Odeng-bokkeum

Thin fish cake slices stir-fried with chili and vegetables in a savory soy glaze.

Odeng-bokkeum is a beloved everyday banchan made from eomuk — Korean fish cake — the processed fish product that is a ubiquitous street food skewered in broth at pojangmacha stalls but transforms entirely when cut thin and stir-fried with color vegetables in a soy and gochugaru sauce. The fish cake, already fully cooked, merely needs to absorb the stir-fry seasoning — soy sauce, sugar, garlic, sesame oil, and green onion — while the high heat adds a slight golden edge that elevates it beyond its base form. Carrots, green onion, and bell pepper are standard additions, providing color, sweetness, and crunch to what would otherwise be a monochromatic dish. The finished banchan is mild enough for children but satisfying enough for adults, and its affordability and long shelf life in its pre-cooked form have made it a fixture in Korean school cafeterias and home lunch boxes. Fish cake in Korea is produced in a remarkable range of shapes and compositions, from the flat rectangular sheets used for odeng-bokkeum to the hollow tubes, swirled logs, and thick squares of pojangmacha stalls, reflecting how deeply embedded this processed seafood product is in Korean food culture.