Korean vegetable side dishes (banchan) to go with any meals. Simple and easy to make, these dishes are light and nutritious and are especially great with BBQ for a balance of flavors and texture.
15 of the most popular Korean vegetable side dishes (also known as “banchan”) that you can effortlessly make at home for the whole family to enjoy. You don’t have to wait for your next trip to a Korean restaurant to have the various kinds of banchan because they are really quite easy to make.
With just a few simple ingredients, you can whip up a whole lot of authentic Korean flavors in your very own kitchen. And most of these will store well in the fridge for few days so you can continue to make meals with them. That’s how many Korean moms do it. They make a batch of the side dishes and take out a couple for every meal.
What is Banchan ?
Banchan (반찬飯饌) is a name for all the small side dishes that are typically served with rice in a Korean meal. They are usually served in small dishes (but not always) and is supposed to be shared with everyone at the table. Banchan can be the vegetable side dishes listed here but also includes seafood and meats that are made into jeon (e.g. fish jeon) or jorim (braised e.g. jangjorim).
How to store Korean Vegetable Side Dishes? And how long?
Well, instead of going over each one, I made a quick table for you here! So refer to this table whenever you are not sure. BTW, USDA states the following – “Never leave food out of refrigeration over 2 hours. If the temperature is above 90 °F, food should not be left out more than 1 hour.”
My recommended times are based on cooler room temperatures of 75°F or lower so please shorten the time if the temperature is higher. I think because some of these Korean vegetable side dishes are high in acid/salt/sugar content, they are most likely going to be OK but please put in the refrigerator sooner than later.
DISCLAIMER – I’m giving you this info just as a very rough guideline and is purely based on my personal experience of cooking Korean food for over 25 years. I am NOT a food safety expert and the results may differ on the temperature, humidity and other factors that I cannot cover all here.
Most of these Korean vegetable side dishes taste best when they are freshly made and served at room temperature. Cucumber Salad and Radish Salad are two salads that actually taste better cold and after they have been marinated for a few hours.
| Korean Vegetable Side Dishes | Store at Cool Room Temp (< 23ºC/ 75ºF) | Refrigerate for 1 day | Refrigerate for 2-3 Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cucumber Salad | 3-4 hrs | Great | Good |
| Lettuce Salad | < 2 hrs | OK - prob. soggy | Not Good |
| Green Onion Salad | < 2 hrs | Not Good | Not Good |
| Chive Salad | 4-5 hrs | Good | OK |
| Bean Sprout Salad | < 1 hrs | Good | Ok - may spoil |
| Three Color Namul | 2-3 hrs | Good | Good |
| Tofu Muchim | < 2 hrs | Good | Ok - may spoil |
| Lotus Roots | 4-5 hrs | Good | Good up to 6-7 days |
| Eggplant Namul | <2 hrs | Good | Ok - may spoil |
| Fried Kelp | 3 ~ 7 days (no humidity) | Don't Do it | Don't Do it |
| Potato Jorim | 3-4 hrs | OK | OK |
| Sauteed Burdock | 2-3 hrs | Good | Def. good up to 6-7 days or more |
| Sweet and Salty Black Beans | 1 day | Good | Good, up to 7 days or more |
| Radish Salad | 5-6 hrs | Good | Good |
| Kabocha Salad | < 2 hrs | Good | OK |
Hope this is helpful! This Banchan storage guide table does not display well on mobile, click HERE to view, download or print the table.
#1 Korean Vegetable Side Dish – Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim 오이무침)
A simple Korean cucumber side dish that’s like a salad. The seasoning is very light to allow the refreshing cucumber flavor to stand out.
Lettuce Salad (Sangchoo Geotjeori 상추 겉절이)
A wonderful side dish to any grilled meats. The salty, vinegary, and slightly sweet chili flavors of this banchan help balance the greasy taste of meats.
Green Onion Salad (Pa Muchim 파무침)
Another side dish that’s great with grilled meats. It brings out the flavor of meat while cutting out the fatty taste.
Chive Salad (Buchu Muchim 부추 무침)
The tantalizing soy vinegar dressing together with the garlicky punch of fresh chives make this side dish a standout. Serve it with Korean BBQ or any heavy meat dishes.
Bean Sprouts (Sukju Namul 숙주나물)
This popular Korean side dish is easy to make with humble ingredients yet packed with nutrients and good flavors. It’s a great topping for bibimbap.
Three Color Vegetables (Samsaek Namul 삼색나물)
This dish comes from the Korean tradition of paying respect to ancestors with an offering of a table full of food. One of the rules is to have a plate of three-colored vegetables.
Tofu with Crown Daisies (Ssukgat Dubu Muchim 쑥갓 두부 무침)
Tofu is mixed with fragrant Korean greens like ssukgat (crown daisies), minari (water dropwort/Japanese parsley/Chinese celery), and cham namul in this traditional recipe.
Sweet and Salty Lotus Roots (Yeonkeun Jorim 연근조림)
A popular Korean side dish that’s slightly crunchy, salty, and sweet all at the same time. Lotus roots are a great source of fiber and vitamin C.
Steamed Eggplant (Gaji Namul 가지나물)
Eggplant is lightly steamed and gently tossed in a delicious Korean soy sauce seasoning. This side dish is just as good by itself and with some white rice for a light meal.
Fried Kelp Chips (Dashima Twigak 다시마 튀각)
Great as a side dish or a snack, kelp chips are a traditional delicacy that has been around for hundreds of years. Kelp is rich in minerals.
Potato Side Dish (Gamja Jorim 감자조림)
An easy side dish for potato lovers that goes well with any Korean meal and lunch boxes. It can be made with any waxy potatoes or baby potatoes.
Sauteed Burdock (Wuwong Bokkeum 우엉볶음)
A popular root vegetable in Korea and Japan, burdock is enjoyed for its medicinal benefits. Fresh burdock root can usually be found in Asian grocery stores.
Sweet and Salty Soybeans (Kongjaban 콩자반)
The measure of a good Kongjaban is when the soybeans have just the right bite and the sauce has a good balance of sweet and salty flavors.
Radish Salad (Moo Saeng Che 무생채)
Radish has various digestive enzymes to help us digest carbs, fats, and proteins, making this sweet, tangy, and slightly spicy side dish a great accompaniment to BBQ meat.
Sweet Kabocha Squash Salad (Danhobak Salad 단호박 사라다)
Sweet and creamy, this Korean vegetable side dish is a treat everyone in the family, including the kids, will love. High in vitamin C and beta-carotene, kabocha squash is considered a healing food in Korea.
I hope you get to try all 15 Korean vegetable side dishes (banchan)!
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JinJoo
Thank you for all the side dish recipes. Ban Chans are my favorite at korean restaurants (more than the main meal)! I was looking for ban Chan recipes to pair with my instant pot korean beef stew recipe, but will also still be tasty if I made it a day or two in advance, so the freshness chart is super awesome! Thanks for putting it together!
Hey! This was helpful but I couldn’t find a side dish that was served to me at a Korean restaurant. The dish looked like spinach but it tastes more like seaweed, and it was probably seasoned with onion and vinagre. It was really tasty and I want to know what it is.
My brother pointed out that it tasted like the seasoning on Otogi ramen noodles.
Hi, I think you are probably looking for seaweed salad? miyeok cho muchim. I don’t have a recipe for it yet on my blog but you can just use the same seaweed from this recipe https://kimchimari.com/seaweed-side-dish-miyeok-julgi-bokkeum/ and then instead of sauteeing it, you just season it with vinegar, sugar, sliced onions and some sesame seeds. I hope you will subscribe so you can get the full recipe when I post it in the future! Thank you for asking.
Thank you so much for providing the freshness chart! I really, really appreciate having it all in one spot.
Thank you for appreciating it!!