Kongjang & A Vegemite Substitute

Aye, what a gap between posts!

Mina, Denmark's own Korean food queen, hosted another Kimchi Factory last night, and we all brought along a dish for the obligatory dinner afterwards. So, I made kongjang/kongjorim - a soybean side dish from Maangchi's recipe. Although I made it without sugar and with a Stevia sweetener instead. Kongjang has become a huge hit around my place, and you can usually find it in my fridge.



As you may already be aware, I can't have yeast, so it's hard being an adorer of the substance known as Vegemite, which is literally yeast extract in a jar. I spend a lot of time craving after the salty smack of vegemite, so I did some googling on what I could use as a substitute. A lot of people were saying that they liked to use miso paste instead, I thought that didn't sound quite right. Yesterday, while making the kongjang for dinner, I thought that if I puréed some of the kongjang, that just maybe it'd make a good substitute for vegemite?!



So, here goes with the not really a recipe for 'Vegemite'.

Purée some kongjang, adding a little water, a drizzle of vegetable oil and a little more soy sauce, to taste. Add a pinch of citric acid (optional). Purée until well mixed and a soft paste consistency. Spoon into a sterilised jar, and keep in the fridge. Leave it for a few days to let the flavours intensify.