Crispy Stir-fried Small Anchovies
A beloved Korean side dish, stir-fried small anchovies! Learn the meticulous know-how to create a premium recipe for crispy and savory stir-fried anchovies.
📝 Editor's Notes
This recipe for crispy stir-fried small anchovies boasts an excellent crispy texture and savory flavor.
As a beloved national side dish for the whole family, precise heat control and achieving the right sauce consistency are key.
Even ordinary stir-fried anchovies can be elevated to a gourmet dish with a little extra care.
It's perfect for serving year-round and makes an excellent nutritious snack for children.
While the difficulty is intermediate, you can definitely succeed by following the tips carefully.
🛒 Ingredient Tips
Choosing good quality small anchovies accounts for 80% of the flavor.
Select 'jiri-myeolchi' (small dried anchovies) that are white, translucent, non-fishy, and have a savory aroma.
You won't regret choosing the best quality at a dried seafood store.
Prepare fresh nuts that aren't rancid, and ginger syrup (saenggang-cheong) is essential as it helps to eliminate any fishy smell from the anchovies and adds a subtle fragrance.
🔄 Substitution Guide
Instead of jiri-myeolchi (small dried anchovies), you can use slightly larger 'gobam-myeolchi' or 'se-myeolchi' (other types of dried anchovies), though the stir-frying time and texture may vary slightly depending on the size.
For nuts, if you have allergies or prefer, you can substitute with other seeds like sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, or add crispy fried garlic chips or onion chips for extra flavor.
If ginger syrup (saenggang-cheong) is unavailable, you can add a small amount of mirin (sweet cooking rice wine) or a very tiny bit of ginger powder, but it might lack the unique fragrance of ginger syrup.
Using oligosaccharide or corn syrup instead of honey can add gloss and prevent hardening, but the subtle sweetness and aroma of honey might be reduced.
🥘 Ingredients
👨🍳 Cooking Points
There are two crucial cooking points for this recipe.
First, when stir-frying the anchovies, do so 'without oil over very low heat' for 20-30 minutes.
You need to patiently stir-fry over a flame just strong enough to barely stay lit to achieve the crisp, 'snap' texture.
Second, when boiling the sauce, bring it to a vigorous boil in the center of the pan over high heat, then cook for 'just 3 more seconds' before immediately turning off the heat.
Remember this vital point: overcooking the sauce will cause it to harden like gangjeong (Korean brittle candy)!
Don't forget to quickly toss the anchovies and nuts into the sauce with the heat off.
👨🍳 Directions
In a dry cast iron coated pan or stainless steel pot, add the jiri-myeolchi (small dried anchovies) and stir-fry without oil over very low heat (just enough for the flame to barely stay lit) for 20-30 minutes. The anchovies are perfectly stir-fried when they break with a crisp 'snap'.
When transferring the stir-fried anchovies to a plate, remove any anchovy crumbs left at the bottom of the pan, and mix them with the nuts.
In a separate pan, add 2 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp brewed soy sauce, 1/3 tsp ginger syrup (saenggang-cheong), 2 tbsp perilla oil (deulgireum), and 2 tbsp honey. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Once the sauce boils vigorously in the center of the pan, turn off the heat after about 3 seconds. (Be careful not to overcook, as it can turn into a brittle candy.)
With the heat off, add the stir-fried anchovies and nuts to the sauce pan and quickly toss to ensure the sauce coats them evenly.
Finally, sprinkle a generous amount of toasted sesame seeds to complete your crispy and delicious small anchovy stir-fry.
💡 Tips
Good quality jiri-myeolchi (small dried anchovies) are white, translucent, non-fishy, and have a savory aroma. It's best to choose the most expensive ones at a dried seafood store.
To achieve a crispy texture, do not stir-fry the anchovies and nuts in an air fryer. Instead, stir-fry them in a dry pan over very low heat for 20-30 minutes. It's better to use a cast iron coated pan or a stainless steel pot rather than a Teflon-coated pan.
If the sauce is overcooked when boiling, the jiri-myeolchi (small dried anchovies) can harden like gangjeong (Korean brittle candy). If this happens, leave it at room temperature and break it apart with chopsticks to prevent it from clumping again. For beginners, it's recommended to reduce the boiling time of the sauce and toss the ingredients with the heat off.
If you don't have ginger syrup (saenggang-cheong), it's recommended to grate fresh ginger and add about 1/3 tsp. Toasted sesame seeds should be sprinkled just before serving to adhere well to the anchovies.
📦 Storage & Reuse
Once the stir-fried small anchovies are cooked, let them cool completely before storing them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.
Freezing is also possible, but the crispy texture may be somewhat diminished upon thawing, so refrigeration is generally recommended.
To enjoy, let them sit at room temperature briefly or gently warm them in a dry pan over very low heat to partially restore their original crispiness.
Leftover anchovies are also great as gimbap (김밥) filling, rice ball stuffing, or as a topping for bibimbap (비빔밥).
🥢 Who This Is For
This stir-fried small anchovy dish is an excellent side dish for helping growing children get calcium, and it's perfect as a 'bap-doduk' (rice thief) for the whole family.
We highly recommend it to homemakers who often worry about side dish ideas.
Served with warm white rice, it's a complete meal even without other side dishes, and it's also delicious when used as a filling for gimbap (김밥) or rice balls.
You can enjoy a more balanced meal by pairing it with spicy soups or stews.
🔥 Nutrition Info
Anchovies themselves are rich in calcium and protein, while nuts add unsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E.
Don't overlook the omega-3 fatty acids from perilla oil (deulgireum).
One serving of this recipe (based on approximately 3 servings) is estimated to be around 330-370 kcal.
It will contain approximately 30-33g of protein, 17-20g of fat, and 20-23g of carbohydrates.
It's a highly nutritious snack and side dish for growing children's bone health and brain development.
However, since soy sauce and anchovies themselves contain sodium, those who are mindful of sodium intake due to high blood pressure, etc., should be careful with portion control.
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