Ssamjang

Ssamjang (Korean: 쌈장) is a thick, spicy paste used with food wrapped in a leaf in Korean cuisine. The sauce is made of fermented soy beans (doenjang), red chili paste (gochujang), sesame oil, onion, garlic, green onions, and optionally brown sugar.^[1][2][3][4]

Ssamjang

Type	Condiment
Place of origin	Korea
Associated cuisine	Korean cuisine
Main ingredients	Gochujang, doenjang
Korean name
Hangul	쌈장
Hanja	쌈醬
RR	ssamjang
MR	ssamjang
IPA	[s͈am.dʑaŋ]
Media: Ssamjang

Etymology

Ssam means "wrapped" and jang means "paste" or "thick sauce". Together as ssamjang they mean "wrapping sauce".

Variations

Besides the standard way of making ssamjang, other ingredients can be added to make special versions.^[5] There are also commercially prepacked ssamjang available on the market.^[6]

• Nut ssamjang (견과류 쌈장): ground walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and other nuts are added
• Jjukumi ssamjang (쭈꾸미 쌈장): diced short-arm octopus is stir-fried with diced red peppers and onions, and mixed together with ssamjang
• Tofu ssamjang (두부 쌈장): crushed tofu is added
• Flying fish roe ssamjang (날치알 쌈장): flying fish roe is added
• Namul ssamjang (나물 쌈장): various beans are diced and added
• River snail ssamjang (우렁이 쌈장): boil the water with doenjang, river snail, green onion, garlic, and red pepper powder.^[7]

See also

• Fermented bean paste