To reduce the fishy smell of stir-fried bracken, stir-fry in oil before seasoning

Bracken namul, a regular menu item for holiday table settings, requires capturing the key to eliminating its unique fishy scent and making the texture moist and soft rather than tough. According to a Yang Jang-geum Jubu video, instead of adding various ingredients to remove the fishy taste, you can achieve a much cleaner flavor simply by changing the order of stir-frying.

The key to catching the fishy scent: stir-fry in oil before seasoning

The most important step in determining the taste of stir-fried bracken is the process of stir-frying the bracken in oil first before seasoning. Usually, the common method is to season the bracken and then stir-fry it, but this method may leave a characteristic earthy or fishy scent because the moisture on the surface of the bracken does not evaporate sufficiently.

In the video, it is recommended to prepare 500g of soaked bracken, then pour 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and 1.5 tablespoons of perilla oil into a pan and stir-fry it first for about 3 minutes over medium heat. If you stir-fry the bracken in oil first to evaporate the moisture on the surface, you can effectively reduce the fishy scent. A characteristic feature here is using perilla oil, which pairs well with the scent of bracken, rather than sesame oil. The bracken stir-fried in oil should be moved to a separate bowl and mixed with the seasoning so that the seasoning is deeply absorbed without being greasy.

Moisture control method to create a moist and soft texture

In the seasoning stage, add 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of tuna liquid, 1 tablespoon of minced garlic, 30g of the white part of green onions, and 2 tablespoons of cooking wine (Mirim), mix it well, and let it marinate for about 5 minutes. After seasoning the bracken this way, put it back into the pan and stir-fry it for about 5 minutes over medium-low heat.

During the stir-frying process, the bracken may look somewhat dry, but at this time, adding 5 tablespoons of water can help maintain a moist state. If you add water to make a small amount of liquid pool around the bracken, the texture becomes soft. Finally, after tasting, adjust any lacking seasoning with 1/4 tablespoon of fine salt, and ensure the moisture is not reduced too much so that the bracken does not dry out and maintains a moist state. After cooking is finished, turn off the heat and finish by drizzling 1 tablespoon of perilla oil and sesame seeds to complete the glossy and savory bracken namul.