Korean Anchovy & Shishito Braise
Quick answer
Myeolchi kkwari jorim is a Korean side dish of dry-toasted small anchovies and shishito peppers glazed in a sweet soy sauce with corn syrup and cooking wine.
What makes this special
- Myeolchi kkwari jorim coats dry-toasted anchovies and shishito peppers in a glossy soy glaze for a nutty, savory side dish.
- Dry-pan toasting removes fishiness and crisps the anchovies
- Wrinkled peppers stir-fried in oil before glazing to bind the sauce
Key ingredients
Core cooking flow
- 1 Rinse 140 g shishito peppers, dry them well, and remove the stems.
- 2 Heat a dry pan over medium-low heat, add 90 g small dried anchovies, and toast for about 1 minute.
- 3 Add 1 tablespoon neutral oil to the same pan and stir-fry the peppers over m...
Myeolchi kkwari jorim is a Korean side dish of dry-toasted small anchovies and shishito peppers glazed in a sweet soy sauce with corn syrup and cooking wine. Toasting the anchovies first drives off any fishy smell and brings out their nuttiness, while the peppers are stir-fried in oil to release a mild, lingering heat. The glaze coats everything in a shiny, sweet-salty finish, and sesame oil with sesame seeds add a final toasted aroma. This banchan tastes even better the next day after the sauce has fully settled in, making it one of the most reliable lunchbox staples in Korean home cooking.
Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Step
Rinse 140 g shishito peppers, dry them well, and remove the stems.
Prick each pepper 1-2 times with a fork so steam can escape and the peppers do not burst while braising.
- 2Control
Heat a dry pan over medium-low heat, add 90 g small dried anchovies, and toast for about 1 minute.
Stir constantly, then remove them as soon as they smell nutty so they do not turn hard.
- 3Control
Add 1 tablespoon neutral oil to the same pan and stir-fry the peppers over medium heat for about 2 minutes.
Stop when the skins look glossy and lightly wrinkled, before the peppers collapse.
- 4Control
Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1.5 tablespoons cooking wine, 1.5 tablespoons corn syrup, and 1 teaspoon sugar.
Stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the sauce bubbles around the edges.
- 5Control
Return the toasted anchovies and toss quickly over medium heat for 3-4 minutes.
When the glaze clings and looks shiny, stop reducing so the anchovies stay pleasantly crisp instead of tough.
- 6Season
Turn off the heat, then mix in 1 teaspoon sesame oil and 1 teaspoon sesame seeds.
Spread the braise out to cool before storing; the seasoning settles in better after cooling.
After the steps
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Continue with shared ingredients, meal pairings, or a similar method.
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Similar recipes
Korean Braised Anchovy Side Dish
Myeolchi-jorim simmers tiny dried anchovies in soy sauce, rice syrup, and garlic into a moist, glazed banchan that contrasts fundamentally with stir-fried anchovy preparations. Where bokkeum chases crispness by cooking over high heat with minimal liquid, jorim pursues the opposite - anchovies braise in a seasoned liquid on low heat until they absorb it from the inside out, becoming pliant and saturated with sweet-salty flavor all the way through their flesh. A one-minute dry toast in a bare pan removes any residual fishiness before soy sauce, syrup, minced garlic, and water go in together, simmering uncovered for ten minutes while the liquid steadily reduces. As the sauce thickens, a sticky dark glaze wraps around each anchovy; biting one releases a rush of seasoned juice from within rather than the crunch of a dehydrated fish. Sesame seeds and sesame oil stirred in off heat add a final layer of warmth and nuttiness. Once fully cooled, the reduced sauce thickens further into an almost jelly-like coating that holds the anchovies together in a satisfying cluster. Stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, myeolchi-jorim keeps well for over a week and the flavor continues to deepen as the anchovies sit in the congealed glaze.
Korean Braised Squid with Shishito Peppers
Kkwari-ojingeo-jorim is a Korean braise of squid and shishito peppers simmered in a gochujang and soy sauce seasoning. The squid retains its chewy bounce while soaking in the bold sauce, and the peppers absorb enough flavor to stand on their own while keeping a slight crunch. Gochujang brings a warm spiciness that combines with soy sauce's depth into a multilayered seasoning, and garlic with ginger neutralizes any seafood odor. As the liquid reduces, it coats each piece in a concentrated glaze that makes this banchan work especially well spooned over a bowl of steamed rice.
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Kkwarigochu myeolchi bokkeum is a Korean banchan of dried anchovies and shishito-style peppers cooked together and glazed with soy sauce and oligosaccharide syrup. The anchovies are dry-toasted first in an unoiled pan over medium heat until their moisture evaporates and the fishiness reduces, then set aside. Oil goes into the pan next and the kkwarigochu peppers are fried over medium-high heat until blistered and darkened in spots, which develops a slightly bitter, charred edge that adds character to the finished dish. The anchovies return to the pan along with the peppers, soy sauce is added for the base seasoning, and then the heat is reduced before the oligosaccharide syrup goes in. Adding the syrup over reduced heat is the step that most often goes wrong: high heat scorches the syrup almost immediately, preventing the glaze from forming and leaving a bitter residue instead. Over low heat, the syrup coats the anchovies and peppers in a thin, shiny layer as it slowly reduces. Sesame oil and whole sesame seeds are stirred in at the end for fragrance and texture. The finished dish layers the crunchy, salty anchovies against the syrup's gentle sweetness, with the peppers providing mild heat that prevents the flavor from becoming cloying. Stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator, the banchan keeps well for several days.