Jjajangmyun

Jjajangmyun

April 14th is an unofficial holiday in Korea called "Black Day", where people who are single come together to mourn by eating jjajangmyun. Honestly, sounds like a pretty nice day to me.

Jjajangmyun is an adaptation of zhajiangmian popular in Beijing. During the 1950's, Chinese immigrants in Korea adapted the dish to fit more of the Korean palate-- they added sweetness to mellow out some of the saltiness and added vegetables to add more volume to the sauce. Now, the dish is a Korean takeout staple food that's cheap, readily accessible, and delicious.

Ingredients

• 2 instant ramen noodle packet
• 3 tbsp black bean paste
• 3 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 tbsp soy sauce 
• ½ cabbage (around ¾ cup), large chops
• 1 onion, large chops
• 3 scallions, finely diced
• ½ cup protein of choice (I used minced beef)
• 250mL water
• 1 tbsp potato starch 
• 2 tbsp cold water
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 egg

Instructions

Black bean sauce

1. Heat a wok/ skillet on high heat.
2. Once the wok heats up, turn down the heat to a medium-low. 
3. Drizzle in the oil. 
4. Add the scallions and let it infuse into the oil.
5. Once the scallions have wilted a little, add the meat into small pieces and cook it out until the fat has rendered out and cooked 80% of the way.
6. Add the black bean paste in.
7. Using a heat-resistant silicone spatula, break apart the bean paste and cook it out— this helps mellow out some of the astringent taste and develop a deep nutty, umami flavor. 
8. The bean paste will separate into smaller pieces instead of one big chunk after 3-4 minutes. 
9. Drizzle in the soy sauce in circular motion to the sides of the wok.
10. Add the sugar in as well.
11. Let the soy sauce char and the meat caramelize— this helps develop a super smoky aroma. 

12. Transfer the mixture into a separate bowl.

13. Heat on high, in a clean wok/ skillet, drizzle in neutral oil. 
14. Put the onions and cabbages in the wok. 
15. Cook until the cabbages char slightly and the onions are slightly translucent. Do not overcook the veggies as we want them to still be crunchy!
16. Add the bean paste mixture into the pot. Mix to combine. 
17. Add the water in.

13. Mix the water with the potato starch to create a slurry. 
14. Pour the slurry into the sauce and stir. The sauce will thicken up nicely and turn glossy. 

Noodles

1. Cook the noodles 80% of the way! I like it al dente because it’s a nice slurpy texture. I cook it in boiling water for five minutes. 
2. Cold shock the noodles in ice water. Rinse off any excess starch on the noodles. This process also helps firm up the noodles.

Egg

1. Drizzle plenty of oil into a heated saucepan. 
2. Once the oil comes up to temperature, crack one egg in. 
3. Baste the egg whites with oil using a spoon.

4. Once the sides are crispy golden brown and the whites are bubbling up in a cloud-like texture, take off the heat. Place on top of noodles. Enjoy with sauce!!

Jjajangmyun

4 from 165 votes

Recipe by Doobydobap Course: MainCuisine: KoreanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

2

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

15

minutes

Black bean noodles crowned with a fried egg.

Ingredients

• 2 instant ramen noodle packet

• 3 tbsp black bean paste

• 3 tbsp neutral oil

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• ½ cabbage (around ¾ cup), large chops

• 1 onion, large chops

• 3 scallions, finely diced

• ½ cup protein of choice (I used minced beef)

• 250 mL water

• 1 tbsp potato starch

• 2 tbsp cold water

• 2 tbsp sugar

• 1 egg

instructions

• Black Bean Sauce
• Heat a wok/ skillet on high heat.
• Once the wok heats up, turn down the heat to a medium-low.
• Add the black bean paste to the oil.
• Using a heat-resistant silicone spatula, break apart the bean paste and cook it out— this helps mellow out some of the astringent taste and develop a deep nutty, umami flavor.
• The bean paste will separate into smaller pieces instead of one big chunk after 3-4 minutes.
• Turn the heat on high, and add the scallions, and beef into the paste.
• Break the meat into smaller pieces and cook it out until the fat has rendered out and it’s cooked 80%.
• Drizzle in the soy sauce to the sides of the wok.
• Let the soy sauce char— this helps develop a super smoky aroma.
• Transfer the mixture into a separate bowl
• Heat on high, in a clean wok/ skillet, drizzle in neutral oil.
• Put the onions and cabbages in the wok.
• Cook until the cabbages char slightly and the onions are slightly translucent. Do not overcook the veggies as we want them to still be crunchy!
• Add the bean paste mixture into the pot. Mix to combine.
• Add the water in. Taste your sauce and add the sugar in!! Adjust the amount of sweetness to your liking.
• Mix the water with the potato starch to create a slurry.
• Pour the slurry into the sauce and stir. The sauce will thicken up nicely and turn glossy.
• Noodles
• Cook the noodles 80% of the way! I like it al dente because it’s a nice slurpy texture. I cook it in boiling water for five minutes.
• Cold shock the noodles in ice water. Rinse off any excess starch on the noodles. This process also helps firm up the noodles.
• Egg
• Drizzle plenty of oil into a heated saucepan.
• Once the oil comes up to temperature, crack one egg in.
• Baste the egg whites with oil using a spoon.
• Once the sides are crispy golden brown and the whites are bubbling up in a cloud-like texture, take off the heat. Place on top of noodles. Enjoy with sauce!!

Notes

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