Finding the ingredients
You can open unfamiliar ingredients directly from the list. Many Korean pantry basics are easiest to find in Asian grocery stores or online, while fresh ingredients can often be handled more flexibly.
Jjajang Sauce (짜장 소스)
Category: Authentic Korean Dishes🕒 30 mins🍽️ 4 servings
From my kitchen
How I cook this at home
I keep this recipe practical for everyday cooking: clear steps, linked ingredients, and small notes from my kitchen so you can make it realistically in Germany too.
My notes for this recipe
Jjajang is one of the two pillars of Korean-Chinese cuisine, along with Jjamppong. It’s a dish you should definitely try when you visit Korea. Like how Germany has countless Döner Kebab shops, Korea has many “Chinese” restaurants serving Jjajangmyeon and Jjamppong.
Jjajang is actually the name of the sauce itself, often served with noodles (Jjajangmyeon). However, if finding Chinese-style noodles is difficult in Germany, you can enjoy the sauce with rice (Jjajangbap) or pasta. Many Korean-Chinese restaurants in Korea also serve Jjajangbap, so no worries!
Quick tips
- Read the ingredients and steps once before you start.
- Prepare the sauce, vegetables, and toppings first so cooking feels calmer.
- Adjust the final flavor gently with soy sauce, salt, sugar, or sesame oil.
How I cook it
Dice the meat and vegetables into small cubes. Ground meat works well too.
- 4:00
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan over low heat. Add the black bean paste and stir-fry for about 3–4 minutes. Be careful not to burn it. Remove the paste from the pan, leaving the oil behind.
Use the leftover oil to stir-fry the diced meat. Add a small amount of dark soy sauce to enhance the flavor.
Once the meat changes color, add the diced vegetables and stir-fry until slightly softened.
Add the pre-cooked black bean paste back to the pan and mix well. For “gan-jjajang” (a dry-style sauce), you can stop here.
To make a saucier version, add 200ml of water, sugar, and oyster sauce, stirring well to combine.
Dissolve 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water, then gradually add the mixture to the sauce while stirring. Cook until the sauce thickens.
Serve the sauce with rice, noodles, or pasta. Enjoy!
Small notes
Dice the meat and vegetables into small cubes. Ground meat works well too.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan over low heat. Add the black bean paste and stir-fry for about 3–4 minutes. Be careful not to burn it. Remove the paste from the pan, leaving the oil behind.
Use the leftover oil to stir-fry the diced meat. Add a small amount of dark soy sauce to enhance the flavor.
Once the meat changes color, add the diced vegetables and stir-fry until slightly softened.
Add the pre-cooked black bean paste back to the pan and mix well. For “gan-jjajang” (a dry-style sauce), you can stop here.
To make a basic jjajang sauce, add 200ml of water, sugar, and oyster sauce, and mix well.
Dissolve 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water, then slowly add the mixture to the sauce while stirring. Cook until the sauce thickens.
Serve the sauce over rice, noodles, or pasta. Enjoy your delicious jjajang!
Ingredients you can open and learn about
Small questions that often come up
Can beginners make this recipe?
Yes. Read through the steps once and prepare the ingredients first. That makes the recipe much easier to follow.
Where can I find Korean ingredients?
Asian grocery stores, Korean online shops, and larger supermarkets with an Asian section are usually the easiest places to start.