Which Korean dish is made by stir-frying octopus in gochujang?

Which Korean dish is made by stir-frying octopus in gochujang? Nakji bokkeum is the answer. The dish uses chopped long-arm octopus, vegetables, and a spicy marinade built around gochujang, Korea’s fermented red pepper paste.

Gochugaru chili flakes, soy sauce, garlic, sugar, rice vinegar, and sesame or vegetable oil commonly join the sauce. Onions, scallions, cabbage, and carrots are frequent additions. The ingredients are quickly stir-fried to keep the octopus flavorful and tender; overcooking can make it rubbery. Nakji bokkeum is often served over rice or bean sprouts and finished with sesame seeds.

Although octopus has a much older place in Korean cooking, the spicy stir-fried form is relatively modern. It became associated with Seoul’s Mugyo-dong neighborhood in the 1960s and spread widely through Korea by the end of the 1970s. Restaurants commonly serve a mild, cooling soup such as clam soup alongside it to balance the heat.

Nakji bokkeum is not the same as ojingeo bokkeum: ojingeo means squid, while nakji refers to small octopus. Haemul pajeon is a seafood pancake, and jjamppong is a spicy seafood noodle soup.