Korean Black Bean Sauce Rice

Quick answer

Total time: 40 min
Level: Easy
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients: 8

About this dish

The key to jjajangbap lies in pre-frying chunjang (Korean black bean paste) in oil to strip its raw bitterness and unlock a toasty, earthy aroma.

Ground pork, diced onion, zucchini, and cabbage are stir-fried until just softened, then folded into the fried paste so the dark sauce coats every piece. A potato starch slurry thickens the mixture after a brief simmer, giving it enough body to cling to rice without pooling. The finished bowl delivers a mellow sweetness mostly from the caramelized onion, layered with fermented soybean depth - a homestyle take on Chinese-Korean comfort food.

Ingredients

servings

IngredientAmountUnit

cooked rice2 cupcup

ground pork150 gg

onion200 gg

zucchini120 gg

cabbage120 gg

Korean black bean paste (chunjang)3 tbsptbsp

potato starch1 tbsptbsp

cooking oil2 tbsptbsp

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Instructions

Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.

6 steps

1

Control

Dice 200 g onion, 120 g zucchini, and 120 g cabbage into 1 cm pieces so they cook evenly.

Pat 150 g ground pork dry with paper towel to reduce splattering and help it brown instead of steaming.
2

Control

Add 1 tablespoon oil and 3 tablespoons chunjang to the pan, then fry over low heat for about 1 minute.

Stir constantly until the paste looks glossy and toasted, then scoop it out, leaving the oil behind.
3

Control

Raise the same pan to medium heat and stir-fry the pork for about 2 minutes, breaking up clumps as it cooks.

When no pink remains, add the onion and cook until it turns translucent and lightly sweet.
4

Control

Add the zucchini and cabbage, then stir-fry over medium heat for 2 more minutes.

Stop before the vegetables turn mushy, and mix in the fried chunjang until every piece is evenly coated dark brown.
5

Control

Pour in 250 ml water and scrape the bottom of the pan so the paste dissolves into the sauce.

Simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, then add the 1 tablespoon potato starch slurry gradually until thick.
6

Finish

Turn off the heat when the sauce coats a spatula heavily and does not run off quickly.

Divide 2 cups cooked rice into bowls, spoon the hot black bean sauce over the top, and serve immediately.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Pre-fried black bean paste prepares a toasty sauce packed with pork for this savory jjajangbap.
Finish cue: When no pink remains, add the onion and cook until it turns translucent and lightly sweet.
Avoid this: Stop before the vegetables turn mushy, and mix in the fried chunjang until every piece is evenly coated dark brown.