Korean Side Dishes - Banchan

I always have some side dishes(banchan) with a Korean meal.
So, banchan often translated as "side dishes" are an essential part of any Korean meal. 
It refers to small side dishes of food served with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. 
They are not just decoration or appetizers: they are the meal, along with soup and rice.
Today, I made 3 types of Korean side dishes.
Eggplant stir-fry, bean sprout stir-fry and summer cucumber kimchi.
These are my favorites Korean side dishes!

Eggplant stir-fry (Gaji Bokkeum).
Ingredients
2 medium size eggplants
2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds
pinch of pepper
pinch of pepper powder or crushed chili peppers

Directions
Cut the eggplant and heat the pan with oil over medium high heat.
Stir fry the eggplants quickly until outside starts to get soft.
Add all the remaining ingredients.
Stir until eggplants are coated well with seasonings.
Sprinkle sesame seeds, oil and serve.

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Soybean Sprout stir-fry (Kongnamul Bokkem)
Ingredients
1 bag of soybean sprout about 1 1/2 lb
chopped green onions to taste
2 tablespoons minced garlic
3-4 tablespoons soy sauce to taste
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon Korean chili powder to taste
1/2 tablespoon sugar
toasted sesame seeds, to taste

Directions
Wash soybean sprouts and drain water.
Heat  the pan with vegetable oil over medium high heat.
Add minced garlic and saute until golden brown about 2 minutes-it's a garlic oil.
Stir-fry soybean sprouts briefly, don't let them wilt.
Add soy sauce, sugar and chili powder and stir until seasonings are mixed well and cover with a lid until sprouts are wilted.
Turn off the heat and sprinkle with sesame oil and  stir well. 
Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds before serving.

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Summer Cucumber Kimchi (Oi Kimchi)
Ingredients
1 bag of mini cucumbers (from Costco)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons fish sauce
4 tablespoons oligosaccharide
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 tablespoon minced jalapeno

Directions
Wash cucumber and drain water and cut it into 8 pieces.
Put them it in a bowl and sprinkle with kosher salt and mix well.
Let them sit for 15 minutes and rinse and drain quickly.
Mix cucumber, fish sauce, minced garlic, jalapeno and oligosaccharide.
Put it in a container and let sit at room temperature for 2 hours then keep in the refrigerator.
Serve it cold.

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