Two Recipes: Simple Cucumber Salad & Korean Spinach Side Dish

Today I’m going to teach you how to make two really easy Korean side dishes. The first one is a simple cucumber salad, it might remind you of a popular Japanese dish, sunomomo. We only use a few basic ingredients with this. It’s perfect as a small side dish, you can eat with white rice, or just by itself.

The second recipe is for a Korean spinach side dish, called sigeumchi muchim. Not only is spinach good for you, eating it like this will make you forget that you’re essentially consuming a healthy vegetarian dish.

Now let’s get started.

1. Slice cucumbers horizontally to make round discs.

2. Add the salt and mix it into the cucumbers, coating it. This will give the cucumbers a deep, salty taste.

3. Wait an hour, letting the salt soak into the cucumbers. Then, in cold water, wash off all the salt away. Drain.

4. Add the apple cider vinegar and the sugar. Mix it into the cucumbers using your hands. Last, add the salt to taste, which will be about 1 tsp.

Recipe:
10 small Persian cucumbers
1 tbsp salt
1/4 cup and 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup and 1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt (later)

1. Slice cucumbers horizontally, making small discs.
2. Add in salt and mix it into the cucumbers.
3. Let soak 1 hour.
4. In cold water, wash away all the salt from the cucumbers. Drain.
5. Add in apple cider vinegar, sugar and salt to taste. Mix.

This next recipe will be for the Korean spinach side dish. These are a few of the ingredients you will be using.

1. Boil water.

2. Wash spinach in cold water and rinse. This is to take off any dirt on the spinach.

3. Set the spinach in the boiling water, add in the salt and cover the spinach with the water. Wait just one minute, the water doesn’t have to boil again, and then remove the spinach. It should be wilted but not soggy.

4. Drain in cold water again, washing the spinach thoroughly.

5. Using your hands, clamp them down on the wet spinach to squeeze out all the water. You may want to do this two or three times. Make sure the water is all squeezed out or your dish will turn out soggy.

6. Cut up the spinach into small bunches. (Option, you can squeeze out any excess water after cutting the spinach up.)

7. Add in garlic, green onion, fermented soybean paste (doenjang), perilla oil (deulgireum), and sesame seeds. Mix the whole thing together with your hands.

Recipe:
6 cups of water
1 pinch of salt
1 bunch of spinach
1 tsp minced garlic
3 chopped green onions (equal to 2 tsp)
1 tsp fermented soybean paste (doenjang)
1 tsp perilla oil (deulgireum)
1/2 tsp toasted sesame seeds

1. Boil water.
2. Wash spinach in cold water, rinse.
3. Set the spinach in the boiling water, add in the pinch of salt. Cover the spinach in water. Wait one minute and then take it out. The water doesn’t have to boil again.
4. Wash the spinach in cold water again. Drain. You can do this two times, to make sure all the dirt is gone.
5. Using your hands, squeeze the water all out of the spinach. You can do this two or three times.
6. Cup up the spinach in a tic-tac-toe pattern.
7. Using your hands, squeeze out the water from the spinach again.
8. Add in garlic, green onion, fermented soybean paste (doenjang), perilla oil (deulgireum), and sesame seeds. Mix the whole thing together with your hands.