilda - Aww shucks, cheers hon I think a Persian series would be great - I know next to nothing about Persian cuisine so I’d definitely like to find out more about it!
Jerry - The mushrooms are definitely an acquired taste, but I find that though their flavour is strong, you may just need to try them a different way to develop a liking for them 
Lynn - They are one of my favourites
Cindy - Oh shucks, I’m so glad that you find my blog that helpful! Thanks so much for letting me know 
Ran - You’re absolutely right, many banchan are sweet or sour, but there are also many other flavours such as these ones Korean BBQ tends to favour the sweet and sour banchan because of the meat-heavy meal, they help to ‘freshen’ the mouth…am not sure about the red pickled cabbage thing, unless you’re referring to kimchi, which is chilli pickled Chinese/Napa cabbage? Red cabbage isn’t exactly a common ingredient in Korea…
Ed - Its always been my favourite way to enjoy it
Jaden - Ahh, many banchan can last up to a month or two in the fridge, so its far more economical to make a decent batch and either freeze or refrigerate it I’m afraid I can’t give any recommendations for cookbooks…purely because I don’t know of any (>_< ) All the recipes my mom has were taught to her by grams or shared with other mothers in the Korean community here 
Sorry I can’t be of more help!
Ran yeh it was kimchi. i love kimchi, do you have recipe for that?
I have made some braised shitake mushrooms with a similar but different recipe and they are currently sitting in ajar in the fridge. how long will they last do you think?
Ellie Ran - Yup, the recipe for kimchi can be found in the recipe index! As for how long the mushrooms would last…I’d try not to have them floating around for more than a week or two :/
sadie burns Mahalo nui loa ( thank you very much ) for creating such a lovely site on Korean side dishes! Being from Hawaii, Korean bbq plate lunches are very popular here. However, its a bit pricey, especially the banchans. But now I can make these delicious healthy banchans and save a bundle! By the way the pics are awesome! My mouth is just watering! I will write you again after I have made these banchans for my honey bunny Dein. Thanks again and aloha!
Ellie Sadie - My pleasure I haven’t done any Korean recipes in awhile as I haven’t had the time to document and refine the family recipes but am hoping to get some more up soon
All 3 side dishes will accompany my salmon dish tomorrow night! Perfect! I love the light and clarity of your shots!