Jjajang Sauce (Korean Black Bean Sauce, 짜장소스)
My notes for this recipe
Jjajang is the rich black bean sauce used for jjajangmyeon, one of the best-known dishes in Korean-Chinese cuisine. Korean-Chinese food developed its own distinctive style in Korea, with popular dishes such as jjajangmyeon, jjamppong, and tangsuyuk.
The sauce is usually served over thick wheat noodles, but it is also delicious with rice as jjajangbap. If Korean or Chinese-style noodles are difficult to find, ordinary wheat noodles or pasta can also be used.
This homemade version combines chunjang, vegetables, and meat into a thick, savory sauce. Serve it over freshly cooked noodles or rice and mix everything well before eating.
How I cook it
Dice the meat and vegetables into small cubes. Ground meat works well too.
- 4:00
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan over low heat. Add the black bean paste and stir-fry for about 3–4 minutes. Be careful not to burn it. Remove the paste from the pan, leaving the oil behind.
Use the leftover oil to stir-fry the diced meat. Add a small amount of dark soy sauce to enhance the flavor.
Once the meat changes color, add the diced vegetables and stir-fry until slightly softened.
Add the pre-cooked black bean paste back to the pan and mix well. For “gan-jjajang” (a dry-style sauce), you can stop here.
To make a saucier version, add 200ml of water, sugar, and oyster sauce, stirring well to combine.
Dissolve 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water, then gradually add the mixture to the sauce while stirring. Cook until the sauce thickens.
Serve the sauce with rice, noodles, or pasta. Enjoy!
