Jwipo (Korean Fish Jerky)
Jwipo is Korean fish jerky. Dried file fish is roasted, torn, then seasoned with slightly sweet gochujang sauce. It is a common Korean side dish and makes a perfect lunch box item.
Have you seen Jwipo (Korean fish jerky)? As I was growing in Korea this salty, sweet, chewy jerky was always big hit in every Korean kid’s lunch box (Doshirak, 도시락).
When my piano man was eating his PB&J sandwich for his lunch at Denver, Colorado in the 80th, I had my fish jerky with rice lunch in my hometown of Tong Young, Korea. Isn’t it funny that we all grew up with the different food and culture, but end up living together as a family somehow? …Life is full of mystery.
Korean Side Dishes For Lunchbox
The Korean lunchbox (Doshirak) in the late 70th through 80th was very simple. The box itself was made with aluminum material mostly, with oval or rectangular in shape. 2/3 of the space was filled with rice and the 1/3 was for side dishes (Banchan). The most common Banchan was egg roll, shredded cuttlefish (Ojinguh, 오징어) in a spicy sauce, mini patties made with chicken or beef, and/or this fish jerky (Jwipo). Lunch time was our happy hour at school. We didn’t have cafeteria or any vending machine to buy food/snack at school those days.
As soon as the lunch bell rings we all took out our doshirak from our bag and put on our desk. Usually 4-6 kids got together and shared lunch on the same desk, which means we shared our doshirak to taste each one’s Banchan. It was so much fun to share and connected with each other through food.
I often got lots of compliments from my friends how my Banchan tasted so good. My mother was an excellent cook and I am so glad that I learned many skills from her. I would like to show you how I make Korean fish jerky in a spicy sauce.
What Is Jwipo (Korean Fish Jerky)?
Jwipo is made from the seasoned, dried, and then pressed file fish called Juichi (쥐치). You can often find this on the street markets in Korea. It is traditionally served hot, heated on a burner until it curls. Jwipo has a subtle sweet flavor.
Do you see a few dinosaur fossils on this fish jerky? Well, actually they are eatable fish bones. Grossed out?
Ingredients for Korean fish jerky side dish
You will need; Jwipo, red chili paste (Korean of course), soy sauce, sugar, sweetened rice wine, corn syrup, and sesame seeds. There is one more item missing in this group but I will show you later.
How to cook Korean dried fish
First roast your Jwipo over the low flame on stove top until it curls up and the edge gets browned, about 5-7 seconds each sides.
It will look like this after roasting. You will love the smell! Do not over roast them unless you have the jaw of Jaws, the shark! They will get tough by over roasting.
Let them cool and tear them into bite sizes. Pop one piece in you mouth and chew it. You will love it.
I am saving these three guys for my 9 yr old daughter who loves dried fish, but she can’t handle the spicy sauce yet. They are good to eat the way they are as a snack like beef jerky.
How to make Korean fish jerky side dish (jwipo jorim)
In a pan combine Korean chili paste, soy sauce, sugar, and the sweetened rice wine.
Now this is the ingredient I need to add. What is this? It is Mayonnaise. You won’t taste it at all in the dish but make so much difference in the over all flavor.
It also softens the fish as well. Add it to the pan and mix well to incorporate with sauce.
Bring the sauce to a full boil until it thickens. Remove pan from the heat.
Add the jwipo pieces to the sauce and mix well. Sprinkle some sesame seeds.
Add a little Korean corn syrup, or any light corn syrup to the mixture. This will add nice shine to the dish but you don’t have to.So how do you eat this? Simply with rice, what else? This makes a great Banchan, Korean side dishes.
How to store Jwipo side dish
Keep it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, although it can last longer. Mine never get lasted more than 3 days. Because I always took some out to eat with my leftover rice in the middle of the night. Now you just discovered my weakness.
Jwipo (Korean Fish Jerky)
Ingredients
- 7 pieces dried file fish
- 2-3 tbsp Korean red chili paste
- 1 tbsp soy sauce, low sodium
- 3 tbsp sweet rice wine (mirim), Mirim
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp mayonnaise
- 1 Tbsp corn syrup, optional
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
Instructions
- Roast the dried fish over the low flame on the stove until it gets curled up and the edge gets browned, about 5-7 seconds on each side. Cool them down a bit and tear them off to bite sizes. Set aside.
- In a non stick pan combine chili paste, soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, and mayonnaise to make sauce. Mix well.
- Bring the sauce to a full boil until it thickens. Remove the pan from heat. Add the fish and mix well. Add corn syrup to bring the more shine if you like. Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.
- Serve this as Banchan(side dish) with rice. Store the leftover in the fridge up to
I will make this at home.
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I only have a electric burner so I am not sure I can try this recipe?! I do have a oven, anyway I can make this using the oven? Or broil? Let me know. Thank You
Hi Kelsey
I think you can directly roast over electric burner over high heat since they are dried and won’t leak any liquid. I’ve never tried in the oven myself so I can’t assure you how it will turn out. Some people skip roasting part and soak them in the warm water for 1-2 minutes instead, then, towel dry, and tear before they add to the sauce. That will make very soft and tender Juipo dish than roasted one.
This turned out much better than I thought it would. However, we used ground meat and let it marinate for almost 24 hrs(or basically "soak" up the marinade).
Its looking Nice, Pictures are Awesome! I will make this at home. Anyways, Nice sharing!!
@Jillian
Dried fish jerky, such as Korean Juipo, has same amount of protein as beef within same volume but with very low in fat. It is good for you if you want to avoid fat but increase protein. However since they are soaked in sugar, salt and other acids to add more flavor before drying process you might need to count on sodium intake. I think the same process goes with other types of jerky(beef, salmon etc) as well. Some people make their own fish jerky without adding any sugar or salt by drying them naturally under the sun directly. Those fishes are more for soups and other types of dishes that requires sodium added on later but not for eating the way they are since they will be fishy. Hope this helps.
I know fish is a very healthy meat to eat as it has almost all protien, very few calories, and has the omega 3's. But when it goes through the process of becoming Jerky does that make it unhealthy or no? I was looking at the tuna and salmon jerky but cant find any health info on it. Thanks.
wow..Looks so yummy. I love fish anyway. I am curious on how it really taste like. :).Korean dishes are really unique.
Well, Asian style red snapper fish jerky is a wonderful treat for those who love fish jerky. Thanks for sharing.
I might enjoy eating this Korean dish, so I think i should try it. Great idea on sharing this blog post. Thank you 🙂
Is this Juipo or crisp? Well, Its looking good I will try it sometime. thanks for the share.
I learned this terrific version of fish jerky while fishing with Slim in Utah.. It comes out tender, flaky, and moist.. The flavor is superb.
Its looking great! I didn't know how much I missed this until today. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Well, I could cook on my own, I guess I'll try this one coz it looks delicious. Thanks for this. Well.
Awesome!!! I have tasted some Korean dishes and I really love it. Maybe I could cook on my own. I guess I'll try this one coz it looks delicious. Thanks for the share, i really like your blog.
Oh I love this! I didnt know how much I missed this until today. Thanks for sharing this recipe,I'm going to try and make this real soon.
@Gabriel
Thanks for visiting my blog. People says that once you get hooked on to Korean food you get addicted. Hope you like the recipe.
Awesome!!! I have tasted some Korean dishes and I really love it. Maybe I could cook on my own. I guess I'll try this one coz it looks delicious. Thanks for this.
Thanks for introducing Korean fish jerky 😀