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Sekai Gohan

Injo-gogi-bap: North Korean Soy-Wrapped Rice with Chili Paste (인조고기밥)

Servings About 16 filled pockets

Yubu version of injo-gogi-bap: plain soy pockets filled with short-grain rice and spread with red chili paste
Steps with photos

Ingredients

Ingredient Amount Role
Cooked short-grain rice (밥) 480g The filling. Keep it unseasoned
Plain fried tofu sheets (yubu) 8 sheets The wrapper. If not already pocket-shaped, cut in half and open to make 16 pockets
Water, for blanching as needed Enough to cover the pockets
Salt, for the blanching water a little Seasons the water lightly
Cold water, for rinsing as needed Cools the blanched pockets
Soybean oil 5 tbsp Fries the aromatics and carries the chili
Gochugaru (고춧가루) 3 heaped tbsp The color and main heat of the paste
Garlic about 7 cloves Aromatic base
Fresh hot red chili (Maeun Gochu) 1 Fresh heat
Scallions 2 The first aromatic in the oil
Salt, for the paste 1/2 tsp Seasons the paste
Water, for the paste up to 3 tbsp Loosens the paste if it clumps. Leave it out if not needed

Steps

  1. 1Get the rice ready

    Have 480g of cooked short-grain rice ready in a bowl. Keep it plain, with no salt or sesame oil.

  2. 2Blanch the wrappers

    Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Blanch the pockets briefly.

  3. 3Rinse in cold water

    Rinse the blanched pockets in cold water.

  4. 4Squeeze out the water

    Carefully squeeze out the remaining water with your hands. Press gently so the pockets don't tear.

  5. 5Chop the aromatics

    Finely chop the scallions.

    Finely chop the garlic.

    A knife chopping peeled garlic
    Then the garlic

    Finely chop the fresh red chili.

    A knife chopping a fresh red chili
    Then the fresh chili

  6. 6Heat the oil

    Heat 5 tbsp soybean oil in a frying pan over medium heat.

  7. 7Fry the scallions

    Add the scallions to the hot oil and fry them, stirring.

  8. 8Add the garlic, then the chili

    Keep stirring and add the garlic.

    Still stirring, add the fresh chili.

    Fresh red chili being added to the scallions and garlic while stirring
    Fresh chili goes in last

  9. 9Lower the heat, then add the gochugaru and salt

    Turn the heat down before the gochugaru goes in, because it burns easily.

    Add the gochugaru and stir so it doesn't scorch.

    Chili powder being stirred into the aromatics over lowered heat
    Keep stirring so the powder doesn't burn

    Add 1/2 tsp salt and keep stirring.

    Salt being added to the red chili paste
    Salt goes in after the powder

  10. 10Loosen the paste if needed, then cook off the liquid

    If the paste clumps, add water a little at a time, using no more than 3 tbsp. If it doesn't clump, leave the water out.

    Keep stirring until the liquid has cooked off.

    A wooden spoon stirring thick red chili paste as the water evaporates
    Stir until the liquid is gone

  11. 11Fill and close the pockets

    Divide the rice into 16 portions of about 30g each, adjusting to the size of your pockets. Spoon the rice into each pocket.

    Fold the opening closed.

    Hands folding the opening of a rice-filled yubu pocket closed
    Close the pocket around the rice

    If you are serving at the table, the plate can look like this just before spreading. The paste still goes on the pockets before eating.

    Serving example before spreading: plain yubu pockets filled with white rice, with cooked chili paste set apart on the same plate
    Ready for the paste, which is spread on before eating

  12. 12Spread on the paste

    Spread the chili paste over the top of each closed pocket. Start with a little, taste, and decide how much you want. Eat soon after filling.