Summer is zucchini season, which makes now a good time to indulge in hobakjeon, i.e., Korean fried zucchini. In this recipe, zucchini discs are dipped in egg and flour and lightly fried. The combination means that even though hobakjeon is a side dish, it’s a fairly substantial one.

In case you’d rather eat a lighter version of this dish, I’m also including a recipe for hobak namul, in which the zucchini is lightly seasoned and sauteed.

Hobakjeon (Fried Zucchini) — 호박전

Ingredients

  • 10 oz. zucchini
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 4 Tbsp. flour*
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 Tbsp. cooking oil
  • 1 Tbsp. soy sauce**
  • 1 Tbsp. white vinegar

*To make this recipe gluten free, I used gluten-free flour.

**To further make this recipe gluten free, I used San-J Organic Tamari Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (available at Whole Foods or for $6.69 + shipping on Amazon.com.)

Steps 

  • Wash zucchini and slice into quarter-inch discs.
  • Sprinkle zucchini slices with salt. Set aside for 10 minutes, then dry off any excess moisture.
  • Beat eggs and sprinkle a little salt into mixture.
  • Coat zucchini in flour, then dip in egg.
  • Pan fry zucchini slices until golden brown on both sides.
  • Mix vinegar and soy sauce in small dipping dish.
  • Serve zucchini together with dipping sauce.

[From Korean Cuisine: Refresh Your Senses]

Hobak-namul-500-center

Hobak Namul (Seasoned Zucchini) — 호박나물

Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs. zucchini, sliced into ¼-inch disks
  • 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 1 Tbsp. soy sauce**
  • 1 green onion or 3 scallion stalks, finely minced
  • 1 Tbsp. sesame oil

**To make this recipe gluten free, I used San-J Organic Tamari Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (available at Whole Foods or for $6.69 + shipping on Amazon.com.)

Steps

  • Heat ½ Tbsp. of vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a frying pan.
  • Place about ¼ of the zucchini in the pan and cook for 3 minutes or until the edges turn bright green and begin to curl.
  • Flip the zucchini over and cook for 2 more minutes.
  • Transfer to a tray to cool.
  • Repeat 3x with the remaining oil and zucchini.
  • In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients (soy sauce, green onion/scallion and sesame oil) and mix.
  • Add the zucchini and toss.
  • Serve at room temperature.

[From Growing Up in a Korean Kitchen]