Jajangmyeon

Jajangmyeon(Korean:자장면) orjjajangmyeon(짜장면) is aKorean Chinesenoodle dish topped with a thick sauce made ofchunjang, dicedpork, andvegetables.It is a variation of the Chinese dishzhajiangmian; it developed in the late 19th century, during theJoseonperiod, whenChinese migrant workersfromShandongarrived inIncheon. The Korean variant of the dish uses a darker and sweeter sauce than the Chinese version. Variants of the dish useseafood, or other meats.
Jajangorjjajangis borrowed from the Chinese wordzhájiàng(炸醬), which means "fried sauce".Myeon(면) means "noodles". TheChinese charactersare pronouncedjakjang(작장) in Korean, but the noodle dish is calledjajangmyeon, not*jakjangmyeon, because its origin is not theSino-Korean word, but a transliteration of the Chinese pronunciation. As the Chinese pronunciation ofzhásounded likejja(rather thanja) to Korean ears, the dish is known in South Korea asjjajangmyeon, and the vast majority ofKorean Chineserestaurants use this spelling.
For many years, until 22 August 2011, theNational Institute of Korean Languagedid not recognize the wordjjajangmyeonas an accepted idiomatic transliteration. The reasonjjajangmyeondid not become the standard spelling was due to the transliteration rules for foreign words announced in 1986 by theMinistry of Education, which stated that the foreignobstruentsshould not be transliterated using doubled consonants except for some established usages.The lack of acknowledgment faced tough criticism from the supporters of the spellingjjajangmyeon, such asAhn Do-hyeon, aSowol Poetry Prizewinning poet.Later,jjajangmyeonwas accepted as an alternative standard spelling alongsidejajangmyeonin the National Language Deliberation Council and, on 31 August, included as a standard spelling in theStandard Korean Language Dictionary.
Jajangmyeonwas brought toIncheon, Korea during the late nineteenth century by migrant workers fromShandong province,China.At a time when both Qing and Japanese businesses were competing against each other, jajangmyeon was offered at the Chinese restaurantGonghwachuninIncheon Chinatown, which was founded in 1905 and run by an immigrant from theShandongregion. The restaurant is now theJajangmyeon Museum.
Both the name and dish originate from the Chinese dishzhájiàngmiàn(炸醬麵). The common copied features of both are pork, long wheat noodles, and a sauce made from fermentedsoybeanpaste.Originally the sauce that was introduced from China to make the noodle dish was saltier, richer, and of a deep brown color. Chefs at Incheon, Korea later added in caramel to sweeten the sauce, and added grains that darkened the sauce to copy the jet-black-brown color over time.
In the mid-1950s inSouth Korea, immediately after theKorean War,jajangmyeonwas sold at low prices so that anyone could eat it without economic burden.The new Korean-style jajangmyeon became popular among merchants visiting the port ofIncheon, the center of trade, and the many dock workers working in the fish market, and quickly spread throughout the country, being recognized as its "own dish" rather than a copied version of the traditional Chinese one.
Jajangmyeonuses thick, hand-made or machine-pulled noodles made fromwheat flour, salt,baking soda, and water.The sauce, jajang, is made with friedchunjangwith other ingredients, such assoy sauce(oroyster sauce),meat(usuallypork, but sometimesbeef),seafood(usuallysquidorshrimp), fragrants (scallions,ginger, andgarlic),vegetables(usuallyonions,zucchiniorKorean zucchini, orcabbage),stock, andstarchslurry.
When served,jajangmyeonmay be topped withjuliennedcucumber,scallions,egg garnish,boiledorfried egg, blanchedshrimpor stir-friedbamboo shootslices.The dish is usually served withdanmuji(yellow pickled radish), sliced rawonions, andchunjangsauce for dipping the onions.
Variations of the jajangmyeon dish includegan-jjajang,jaengban-jjajang,yuni-jjajang, andsamseon-jjajang.
There can be combinations. For example.samseon-gan-jjajangmay refer to seafood jajangmyeon made without adding water.
Dishes such asjajang-bapandjajang-tteok-bokkialso exist.Jajang-bapis essentially the same dish asjajangmyeon, but served with rice instead of noodles.Jajang-tteok-bokkiistteok-bokkiserved withjajangsauce instead of the usual spicy sauce. Bul jajangmyeon is a spicy variation of jajangmyeon.
Instantjajangmyeonproducts, such asChapagetti,Chacharoni, andZha Wang, areinstant noodleversions ofjajangmyeonconsisting of dried noodles that are boiled in the same manner asramyeon, using dried vegetable pieces that are drained and mixed withjajangpowder or liquidjajangsauce, as well as a small amount of water and oil.