Gaji-namul is a simple, delicious, everyday Korean side dish, meant to be eaten with other side dishes and rice.
It’s one of my favorites. I love the fresh taste, soft texture, and the beautiful vibrant purple color of the dish on the table. It’s refreshing and goes well with oilier items to offset their texture and taste. I never get tired of it!
If you are a vegetarian, replace the fish sauce with soy sauce.
Ingredients
(serves 4):
- 1 pound of Korean eggplants (3-4 eggplants), caps removed and washed
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon Korean hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, crushed
Directions
- Prep your steamer by adding 2 cups of water to it. Set heat to medium-high for it to boil, it shoud take about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut eggplants crosswise into 2½ inch pieces. Cut the thicker pieces in half lengthwise.
- When the water starts boiling, put the eggplants on the steamer rack and cover. Steam for 5 minutes over medium high heat.
- Remove from the heat. Take out the steamed eggplant and transfer to a cutting board. Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes until you can easily handle them.
- Tear each piece into bite size pieces.
Make seasoning mixture:
- Combine garlic, green onion, soy sauce, fish sauce, hot pepper flakes, sesame oil in a mixing bowl.
- Mix well with a wooden spoon.
Put it together & serve:
- Add the steamed eggplant to the bowl and mix well by hand or with the wooden spoon.
- Sprinkle with the crushed sesame seeds and serve with rice.
Maangchi's Amazon picks for this recipe
It's always best to buy Korean items at your local Korean grocery store, but I know that's not always possible so I chose these products on Amazon that are good quality. See more about how these items were chosen.
Thanks you for this great recipy! This is now my favourite dish to make with rice! :)
I have made it 6 times now and everytime taste better.
Liz,
good news! I’m glad you like the recipe.
I just made this dish and it turned out wonderfully – I love it! Thanks!
hi i like the way how you cooked eggplant dishes it’s look so delicious i try to make this as one of our side dish for dinner..thank a lot.keep up a good job.have a nice day
Love your recipes! Cute hair!!!
Brian van Weijen,
yep! doenjang jjigae and gajinamul (egg plant side dish) are really going well! How did you know that! : )
Most eggplants dishes I’ve come across involves frying in a lot of oil, which I’m not that fond of since eggplants are so absorbant. So I’m happy to have found this recipe. I made it today along with your doenjang chige, which I have been making quite often these last weeks. Tastes great and easy to make.
Would love to see more vegetarian dishes in the future.
Lisa,
Thank you very much!
Maricel,
sure, many people have requested “gaejang”(salty crab side dish) recipe. I am going to post it someday.
Thank you.
hello Maangchi,
I’m a from Philippines and I have zero knowledge on how to prepare Korean foods. I tried to surf in the internet a “lot of times” but I couldn’t find a good site for a delicious and good recipes. Only then when I’ve seen your site and I started liking it.
My husband is a Korean, a busy man and the worse is he doesn’t know how to cook. I really find it hard to prepare food for him but now I have your help from the net. I tried making him Gaji Namul and the spicy myulchi bokkeum and he like it. Thank you so much Maangchi you are my savior. Now, he will love me more.
I have some favor if you don’t mind. He loves to eat crab but he is asking me if I can check on the net about the sauce. I don’t know what kind of sauce is that but hope you can give me some recipe for the crab (Ke or Ge Korean Name).
i’m so excited about your web site, I sent it to all my sisters and we are in love with you! your cooking is so good and clear and fun to watch. it’s so inspirational that my sister made kimchi jige today and i made dukboki non-spicy
Jackie,
Welcome to my korean cooking channel. Let me know how your korean dishes turn out.
Lisa,
Thank you for the short recipe for eggplant jjim. I have never tasted it, but it sounds like very delicious.
Hi – you cook just like my mom and sound like my mom even though you are at least 50 years younger than my mom. I love it. this is her favorite side dish and she makes it all the time and she only tears it with her hands too. She also makes a very good stuffed eggplant main dish called gaji jjim. It is japanese eggplant (little ones) stuffed with chopped onion, chopped good beef, little doeng and little hot pepper paste. Stuff the eggplant like cucumber kimchi and then stuff some big green long peppers (not spicy) too. put in not crowded pot with water and boil and simmer. So delicious!
I just found your website and love it. I am 1/2 Korean and did not learn to cook from my mother. I have many Korean recipes but not brave enough to try. Watching you makes me feel more confident. I will try this dish and many more. Thank You! Now I can satisfy my Korean cravings.
~*r,
I bought it “Kitchen stuff” in Canada.
Where did you get that awesome stove-top steamer? Looks yummy!
OOO you are so CUTEEE!
I watch all your videos!
THANK YOU so much! they are very helpful
I can’t wait to make this and the kimchi
yes maangchi…you’re one so cool korean!
Hi Maanngchi,
Today was my Mom’s birthday so I made your eggplant sidedish, microwave egg dish, and served it with rice and kimchi! and hobakjuk for dessert! she LOVED it and was impressed. I actually was watching your video on ITUNES PODCAST when I make it! Thank you so much, Maangchi! You make the videos so easy to understand and recipes so easy to follow that even someone like me who is only 15 can make it!! I will make ALL your dishes soon.
너무 맛있다! 감사합니다!
-Jihyun (지현)
Sylvia,
Your lunch sounds like very healthy food!
I made this today.
I ate it for lunch with rice (mixed with multi grains, seeds and beans) and kimchi.
Preesi
OMG, roasted mackerel and gajinamul,and rice! How about kimchi? It sounds very healthy and delicious combination. : ) I like this eggplant side dish a lot.
OMG Maangchi. I usually hate eggplant. I love eggplant this way! I had it with rice and baked mackerel! I wanna eat it all.
Oh man that was YUMMY!
Josh,
It sometimes happens. Don’t worry. The color from eggplant comes out when it’s steamed.
Hi Maangchi,
I have made this gaji namul recipe twice now and I really love it. I made it yesterday and when the eggplant was done steaming, the water that was left in the pot had turned BRIGHT green! Has that ever happened to you?
There is a picture of it on my blog here: http://juniperusjosh.blogspot.com/2008/11/eggplant.html
charlie,
Hiding some vegetables in brownies is a great idea!
Carrot cake will trick your children, too. : ) How about bibimbap? Skip hot pepper paste if they can’t eat hot spicy food.
You can talk about this in the forum here. You may get better advice from others.
Hi Maangchi,
Your eggplant recipe is great because I always try to add more vegetable in my meal planning. Since my kids are not into the spices yet, I don’t usually add hot pepper. And they are not very much vegetable munching type, could you recommend some great vegetable dishes that kids would like? I sometimes hides vegetables in their brownies just to add extra vitamins in their tummies. Please reply to my email as well. Thanks.
Great fan of yours.
Anonymous,
Yes, you can use hot pepper paste if you don’t have hot pepper flakes. If you don’t like hot spicy food, you can skip it, too.
can i use red pepper paste instead of red pepper flakes?
i love your eggplan salad its great!
Eunyoung,
yeah, mom’s food is number one! That’s what my children say, too. : )
mei,
yeah, next time, you will make perfect gajinamul (eggplant side dish)! Thank you!
maangchiiii
i made this for my dinner just now..nyummm =D thanks for ur kindness sharing recipes (love vdos!) i LOVE eggplant too..but yea, i think it isnt spicy enough. i only made 1/2 eggplant for my side dish and use 1tsp of the red pepper n not spicy at all, altho i’ve reduced the soy sauce..i think i’ll put more..i wish i could find the one in bag like yours. there’s only the one put in plastic bottle at the grocery here, it’s more expensive =(
anyway THANK YoU..keep posting =))
wow~~I like namuls one of which is gagi namaul^^!!!
Specially, I love that is made by my mam~
When I saw the UCC, I missed my mam ㅠㅠ
Anonymous,
Yes, I will! : )
I love the weather down here in Texas now. Its nice and windy cold but the sun still shines. I might go to H-Mart today so ill be sure to pick up some eggplants. Thanks for another great recipe Maanchi!
PS
WIll you be doing some more soup recipes as winter is aproaching?
Nathan,
Yeah, your grilled or deep fried eggplant recipe sounds great!
hahaha
i love it too
here in the philippines, we like grill the whole eggplant then afterwards peel off the eggplant skin. soak it in a mixture of beaten eggs with salt, vetsin.then you just press the the eggplant to spread it out using a fork..fry it..then serve.
^^
hahaha..
i love your website^^
Looks wonderful, I love eggplant especially the Asian ones. My favorite way to eat regular eggplant is grilled rubbed with salt and olive oil. I also like it deep=fried (which I know is pretty bad)
Again though, thanks for the post, I love that you did pictorials, keep up the good work!
It looks delicious. I will make it one day soon. Cambodian has similar to this but first we grill the eggplants and then remove the skin. Then stir fry with minced garlic, ground pork, salt, sugar, fish sauce and add some green onion or cilantro on the top.