Korean Side Dishes (Banchan)
Classic Korean banchan — small dishes that complete every Korean meal.
Banchan are the small side dishes served with every Korean meal — not appetizers, but essential companions to the main dish. A typical home meal has three to five banchan alongside rice and soup. Most are vegetable-based: seasoned spinach, stir-fried zucchini, braised potatoes, pickled radish. They're designed to be made in batches and kept in the fridge for several days. The seasoning formula is simple: sesame oil, garlic, soy sauce, and sometimes gochugaru. These recipes are the ones Korean home cooks rotate through weekly.
36 recipes
Egg Roll Omelette
15 min · beginner
Soy-Braised Potatoes
30 min · beginner
Soy-Braised Tofu
20 min · beginner
Seasoned Zucchini
10 min · beginner
Bracken Fern Side Dish
25 min · intermediate
Aster Scaber Greens
25 min · intermediate
Bellflower Root Side Dish
25 min · intermediate
Braised Burdock Root
30 min · intermediate
Braised Lotus Root
30 min · intermediate
Braised Soybeans
35 min · beginner
Chive Pancake
15 min · beginner
Japchae Rice Bowl
35 min · intermediate
Kimchi Pancake
15 min · beginner
Korean Potato Salad
25 min · beginner
Korean Steamed Egg
15 min · beginner
Mini Grilled Short Rib Patties
25 min · intermediate
Mung Bean Pancake
35 min · intermediate
Mung Bean Sprout Side Dish
8 min · beginner
Perilla Leaf Pancake
20 min · beginner
Quick Cubed Radish Kimchi
20 min · beginner
Seafood Glass Noodle Stir-Fry
30 min · intermediate
Seasoned Bean Sprouts
10 min · beginner
Seasoned Radish
13 min · beginner
Seasoned Seaweed Salad
13 min · beginner
Seasoned Spinach
10 min · beginner
Soy Braised Beef and Eggs
60 min · intermediate
Soy-Braised Eggs
25 min · beginner
Spicy Cucumber Salad
10 min · beginner
Spicy Dried Squid Strips
10 min · beginner
Spicy Green Onion Salad
10 min · beginner
Steamed Eggplant Side Dish
15 min · beginner
Stir-Fried Dried Anchovies
15 min · beginner
Stir-Fried Fish Cake
15 min · beginner
Stir-Fried Shishito Peppers
10 min · beginner
Sweet & Spicy Radish Salad
15 min · beginner
Zucchini Pancake
20 min · beginner
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Key Ingredients For This Category
Soy Sauce
Soy sauce seasons marinades, namul, soups, and sauces across Korean cooking. It is one of the site's most-used pantry ingredients.
Sesame Oil
Toasted sesame oil adds a nutty aroma to finished dishes. A few drops transform any Korean side dish.
Gochugaru
Korean red pepper flakes — sun-dried, coarsely ground, and the backbone of kimchi, stews, and most Korean seasoning.
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