Seasoned dried radish strips

Let’s learn how to make delicious mumallaengi-muchim today! It’s a Korean banchan (side dish) that’s very common in a Korean dosirak (lunch box). The main ingredient is mumallaengi – Korean white radishes, cut into pieces 3-4 inch long and ¼ inch thick and dried in the sun. You can buy packaged mumallaengi in Korean grocery stores.

A few tips for this banchan: don’t soak it in water too long, because the radish will lose its delicious flavor. 7 to 8 minutes is perfect. Don’t forget to wash and rinse the radish a couple of times to remove any remaining dirt and to make the radish a little softer.

Another tip, as you see in my video, is to stir-fry it with vegetable oil for 1 minute so that it gets more plump and keeps its beautiful red color and springy texture.

Good luck with this recipe, I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients

• 5 ounces mumallaengi (dried radish strips), about 3½ cups
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons Korean hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)
• 3 tablespoons rice syrup
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

Directions

1. Wash and drain the mumallaengi in cold water  a couple of times. Soak it in cold water for 7-8 minutes.
2. Strain and squeeze out excess water.
3. Heat up a pan over medium high heat and sauté the mumalaengi with 1 teaspoon vegetable oil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Set aside.
4. Combine garlic, green onion, fish sauce, hot pepper flakes, rice syrup in a mixing bowl and mix it well with a spoon.
5. Add the mumalaengi and mix it well by hand. You can wear a disposable cooking glove to prevent your hand from sore
6. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Transfer some to a serving plate and serve as a side dish with rice. The leftovers can be stored in the fridge up to 1 month.