Korean Grilled Dried Pollock
Quick answer
Nogari-gui is a classic Korean bar snack in which semi-dried young pollock is cut into pieces with scissors, then cooked in a buttered pan over medium-low heat until gold...
What makes this special
- Nogari-gui uses a slow-cooking method to crisp young pollock fibers evenly in melted butter.
- Medium-low heat crisps the dried pollock evenly through each fiber
- Butter seeps into the dried fish fibers and adds a rich nutty note
Key ingredients
Core cooking flow
- 1 Trim 180g dried pollock with kitchen shears, removing rough fins and hard edges.
- 2 If the pollock feels too hard, microwave it for only 20 seconds to relax the fibers slightly.
- 3 In a small bowl, combine 1tbsp gochujang, 2tbsp mayonnaise, 0.5tsp sugar, and 1tsp lemon juice.
Nogari-gui is a classic Korean bar snack in which semi-dried young pollock is cut into pieces with scissors, then cooked in a buttered pan over medium-low heat until golden and crisp on both sides. The low-and-slow approach matters: the thin fish needs time to dry out evenly into a chewy-crisp texture without scorching on the surface. Butter melts into the fibrous dried flesh with each pass over the heat, coating the fibers with richness that plain dry-frying cannot replicate. The dipping sauce is a deliberate combination of gochujang and mayonnaise, loosened with lemon juice, sweetened with a pinch of sugar, and sharpened with minced garlic, producing a sauce that is spicy, creamy, tangy, and savory all at once. That sauce against the salty, umami-concentrated pollock is the reason one piece is never enough. Cutting with scissors rather than a knife exposes more cross-section of the dried fibers, helping the sauce cling more effectively. The snack is closely associated with the pojangmacha stalls of Noryangjin and remains one of the most requested accompaniments to cold draft beer in Korea.
Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Heat
Trim 180g dried pollock with kitchen shears, removing rough fins and hard edges.
Cut thicker sections into similar lengths so the pieces heat at the same pace and stay easy to dip after grilling.
- 2Step
If the pollock feels too hard, microwave it for only 20 seconds to relax the fibers slightly.
Stop when it is just warm, because longer heating can make the dried fish tougher instead of easier to chew.
- 3Season
In a small bowl, combine 1tbsp gochujang, 2tbsp mayonnaise, 0.5tsp sugar, and 1tsp lemon juice.
Stir until no sugar grains are visible and the sauce looks smooth, creamy, and evenly red.
- 4Control
Warm a wide pan over medium-low heat for about 1 minute, then melt 20g butter.
When small bubbles appear, tilt the pan to spread the butter across the surface without letting it brown or smoke.
- 5Heat
Lay the pollock pieces in one layer without overlapping and cook the first side for about 3 minutes.
Flip when the edges curl slightly and the surface turns light brown, adjusting the heat if butter darkens quickly.
- 6Finish
Cook the second side for 3 to 4 minutes, finishing when the outside is crisp but the center is not leathery.
Transfer to a plate and serve warm with the prepared sauce while the butter aroma is still fresh.
After the steps
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