How to Cook Yummy Basic Namul Banchan (Korean Sesame-Garlic Vegetable Side Dish)

Basic Namul Banchan (Korean Sesame-Garlic Vegetable Side Dish).

You can have Basic Namul Banchan (Korean Sesame-Garlic Vegetable Side Dish) using 11 ingredients and 10 steps. Here is how you achieve that.

Ingredients of Basic Namul Banchan (Korean Sesame-Garlic Vegetable Side Dish)

1. It's of Vegetables of your choosing (see above) - at least 3/4 pound of each kind.
2. You need of water.
3. You need of salt.
4. It's of Seasoning:.
5. It's 1 of small clove garlic, minced (about 2/3 teaspoon).
6. It's 1/2 of green onion, finely chopped.
7. It's 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt (if you're using table salt, use roughly 90% the amount) OR 1.5 Tablespoons light soy sauce.
8. It's 1/2 teaspoon of sugar.
9. It's 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil.
10. Prepare 1/2 teaspoon of neutral oil.
11. It's of toasted sesame seeds for garnish (nice to have, not a biggie if you don't).

Basic Namul Banchan (Korean Sesame-Garlic Vegetable Side Dish) instructions

1. Bring about 6 cups of water plus 2 teaspoons of salt to a gentle boil. After you put the water on the stove, prepare an ice bath in a large mixing bowl to shock the vegetables after they've been blanched..
2. Prepare your vegetables for blanching. Leafy greens always benefit from a good bath in water to release all the dirt and sand accumulated in the growing process. Spinach can be particularly dirty, especially after a good rain, so make sure to wash the spinach as many times as it takes for your water to run clean. Sprouts don't usually need to be washed..
3. When the water is gently boiling, place your first batch of vegetables in the water. Contrary to popular wisdom, I actually have had no problems putting as much vegetable matter into the pot as the water will cover..
4. Blanch the vegetables until the leafy parts turn a brighter, deeper green and the stalks *just* turn translucent (or in the case of sprouts, until they just turn translucent), no more than 2 or 3 minutes. If you're making spinach, take it out of the water immediately after it starts to wilt, which is probably no more than 30 seconds..
5. Take the vegetables out of the boiling water, place them immediately in the ice water bath and give them a good swish, letting them shock (essentially stop cooking) and cool for 3 or 4 minutes before removing them to a strainer/colander. You'll want to throw out some of the water and add more ice to keep the shocking water cold..
6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 for the rest of the vegetables and strain in the colander..
7. In fist sized batches, and according to type, *thoroughly* squeeze the excess liquid from the vegetables. This takes 2 or 3 squeezes and is an important step to keep from diluting the seasoning..
8. Cut into bite sized pieces (1 to 1.5 inches in length), but not the sprouts. We rarely ever cut the sprouts..
9. For every 2 cups of prepared vegetables, add the seasonings listed above and toss to season thoroughly and evenly..
10. Enjoy as a side dish with your Korean meal, by itself as a snack, or use it to make a yummy bowl of bibimbap! :).