Spinach Side Dish
Making Side Dishes: Wild Chive Soy Sauce/Gochujang Dried Shredded Squid/Spinach Side Dish
This is Luna, on a diet with a ‘slimming’ recipe. What should I make today? Simple side dish making. For busy modern people, eating proper meals isn’t as easy as it seems. Especially with the increase in single-person households and working mothers balancing work and chores, many people tend to skip meals or eat something quick. For them, I’ve created a simple yet healthy dish. Shall we make some side dishes?
Wild Chive Soy Sauce Ingredients
- Wild chives 70g
- Red chili pepper 1
- Soy sauce 4 Tbsp
- Water 1 Tbsp
- Gochugaru (Korean chili powder) 1/2 Tbsp
- Plum extract 1 Tbsp
- Perilla oil 1 Tbsp
Gochujang Dried Shredded Squid Ingredients
- Dried shredded squid 200g
- Gochujang (Korean chili paste) 1 Tbsp
- Mayonnaise 2 Tbsp
- Perilla oil 1 Tbsp
- Soy sauce 1/2 Tbsp
- Cooking wine 1 Tbsp
- Oligosaccharide 1 Tbsp
- Sesame seeds
Spinach Side Dish Ingredients
- Pohang spinach 1 bunch
- Soup soy sauce 1 Tbsp
- Perilla oil 1 Tbsp
- Sesame seeds (crushed) 1 Tbsp
- Dried shredded squid 200g
- Gochujang (Korean chili paste) 1 Tbsp
- Mayonnaise 2 Tbsp
- Perilla oil 1 Tbsp
- Soy sauce 1/2 Tbsp
- Cooking wine 1 Tbsp
- Oligosaccharide 1 Tbsp
- Sesame seeds
Spinach Side Dish Ingredients
- Pohang spinach 1 bunch
- Soup soy sauce 1 Tbsp
- Perilla oil 1 Tbsp
- Sesame seeds (crushed) 1 Tbsp
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
First, prepare the wild chives, which capture the essence of spring. Remove any dark spots near the roots and peel off any loose skin. These delicate bulbs, resembling small onions, need to be cleaned thoroughly. Once cleaned, place the wild chives on a cutting board and chop them finely. The fresh, spring aroma of wild chives is truly intoxicating!
Step 2
Finely chop the red chili pepper and add it to the chopped wild chives. In a small bowl, combine the prepared wild chives and chili pepper. Add a small amount of the sauce ingredients and mix gently. Adjust the amount of gochugaru and plum extract according to your preference. As they say in mom’s recipes, ‘don’t worry too much about exact measurements, just add ‘about’ the right amount.’
Step 3
This finely chopped wild chive soy sauce is a true rice thief! Spooning it over a bowl of warm rice and mixing it in is delicious. It’s especially wonderful when wrapped in crispy roasted seaweed (gim) with a generous dollop of the wild chive soy sauce. Let the wild chive soy sauce, full of spring’s fragrance, awaken your appetite.
Step 4
Now, let’s make the spicy and sweet dried shredded squid. The dried shredded squid I used was pre-roasted, giving it a light brown color, and it was a bit tough. Use scissors or a knife to cut the dried shredded squid into bite-sized pieces that are easy for both children and adults to eat. If they are too long, they can be cumbersome, so cutting them into about 5-7 cm pieces is ideal. Add 1 tablespoon of cooking wine to the cut squid and mix gently. The cooking wine helps to remove any gamey smell and tenderize the squid.
Step 5
Next, add 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise and mix again. Adding mayonnaise makes the dried shredded squid much softer and improves its flavor when combined with the gochujang sauce, significantly enhancing its taste. The creaminess of the mayonnaise balances the spiciness, making it a flavor that even children will enjoy.
Step 6
Heat a frying pan and add the remaining sauce ingredients for the dried shredded squid (gochujang, perilla oil, soy sauce, oligosaccharide) along with 1 tablespoon of water. Mix well to create the sauce. Once the sauce begins to boil, add the mayonnaise-coated dried shredded squid and stir-fry quickly over high heat. Be careful not to overcook, as it can make the squid tough. Stir-fry briskly for about 1-2 minutes, just until the sauce is evenly coated, then turn off the heat immediately.
Step 7
Transfer the stir-fried dried shredded squid to a prepared side dish container. Sprinkle with sesame seeds for a final touch, and your delicious dried shredded squid side dish is complete. It looks appetizing and is perfect as a side for rice or even as a snack.
Step 8
Finally, let’s make the fresh spinach side dish. The key to delicious spinach is not to over-boil it. Place the spinach in boiling water and blanch it quickly, just until it wilts and becomes slightly limp. This usually takes about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Over-boiling will make the spinach mushy, affect its texture, and can destroy nutrients. It’s crucial to immediately remove the blanched spinach and rinse it under cold water to stop the cooking process.
Step 9
Squeeze out excess water from the blanched spinach. Add 1 tablespoon of soup soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of perilla oil (or sesame oil), and 1 tablespoon of crushed roasted sesame seeds. Gently mix everything together with your hands, massaging the seasoning into the spinach. The goal is to evenly coat the spinach without breaking its delicate texture. This highlights the fresh aroma and mild flavor of the spinach.
Step 10
This finished spinach side dish is a wonderful standalone dish. However, it’s also delicious when used as a filling for bibimbap or kimbap. When your appetite is lacking, especially during springtime, try this fresh and healthy spinach side dish to bring back your appetite!
