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PAJEON SAUCE

PAJEON SAUCE

The Kitchen Scholar
Sauces and Dips

SOURCE: HOONI KIM AND AKI KAMOZAWA. MY KOREA: TRADITIONAL FLAVORS, MODERN RECIPES.

Any jeon or Korean vegetable fritter tastes flawless and stunning when accompanied with a tandem dip of soy sauce and rice wine vinegar because the umami and acidity qualities of the latter synergize to enhance the flavor of the former and to minimize the cloying sensation brought by the fat residues adsorbed within the starchy surface. Pajeon sauce will even work with fried dumplings or tofu, turning mundaneness into the extraordinary.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons/30 mL cold water

2 tablespoons/30 mL rice vinegar, preferably Korean

6 tablespoons/90 mL soy sauce, preferably Korean

1 tablespoon/8 grams gochugaru or Korean red chili flakes

1 tablespoon/8 grams minced garlic

1/4 teaspoon/0.5 grams minced ginger

1 teaspoon/5 mL toasted sesame oil

Specific Equipment

Nonreactive bowl

Makes 1 cup/240 mL

Instructions

1. Stir the water, rice vinegar, soy sauce, gochugaru, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil in a nonreactive until well-blended. Use immediately or store the sauce in a tightly sealed container inside a refrigerator for up 2 weeks. Shake or stir the sauce well before using.

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