If you like K-Drama, then you also probably like Korean food. Two of the tastes that you would long for are the spiciness and the sesame oil. I transformed a small pack of dried squid (dried pusit) into a spicy treat that could be a side dish or appetizer to your samgyeopsal or bibimbap dinner. Or you can eat it a pulutan with your favorite drink. Here is my easy-to-make, homemade Korean-style spicy squid jerky recipe.

• Related: Korean Beef Stew Recipe: Restaurant-Style Cooking with Beef Camto

For the Love of Korean Food

Hubby and I watch TV after we send the kids to sleep. Sometimes, it’s a superhero series like the Flash, Supergirl, or Arrow. Then, of course there are crime dramas and spy stories. And lastly, there’s K-Drama.

Among all the things we watch, it is the food in K-Dramas that are most memorable to me. I can just imagine the mix of flavors with the dishes they eat. Gosh, I love ramyun. I have also made kimchi rice several times.

One of the latest K-Dramas we have finished is the anti-hero, Vincenzo, topbilled by Song Joong-Ki as his TV comeback. And because of that, I have come up with a how a pasta dish in the show tasted. Get the recipe here: Baked Rigatoni Dinner for the Love of Vincenzo.

When I saw a friend selling dried squid online, I ordered a pack and thought of making this appetizer.

Korean-style Spicy Squid Jerky Recipe

The basic taste that you want to achieve is sweet, spicy, and bit of acidity. It is really up to you how spicy you want it to be. If you don’t like spicy food, you can just put a little of the chili, but don’t omit it because you need it for flavor and also for the kick.

By the way, the sesame seeds and sesame oil are optional ingredients. You can make this without them. But for me, it ain’t Korean with these two. Plus, sesame is really good for menopausal women — the age group that I am now a part of.

Remember: Since this Korean-style Spicy Squid Jerky Recipe would take a very short time to make, prepare all your ingredients beforehand. You don’t want to burn your squid and ruin all that goodness.

Ingredients:

• 120 grams dried squid
• Cooking oil
• 3 Tbsps. catsup
• Cayenne pepper
• Chili flakes
• 3 Tbsps. brown sugar
• Sesame oil
• Optional garnish: sesame seeds

Procedure:

• Using a pair of kitchen scissors, cut the dried squid horizontally (against the grain). You may cut them smaller than mine. Hubby requested that I do it next time so that it would be a bit easier to chew.

• Heat cooking oil in a skillet and fry the squid. Remove them from the oil as soon as the squid has turned slightly brown.

• Place the fried squid on a strainer to drain the excess oils. We don’t want the jerky to be swimming in oil but we don’t want it to be too dry either.

• Prepare another non-stick pan for more efficient cooking and heat it up.

• Transfer all the fried squid onto the non-stick pan and add the catsup, cayenne pepper, chili flakes, and brown sugar. The cayenne pepper and chili flakes will depend upon the spice level that you desire. If you are not much into spicy food, you can have a couple of dashes of cayenne pepper and a pinch of chili flakes.

• Use a wooden spoon to mix everything together, making sure that that the fried squid is coated with the mixture.

• When it is done, turn off the heat and drizzle with sesame oil. Mix well and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

While it is nice to serve this Korean-style spicy squid jerky with ice-cold beer or soju, it also goes well with rice! It is already a meal on its own. Yum!