Eggplant sidedish

Gaji-namul 가지나물

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 hot pepper flakes
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.

Posted on Saturday, October 25th, 2008 at 9:32 pm. Last updated on August 31, 2017.
Tagged: easy eggplant recipe, eggplant, eggplant recipe, eggplant side dish, 가지나물, gaji namul, healthy eggplant recipe, how to cook eggplant, Korean eggplant dish, Korean eggplant side dish, Korean steamed eggplant, namul, steamed eggs, vegetarian dish, vegetarian eggplant recipe

173 Comments:

MaangchiLove Montreal, Toronto joined 8/19 & has 31 comments
Posted April 18th, 2021 at 9:19 pm | Log in to reply.

I’ve made it many times so far, it’s my veggie side dish fave!

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- Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 152 comments
  Posted April 19th, 2021 at 10:12 am | Log in to reply.
  
  Wow, your gaji-namul looks perfect! I feel like eating it with rice!
Lucia Minnesota joined 6/20 & has 2 comments
Posted June 24th, 2020 at 8:57 am | Log in to reply.

If you were eating this the next day would you reheat it or eat it cold? Thank you! Attached is a picture of my my gaji-namul with rice, gochujang tofu, and fresh vegetarian kimchi. I was out of sesame seeds, but it was still very tasty!

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AnnaD El Paso TX joined 5/20 & has 1 comment
Posted May 23rd, 2020 at 9:17 pm | Log in to reply.

Thank you for your recipes and videos. I have made your Gaji-namul a few times and my mom, korean, loves this one best. I am half Korean and am learning many recipes from you. I love your books and look forward to more recipes.

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redgiraffe Vancouver joined 5/20 & has 1 comment
Posted May 12th, 2020 at 5:42 pm | Log in to reply.

Can I use dried eggplant? Do I just soak them in water to rehydrate and then use them according to the recipe after instruction 5. Tear each piece into bit size pieces?
Chongyiihean88 Malaysia joined 4/20 & has 2 comments
Posted April 6th, 2020 at 5:13 am | Log in to reply.

Made this lots of times, easy and delicious,
- Chongyiihean88 Malaysia joined 4/20 & has 2 comments
  Posted April 6th, 2020 at 5:14 am | Log in to reply.
  
  Was wondering though, how many days can this be refrigerated?
jaygles Colorado joined 3/20 & has 2 comments
Posted March 14th, 2020 at 9:49 pm | Log in to reply.

I love Korean food, but I’m vegan and it makes it hard to buy pre-made Korean products, so I’m learning how to make it all myself! I made gaji-namul tonight with kimchijeon and rice and it is so delicious! Thank you for this great recipe!
- Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,051 comments
  Posted March 16th, 2020 at 10:59 am | Log in to reply.
  
  Kimchi pancake, gaji-namul, and rice! It’s such a simple but delicious meal!
JNOK Oklahoma, US joined 2/20 & has 2 comments
Posted February 19th, 2020 at 2:25 pm | Log in to reply.

I really love Korean food. I’ve just made this recipe and had it with rice. It’s very delicious! Thank you very much!
JN

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- Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,051 comments
  Posted February 20th, 2020 at 6:17 am | Log in to reply.
  
  Your gaji-namul looks so tasty! Congratulations!

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Eggplant sidedish
Korean name: 가지나물
Romanized: Gaji-namul
Also Romanized as: gajinamul

Categories: appetizer, easy, side dish, spicy, vegetarian
Made with: eggplant, fish sauce, garlic, green onion, hot pepper flakes, sesame seeds, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil,