[ojingau: squid, bokkeum: sauté]

I make my ojingau-bokkeum with my spicy BBQ sauce, the same marinade I use for osam-bulgogi and dubu-kimchi. I usually buy my squid from the farmer’s market, which is much fresher than squid from any other grocery store. I clean the squid as soon as I come home, wrap it per serving (1 large or 2-3 small squids) in plastic wrap, and freeze it until I am ready to use them. When I told my husband that I was planning to make ojingau-bokkeum, he got a little pouty because I wasn’t planning to add any pork to it to make osam-bulgogi. Yes, he loves his pork… but, when he tasted my spicy squid, he was ecstatic. He actually said he almost liked it more than osam-bulgogi. This version is much lighter and cleaner in taste compared to its sister dish, osam-bulgogi.

[Related recipes: osam-bulgog, dubu-kimchi, Dueji Galbi Jjim

Ingredients:

• 400g (about 1 pound) of squid
• About 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, like grape seed oil
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 carrot, thinly cut diagonally
• 1 Korean green chili or jalapeño, thinly sliced
• 1 scallion, thinly sliced
• Toasted sesame seeds for garnish

Marinade ingredients:

• 2 tablespoon of gogugaru (고추가루, red pepper powder)
• 3 tablespoon of gochjang (고추장, red pepper paste)
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon of sake or mirin
• 1/2 tablespoon of rice syrup or corn syrup
• 1/2 tablespoon of brown or white sugar
• 1 tablespoon of minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon of dried ginger powder
• A pinch of black pepper

1. If you have frozen squid like I do, defrost them first.
2. Mix all the marinade ingredients together.
3. Prepare the vegetables.
4. I accidentally marinated the squid first before cutting it, but it’s probably better to cut it first before you marinate the squid. You can cut the squid in ring shapes by cutting across the body. You can also turn the body part of the squid inside out or cut open the squid and make cross marks in the inside part of the body, then slice into thin slices. I used about 4 tablespoons of marinade. Set aside any leftover marinade.
5. Drizzle some vegetable oil on a skillet heated on medium-high heat. Sauté the onions and carrots.
6. Add the marinated squid to the skillet when the onions and carrots are about halfway cooked.
7. Sauté the squid and vegetables until the squid turns white. Taste and add more marinade if needed.
8. Add the scallions and peppers and toss for about a minute or two.
9. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds.