Sweet and Sour Musaengchae (Spicy Radish Salad) with Garlic Chives
A crisp side dish of salted julienned radish tossed with garlic chives and a sweet and tangy seasoning.
Translated from Korean by AI and not yet checked by a native speaker. Amounts and numbers are taken directly from the original recipe. Read the Korean original →
This side dish is made by salting julienned radish, squeezing out the moisture, coating it with gochugaru first for color, and tossing it in a sweet and sour dressing. Garlic chives add a fresh aroma, and even less-sweet summer radishes can be made delicious by adjusting the seasoning.
- Servings
- about 3–4 servings
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spiciness
- Mildly spicy
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Korean radish (mu)400 g
- Garlic chives (buchu)50 g
- Salt1 tsp
Seasoning
- Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)2 tbsp
- Sand lance fish sauce (or dried anchovies)1 tbsp
- Minced garlic1 tbsp
- Vinegar1–2 tbsp
- Sugar1/2–1 tbsp
- Toasted sesame oil1 tbsp
- Toasted sesame seeds1/2 tbsp
- I added some garlic chives, but water dropwort (minari) or scallions (jjokpa) are also great.
- It is about 1/2 of a small radish and about half a handful of garlic chives.
- If you are not adding garlic chives, it is delicious tossed with about 2 tbsp of minced large green onion for flavor.
- Summer radish lacks sweetness, so you need to add more sugar or vinegar to make it tasty.
Steps
Prepare the ingredients
It is about 1/2 of a small radish and about half a handful of garlic chives.
Cut the ingredients
Finely julienne the radish, and cut the garlic chives to match the length of the radish.
Salt the radish
Add 1 tsp of salt to the julienned radish, mix well, and let it salt for about 30 minutes.
Toss it once midway through salting. Squeeze out any moisture that forms firmly.
Season and toss
Add 2 tbsp of gochugaru to the salted radish shreds, mix evenly, and let it sit for about 10 minutes to take on the red chili color.
Once the radish is evenly colored with gochugaru, add 1 tbsp of fish sauce, 1 tbsp of minced garlic, 1~2 tbsp of vinegar, and 1/2~1 tbsp of sugar, then toss well.
If you are not adding garlic chives, it is delicious tossed with about 2 tbsp of minced large green onion for flavor.
Add the garlic chives, 1 tbsp of toasted sesame oil, and 1/2 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds, mix evenly, taste, and season with salt, adjusting vinegar or sugar to your liking to finish.
Summer radish lacks sweetness, so you need to add more sugar or vinegar to make it tasty.
Finish
The musaengchae is done.
It has been a while since I had musaengchae, and adding some garlic chives makes it wonderfully fragrant.
FAQ
Can I use other ingredients instead of garlic chives?
You can use water dropwort (minari) or scallions (jjokpa) instead of garlic chives. If you leave out the garlic chives, adding 2 tbsp of minced large green onion (daepa) for scallion aroma also works very well.
Can I use a different fish sauce instead of sand lance fish sauce?
You can substitute anchovy fish sauce.
Are there any tips for making this with summer radish that lacks sweetness?
Summer radish is less sweet, so you can make it delicious by adding more vinegar and sugar to suit your taste.
Why do you add gochugaru first before tossing with the rest of the seasoning?
Mixing gochugaru first into the salted, squeezed radish shreds and letting it sit for about 10 minutes allows a lovely red color to soak in evenly.
