Last Updated on July 8, 2021
Are you a fan of edamame? It’s typically served boiled and flavored with salt only. If you’re looking for a new way of savoring edamame, this Korean Style Stir-Fry Edamame is perfect for you! It’s garlicky, spicy from Korean red chili flakes, and nutty from toasted sesame oil. It’s quick, easy, but different!
Edamame
We’ve never seen fresh Edamame in the U.S. The only one we see here is frozen one. For us, buying organic veggies when possible is a high priority. Particularly edamame, even it’s organic, some of them are not grown here. So the only place we can buy U.S. grown organic ones are at Whole Foods Market and that’s the one we always go for!
Did you know edamame is a immature soy bean? We don’t typically consume matured soy beans but edamame is so easy to prepare and cook! Other soy bean products like tempeh, tofu, and soy milk are our staples in the fridge but edamame also has its own spot in the freezer!
The Korean Flavor
When it comes to making Korean flavor food, the easiest way is to have some of these key ingredients below;
- Gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes)
- Gochujang (Korean red chili paste. It’s savory, sweet & spicy)
- Garlic
- Toasted sesame oil
- Toasted Sesame Seeds
- Salt
- Soy sauce
- Sugar
Those are typically what we use to make Korean flavor! For gochugaru and gochujang, there are many different brands and each one is different in spice levels, sweetness, and/or saltiness. Try a couple of different ones to find your own favorite!
Korean Style Stir-Fry Edamame
Gochugaru plays a major role on this particular dish. Gochugaru is spicy just like other red chili pepper flakes but it has a distinctive smokiness (?) to it that you don’t taste in other chili flakes. You could substitute with other kind but it just won’t be the same without gochugaru so we highly recommend making Korean dishes with it! We like the particular one from Mother-in Law’s. You can find it on major online stores.
Another important ingredient here as a topping is the homemade Toasted Sesame Seeds. We highly recommend is to make your own. It’s so quick and easy to make but the flavor is outstanding! It’s so fresh, flavorful, nutty, and super aromatic! Once you make your own, you can never go back to store-bought ones. We know, we talk about this every time when our recipes call for the toasted sesame seeds. We really can’t not speak enough about the importance of the flavor!
If you are interested in other Korean flavor dishes, make sure to check out;
Korean Style Stir-Fry Edamame
Ingredients
- 1 pound frozen edamame in the shell
- Salt for boiling edamame
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tbsp garlic paste (freshly grated garlic)
- 1/2 - 1 tsp gochugaru (Korean red chili pepper flakes)
- 1-2 tsp soy sauce (optional)
- Toasted Sesame Seeds (topping)
- Coarse salt (or flaky salt) for the finishing touch
Instructions
- In a medium pot, start boiling water for cooking edamame. Cook edamame in salted water (similar to the salt level as for cooking pasta) for about 4 minutes. Drain. Set aside.
- Heat up a frying pan at medium high heat. Pour toasted sesame oil and cook garlic and gochugaru for about 1 minute until fragrant. Add edamame and 1 to 2 table spoon of water then cook for 1-2 minutes. If you like more depth and saltiness in the flavor, swirl in 1-2 tsp soy sauce.
- To serve, sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds with a generous amount of coarse salt
on top. If you added soy sauce, use less amount of the finishing salt.
Notes
- It’s best to use gochugaru for the real Korean flavor and the aroma but if not available, substitute with regular red chili pepper flakes.
- If you like more depth and saltiness in the flavor, add 1-2 tsp soy sauce in the last of Step 2. Then use less finishing salt.
