Korean · Authentic-ish Korean
Kongjang
167 kcal a serving, against 213 for the traditional version. That is 46 kcal off, or 22%, with 9.5g of protein. Serves 8. 20 minutes active, 70 minutes simmering.
What the traditional version is
Dried black soybeans soaked all night, then simmered gently with water, soy sauce, sugar and a swoosh of rice syrup or honey. The liquid reduces until sticky and glossy, glazing the beans. A classic banchan, eaten cold or at room temperature, chewy and sweet-salty, with a whack of umami from the soy.
What changed, and what each change costs
Cut sugar from 100g to 35g, and rice syrup from 50g to 15g
Sugar and syrup make the beans glossy and temptingly sweet, but they're pure energy with no protein. Scale them back and you still get chewiness and the core flavour, just not the same lacquered finish.
What it costs you. You lose the boiled-sweet shine and the beans end up a little more savoury than sweet. The sauce is stickier than it looks, but the gloss is gone. If you miss it, brush a little extra rice syrup on at the end, or just decide to eat them the proper way next time.
Water down from 800g to 700g
With less sugar, you don't need so much liquid to reduce down. This way the beans glaze faster without going mushy.
What it costs you. It's a minor change and you probably won't notice unless you're getting forensic.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 213 | 167 |
| Protein | 9.5g | 9.5g |
| Fat | 0.9g | 0.9g |
| Saturated fat | 0.2g | 0.2g |
| Carbohydrate | 42.9g | 31.4g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 4.5g | 5.7g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Korean prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. gluten, sesame, soybeans.
The method is in the book
You can't have everything. This is the second dish in this chapter where the original is flashier: the full amount of sugar and rice syrup gives a finish you just don't get any other way. Here, The loss is a bit of gloss. You get a bowl of beans you can eat on repeat without crashing an hour later. They're far from punishment: just plainly good, not pudding. If you want proper lacquer, add all the sugar and don't feel guilty.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Korean, along with 51 more. It is not out yet. The swap kit is free in the meantime.