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Squamish · the Sea to Sky
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Korean

Hobak-Namul — Korean Courgette Banchan (호박나물)

Hobak-namul (호박나물) showcases Korean courgette (애호박, ae-hobak — a pale green, thin-skinned variety smaller and more delicate than Western zucchini) stir-fried with sesame oil, garlic, saeujeot or myeolchi-aekjeot, and gochugaru to produce a soft, lightly spiced banchan. The technique requires managing moisture: Korean courgette releases significant liquid when cooked; excess moisture produces a wet, unfocused dish. The salt-draw technique (salting and draining before cooking) controls this and allows quick high-heat stir-fry that caramelises the courgette slightly rather than steaming it in its own liquid.

‹Swipe for the next dish›
ServesFour portions (as banchan)
Total30 minutes
Within reach2of 5 in Squamish

One in town · one shipped · three not yet within reach.

How the 5 are reached
In town
1 · garlic
Shipped to you
1 · gochugaru
Not yet within reach
3 · korean courgette (애호박, ae-hobak), saeujeot (salted fermented shrimp) or myeolchi-aekjeot (fish sauce), toasted sesame seeds
Cook
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I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

2
Korean courgette (애호박, ae-hobak)
sliced into rounds or half-moons, 5 mm thick
Not yet within reach of Squamish · each reach is counted
1 tsp
fine sea salt
for the salt-draw
Your own market
1 tbsp
sesame oil
Your own market
2 cloves
½ tsp
1 tsp
saeujeot (salted fermented shrimp) or myeolchi-aekjeot (fish sauce)
Not yet within reach of Squamish · each reach is counted
1 tsp
toasted sesame seeds
Not yet within reach of Squamish · each reach is counted

Within reach counts in town, delivered, shipped and the nearest city. A staple counts once it has a local seller. Charted from each shop's own pages; not yet vouched by a cook who shops here.

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II

The Method

1
Toss the sliced courgette with the fine sea salt in a bowl and leave to stand for 10 minutes, so the salt draws moisture evenly from throughout each slice and not merely from the cut surfaces. Transfer to a clean cloth or paper towel and squeeze lightly but firmly to expel the excess liquid. The slices should feel damp rather than wet, and 30–40% of their moisture will have been drawn out.
2
Set a wok or wide pan over high heat and add the sesame oil, waiting until it shimmers and the sesame aroma rises cleanly from the pan, so you know the oil is hot enough to sear rather than stew what goes in next. Add the garlic and stir for no more than 20 seconds, until fragrant but not coloured — garlic that colours at this stage will turn acrid and chase a sharp bitterness through the finished dish.
3
Add the drained courgette and the gochugaru and stir-fry over high heat for 3–4 minutes. This is where the dish lives or dies: the courgette must turn just translucent and show slight golden caramelisation at the edges while still holding its shape — cook a moment beyond this and it collapses into a soft, wet mass that cannot be recovered.
4
Add the saeujeot or myeolchi-aekjeot and toss to coat evenly, then remove the pan from the heat immediately so the fermented seasoning warms through and its deep, rounded salinity melds with the courgette without the sharp edge that prolonged heat would bring. The finished namul should taste clean, lightly savoury, and carry a background warmth from the gochugaru without visible redness dominating the dish.
From the canon — Saeujeot (새우젓) is tiny whole shrimp (primarily Acetes chinensis, the small white shrimp from the Yellow Sea) preserved in salt at a 1:3 shrimp-to-salt ratio … Saeujeot — Salted Fermented Shrimp (새우젓) →
5
Transfer to a serving dish and scatter the toasted sesame seeds over the surface. The finished namul should look glossy, with lightly golden edges visible among the pale green slices.
III

Quality Hierarchy

01
Reserve — Ae-hobak sourced from a Korean specialist grower at peak summer season, saeujeot that is home-fermented or from a reputable Korean producer, and freshly stone-ground sesame oil pressed from toasted seeds.
02
Estate — Ae-hobak from a Korean or East Asian grocery, good-quality imported saeujeot or myeolchi-aekjeot, and cold-pressed Korean sesame oil from a named producer.
03
Market — Ae-hobak where available; otherwise the most slender, thin-skinned Western courgette obtainable, with extra care taken during the salt-draw to compensate for higher moisture. Commercially bottled fish sauce in place of saeujeot.
04
House — Standard Western zucchini, salted and drained twice to manage the denser flesh and greater moisture release; fish sauce as the seasoning. The result will be heavier and less delicate, but the essential character of the dish remains legible.
IV

Sensory Tests

◇Touch. After the salt-draw and squeezing, the slices feel damp and pliable but release no free liquid when pressed — the pre-cooking moisture reduction is complete.
◇Smell. As the sesame oil heats, the toasted-seed aroma rises freely from the pan surface — the oil is at working temperature and the garlic can be added.
◇Sight. The courgette slices are just translucent throughout and show faint golden colour at their edges — the stir-fry is done and must leave the heat immediately.
◇Sight. The finished namul on the plate is glossy and lightly golden at the edges, with no pooling liquid beneath the slices.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish cannot cross the line from just-translucent and edge-caramelised into full collapse — once the courgette loses its shape and exudes pooling liquid, no further cooking will restore the texture or the concentrated flavour that defines hobak-namul.
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VI

What to Pour

Pouring for British Columbia · ·

A light, cold makgeolli (Korean rice ale) suits the mild sweetness and clean savouriness of hobak-namul; alternatively a delicate, dry green tea served at room temperature provides a non-alcoholic parallel that does not overwhelm the dish's gentle flavour.

The whole pairing
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Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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The working kitchen
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Sourced through Provenance

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Kitchen Quickies
Squamish · garlic
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Wismettac
Vancouver · gochugaru
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