Gamja Jorim

Gamja Jorim - Korean Braised Potatoes in a sweet savory stick glaze with a hint of sesame. So easy to make and ready in 30 minutes!

What is Gamja Jorim?

Gamja Jorim  (감자조림) is a popular and delicious Korean potato side dish in South Korea. It's very simple to make at home with minimal ingredients! Perfectly balanced in sweet and savory flavors accented with a nutty taste from the sesame. A fantastic way to enjoy potatoes in Korean cuisine.

Favorite Korean Side Dishes

This popular side dish or Korean banchan is one of my favorites. It's often served at a Korean restaurant along with your main course, a bowl of rice, along with other side dishes like kimchi, bean sprouts and more. Usually, it's served at room temperature or cold sometimes, but you can most definitely enjoy it warm to hot.

Probably one of the easiest side dishes to make in Korean food. You need a few ingredients for the braising sauce and some small potatoes. In fact, you don't even need to peel the potatoes if you use baby potatoes making it a great side dish to make on a busy weeknight!

Easy Gamja Jorim

We are using small baby potatoes but you can use normal yukon gold potatoes, but you will need to peel and slice them into smaller pieces. They are boiled in water and strained. Next transfer potatoes into a hot pan to brown in oil and pour a sauce mixture of soy sauce, honey/brown sugar/maple syrup, garlic and sesame oil over top to reduce and thicken. Finally, garnish the golden potatoes with green onions and a drizzle of sesame oil to enjoy!

Some Korean recipes use corn syrup or rice syrup to make the sauce thick and glossy. But we are going to use honey or brown sugar. You can also add a little heat by adding red pepper flakes or a tablespoon of gochujang, but my potato recipe is not spicy.

Ingredients

You'll need the following ingredients for my gamja jorim recipe. Please see below recipe card for full measurements.

• Baby potatoes with skin on: The ideal size of baby potato should be 1.5 inches tall and 2 inches wide. Any larger and you may have to cut them into quarters. You can also use Yukon gold potatoes with the skin on and chop each piece of potato into smaller quarters.
• Avocado oil or any neutral tasting oil, like vegetable oil, canola oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil. I wouldn't suggest using olive oil as it contains a scent and slight taste.

Sauce:

• Soy sauce: Just your regular all-purpose soy sauce. The label will just say "soy sauce". Do not use dark soy sauce. You may use low-sodium soy sauce. If you use light soy sauce, please use less and season to taste. Most Asian grocers, Western Grocers or even online retails, like Amazon will carry this item.
• Honey: or substitute with Brown sugar or maple syrup as a vegan option. This gives it the sweetness.
• Garlic: Minced garlic is important so you're not tasting chunks of garlic. It'll be needed to flavor the potatoes.
• Sesame oil: A finishing oil that you can use to drizzle over your potatoes. Not too much as it has a strong smell unless you prefer that. Most Asian grocers, Western Grocers or even online retails, like Amazon will carry this item.

Optional for boiling potatoes:

• Salt: to season the water and the potatoes as you boil them.
• Vinegar, or rice wine vinegar: To help the potatoes retain their shape as they boil. It causes the potatoes to form a thin crust around the potato causing it not to break apart when you go to toss them in the sauce.

Optional Garnish:

• Green onions: An optional garnish to give your potato dish color and often used as a garnish in any Korean meal
• Toasted sesame seeds: Commonly used in Korean cooking, this adds a hint of sesame.

How to Make Gamja Jorim

Below are instructions on how to make Korean potatoes: 

Rinse baby potatoes under cold water to remove any dirt. Do not peel.

In a large pot filled halfway with water, bring to a boil over medium high heat. Optional: add salt and vinegar to the boiling water. The salt seasons the potato, and the vinegar allows the starchy potatoes to hold their shape better.

Boil baby potatoes for 20 minutes until fork tender, uncovered.

In a small bowl, combine Sauce ingredients.

Strain potatoes in a colander.

In a large skillet on medium heat to medium-high heat, add avocado oil. Followed by strained baby potatoes. Fry them in the oil for 2-4 minutes until slightly brown on both sides.

Then pour the soy sauce mixture on top of the potatoes. Gently toss potatoes into sauce for 5 minutes, until sauce has thickened slightly.

Remove off heat. Serve and garnish with green onions and a drizzle of sesame oil. Enjoy!

FAQ

Below are frequently asked questions about Korean gamja jorim:

How long will this dish last?

It should last 3-4 days stored in an air tight container in the fridge. It can be served at room temperature or cold or reheated in the microwave for a couple of minutes.

Where can I buy baby potatoes?

Any Western grocery store or select Asian grocers will carry this item. They usually come in small packages. You get buy the multi-colored kind or normal golden brown potatoes.

How can I make this dish spicy?

To your savory sauce, add 1 teaspoon of Korean red pepper flakes (aka Gochugaru) or a 1 tablespoon of gochujang and mix well before adding to potatoes.

What to eat with gamja jorim?

This is usually eaten with a main course, like a protein with a bowl of rice and some other side dishes or barchans. I share some banchan recipes below:

• Gyeran Mari Korean Rolled Omelette
• Japchae
• Korean Fish Cake Stir-Fry
• Korean Cucumber Salad
• Korean Potato Salad
• Korean Bean Sprout Salad
• Korean Spinach Side Dish

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