Jajangmyeon Recipe: How to Make Korean Black Bean Noodles at Home

 

If you watch Korean dramas, you may sometimes notice people happily mixing noodles with a strange-looking black sauce and eating them with surprising enthusiasm.

That dish is jajangmyeon.

At first, the dark sauce can look unfamiliar, especially if you have never tried Korean-Chinese food before. But jajangmyeon is actually one of the most familiar comfort foods in Korea.

The sauce is rich, savory, slightly sweet, and usually not spicy. It is served over thick, chewy noodles and mixed thoroughly before eating.

And if you can find Korean chunjang, you can make a surprisingly satisfying version at home.

Ingredients for Homemade Jajangmyeon

For about 2 servings, prepare:

• 2 portions of Korean wheat noodles or other thick wheat noodles

• About 100–150 g pork

• 1 large onion

• 1 small potato

• 1/3 carrot

• 1/2 zucchini

• A little cabbage or mushrooms, if available

• 3–4 tablespoons prepared fried chunjang

• Cooking oil

• About 1 cup water

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

• 2 tablespoons cold water

• A little sugar, to taste

Optional toppings:

• Thinly sliced cucumber

• Green peas

• Boiled or fried egg

Yellow pickled radish, called danmuji, is also a classic side dish.

First, Prepare the Chunjang

One of the most important steps is preparing the black bean paste correctly.

Raw chunjang can taste quite salty and slightly bitter, so it is traditionally cooked in oil before being used in the sauce.

Heat a pan over medium-low heat and add a generous amount of cooking oil.

Add the chunjang and gently stir it in the oil.

At first, the oil and paste may look separated. Keep stirring over medium-low heat until the paste becomes smoother and well combined with the oil.

Be careful not to burn it.

Once the chunjang has been fried, it can be used immediately or prepared ahead of time and stored for later.

This extra step makes a noticeable difference in the final flavor.

Stir-Fry the Pork and Vegetables

Cut the pork, potato, carrot, zucchini, onion, and other vegetables into small cubes.

Heat a large pan or wok with a little oil.

If the pork has some fat, you can cook the fatty pieces first to release extra flavor into the pan.

Add the pork and firmer vegetables such as potato and carrot first.

Stir-fry them for about a minute.

Next, add softer vegetables such as mushrooms, zucchini, and most of the onion.

Continue stir-frying until the vegetables begin to soften.

Keeping a small amount of onion aside until later can add a fresher texture to the finished sauce.

Add the Fried Chunjang

Once the meat and vegetables are partly cooked, add the fried chunjang.

Mix everything thoroughly so the vegetables and pork are coated with the dark paste.

At this point, the mixture will be very thick.

Add water and stir well.

Let the sauce simmer until the potato and other vegetables are tender.

Taste the sauce.

If you prefer the slightly sweeter flavor commonly found in Korean Chinese restaurants, add a small amount of sugar.

Thicken the Sauce

Traditional jajangmyeon sauce is thick and glossy.

To achieve that texture, mix one tablespoon of cornstarch with about two tablespoons of cold water.

Stir until completely smooth.

Slowly pour the starch mixture into the hot sauce while stirring continuously.

The sauce will begin to thicken almost immediately.

Do not add all the starch mixture at once if the sauce is already quite thick. Add a little at a time until you reach the consistency you want.

For jajangmyeon, the sauce should be thick enough to cling to the noodles but still easy to mix.

Cook the Noodles

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Add the Korean jajangmyeon noodles and cook according to the package directions.

Fresh Korean wheat noodles work especially well because they have the thick, chewy texture commonly served in Korean Chinese restaurants.

Once cooked, drain the noodles thoroughly.

Do not leave too much water on them because excess water can make the black bean sauce taste weaker.

Place the hot noodles in a bowl and spoon a generous amount of jajang sauce over the top.

Now Mix Everything Together

This is the moment you may recognize from Korean dramas.

The noodles arrive pale with a large amount of black sauce sitting on top.

Then everything gets mixed.

Use chopsticks to lift and turn the noodles repeatedly until every strand is completely covered with the glossy black sauce.

It may look a little messy, but that is part of eating jajangmyeon.

And yes, the sauce can splash surprisingly far.

A white shirt may not be the best choice.

Serve It the Korean Way

Top the noodles with thin cucumber strips if you like.

Serve yellow pickled radish on the side.

Some Korean-Chinese restaurants also serve raw onion with a small amount of chunjang for dipping.

Take a few bites of the rich noodles, then eat a piece of crisp danmuji.

The sweet-and-sour radish helps balance the heavy sauce.

You can also sprinkle a little red pepper powder over the finished noodles if you want a slightly spicy version.

You Can Use the Same Sauce for Jajangbap

One useful thing about making a batch of jajang sauce is that you do not have to use it only with noodles.

Pour the same sauce over steamed rice and you have jajangbap, or black bean sauce rice.

In Korea, both jajangmyeon and jajangbap are familiar everyday meals.

If you make extra fried chunjang or sauce, you can keep it for another meal and turn a simple bowl of rice or noodles into something much more satisfying.

So the next time you see someone in a Korean drama vigorously mixing a bowl of mysterious black noodles, you will know exactly what is happening.

And with chunjang, a few vegetables, pork, and some thick noodles, you can make your own version at home.