Banchan

Korean Cookery

Chapter 3 · Banchan

Skill goal
Make four small side dishes, a blanched-and-seasoned vegetable, a seasoned bean sprout, a simmered potato and a steamed egg, and put three of them on the table with rice.

Shopping list for this chapter

How this chapter was checked The descriptions come from Wikipedia's articles on namul (the lead, preparation and varieties), soybean sprout (the lead and the Korea section), jorim (the lead and varieties) and gyeran-jjim (preparation), plus what Chapter 1 took from the banchan article. None of the four articles gives any quantities or times except a 15-minute cooking time in the gyeran-jjim box, so every quantity and time below is my own untested starting point; I cannot cook. The namul article does not mention garlic and the soybean sprout article does not give a muchim recipe, so those seasonings are mine. Food-safety notes on sprouts and eggs are general advice of mine.

The basics

Chapter 1 gave the banchan article's definition: "small side dishes served along with cooked rice", shared from the middle of the table. A set meal is counted in cheop (3, 5, 7, 9 or 12), and kimchi is not counted. That means a three-banchan meal is rice, soup, kimchi and three small dishes. This chapter makes three of the families the banchan article listed (namul, jorim and the steamed jjim); kimchi comes in Chapter 4.

Namul

The namul article says namul means "either a variety of edible greens or leaves or seasoned herbal dishes made of them", usually served as banchan with rice. It can use roots, leaves, stems, seeds, sprouts, petals or fruits, and sometimes seaweed or mushrooms. Most are blanched before seasoning, though they can also be raw, boiled, fried, sautéed, fermented, dried or steamed. The seasonings it lists are salt, vinegar, sesame oil, perilla oil, soy sauce, soup soy sauce, doenjang and gochujang. Its examples include sigeumchi (spinach), kongnamul (soybean sprout), gosari (eastern brakenfern) and musaengchae (seasoned raw radish). The article carries a "needs more citations" banner, and its line that winter boreum namuls are believed to help one withstand the summer heat is a belief, not a fact.

Kongnamul

The soybean sprout article calls the sprouts "one of the most common and basic ingredients in Korean cuisine"; kongnamul names both the sprouts and the seasoned dish. Kongnamul-muchim is a side dish "made by seasoning boiled soybean sprouts". The article gives no method, so the one below is mine.

Jorim

The jorim article says jorim are dishes simmered in seasoned broth "until the liquid is absorbed into the ingredients and reduced down", "usually soy sauce-based", sometimes with gochujang or gochugaru added, especially for oily red-fleshed fish. Its list includes gamja-jorim (simmered potatoes), dubu-jorim (tofu), jang-jorim (soy-simmered beef) and gyeran-jang-jorim (soy-simmered eggs).

Gyeran-jjim

The article describes it as a "custardy, casserole-like" side dish: eggs are strained and whisked with water until smooth (kelp or anchovy broth can replace the water), seasoned with salted shrimp, salted pollock roe or plain salt, and steamed, double-boiled or cooked over very low heat in an earthenware pot (ttukbaegi). Toppings include scallions, chilli and toasted sesame seeds. The infobox lists a cooking time of 15 minutes and no measurements.

Heat, eggs and sprouts
Eggs: cook the steamed egg until it is set all the way through; do not eat it runny. Use fresh eggs and wash your hands after handling them.
Soybean sprouts: I cook them through and do not eat them raw (my general food-safety habit, not from the article). Rinse them well.
Spinach water and hot sugar: blanching water and simmering sauce are very hot; drain away from you and do not leave the pan.
Allergens: soy sauce, sesame oil and egg.

Try it

Level 1 · Namul

Sigeumchi-namul: seasoned spinach

10 minutes2 portionsblanching and seasoning

The article says most namul are blanched before seasoning, with soy sauce and sesame oil among the seasonings. The amounts, the garlic and the squeezing are mine.

Ingredients (2 portions)

  • 200 g fresh spinach, washed
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 small clove garlic, grated (optional)
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the spinach and push it under for about 30 to 60 seconds, until just wilted.
  2. Lift it into a bowl of cold water, then squeeze out as much water as you can with your hands.
  3. Loosen the clump and mix with the soy sauce, sesame oil and garlic. Taste: add a few drops more soy if it needs salt.
  4. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve at room temperature or cold.
Level 1 · Namul

Kongnamul-muchim: seasoned bean sprouts

15 minutes2 portionscooking sprouts through

Ingredients (2 portions)

  • 200 g soybean sprouts, rinsed
  • 2 tbsp water for the pan
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tsp soy sauce, or a pinch of salt
  • 1 spring onion, sliced
  • 1 pinch gochugaru (optional)
  1. Put the sprouts and water in a pot with a lid. Cook over medium heat with the lid on for about 5 to 6 minutes (my timing) until the sprouts are soft with a little crunch. Do not lift the lid often.
  2. Drain and cool for a few minutes.
  3. Mix with the sesame oil, soy sauce, spring onion and gochugaru. Taste and adjust.
Level 2 · Jorim

Gamja-jorim: potatoes simmered in soy sauce

30 minutes2 portionsreducing a sauce until it clings

The jorim article says the liquid is simmered "until the liquid is absorbed into the ingredients and reduced down". The sugar and the proportions are mine.

Ingredients (2 portions)

  • 300 g waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 2 cm pieces
  • 150 ml water
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp sugar or honey
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  1. Put the potatoes, water, soy sauce and sugar in a pan. Bring to the boil, then turn to a gentle simmer with the lid half on.
  2. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring now and then, until a knife goes through the potato easily and the liquid has reduced to a glaze.
  3. If the sauce is gone before the potato is tender, add a splash of water; if too much remains, cook with the lid off.
  4. Stir in the sesame oil off the heat. Sprinkle with seeds.
Hot glaze
The sauce is very hot and sticks to skin. Keep your face back when stirring a reduced glaze.
Level 2 · Jjim

Gyeran-jjim: steamed egg

20 minutes2 portionscooking a custard gently

The article describes the method; the amounts and the pan are mine. A small lidded saucepan stands in for the earthenware pot.

Ingredients (2 portions)

  • 3 eggs
  • 150 ml water or light broth
  • 1 pinch salt, or about 1 tsp salted shrimp if you have it
  • 1 spring onion, finely sliced
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  1. Beat the eggs with the water and salt until smooth, then pour through a sieve into a small lidded saucepan or ovenproof bowl.
  2. Cook over the lowest heat, lid on, for about 10 to 15 minutes without stirring, until the egg is set but still tender. The article's box gives 15 minutes total.
  3. Check that it is set all the way through. Top with spring onion and sesame seeds and serve from the pan.

A three-banchan table

Put the cooked rice from Chapter 2, spinach, bean sprouts and potatoes in the middle with the ssamjang from Chapter 1, and serve the steamed egg in a pot beside them. The banchan article says kimchi does not count towards the cheop, so with three dishes you have a three-cheop meal. Eat from the shared dishes with your chopsticks and take small amounts.

Experiments

Experiment 1 · Blanching time
Blanch spinach for 20 seconds, 45 seconds and 90 seconds. Season each the same way and compare colour, bite and how much water you squeeze out.
Experiment 2 · Egg and water
Make three small steamed eggs with 1 egg to 30 ml, 50 ml and 70 ml of water. Which is closest to the article's "light and fluffy"? Note how the set changes.

Challenges

Challenge 1

Explain what a banchan is and name four banchan families from the articles, with one example and a seasoning for each.

→ Solution
Challenge 2

Cook the potato jorim and describe the stages of the sauce (thin, reducing, glaze). Say what you would change if the potatoes were still hard when the liquid ran out.

→ Solution
Challenge 3

Plan and cook a three-banchan meal with rice, using one namul, one jorim or jjim, and one other dish. Write down the order you cooked in and which dishes can be served cold.

→ Solution
Gaps in what I read
None of the four articles gives amounts, so all measures, the garlic, the sugar, the pan sizes and the sprout cooking time are mine. I did not read the soybean sprout article's other sections beyond a skim of its history, the namul article's references, or the whole of the jorim and gyeran-jjim pages beyond the parts named. I did not cover bokkeum (stir-fried), musaengchae or the pancakes (jeon) the banchan article lists; the pancakes come in Chapter 8. The article says nothing about keeping banchan in the fridge, so I give no storage times.

Quick Reference

  • Namul: usually blanched, then seasoned with salt, sesame oil, soy sauce and others
  • Kongnamul-muchim: seasoned boiled soybean sprouts; cook them through
  • Jorim: simmered in seasoned broth until absorbed and reduced; usually soy-based
  • Gyeran-jjim: strained eggs whisked with water or broth, cooked gently; article time 15 minutes
  • Counting: 3, 5, 7, 9 or 12 cheop; kimchi not counted
  • Mine, untested: all quantities and times

Next chapter: Kimchi and Fermentation.