Korean Carrot Salad

A typically Soviet side dish, this salad isn't really connected to Korean traditional cuisine, since it was invented by "local" Soviet Koreans, who had at some point migrated to the Russian Empire in the 1860's.

Some say the salad dressing derives from a similar hot and sour marinade used in Korean fish dishes.

It is now quite popular among Russians of every other ethnic origin, and quite a common (if not unavoidable) side dish.

2 fresh carrots, grated or shredded (= 200g)

2 teaspoons of vinegar

1 garlic clove

1 table spoon of sunflower seed oil (or any other non fragrant oil)

1 coffee spoon of each:

salt

black pepper

red chili pepper

sugar

soy sauce (optional)

a bowl

a small pan

#1 Put grated carrots in the bowl, add vinegar, salt, sugar and spices.

#2 Heat oil in the pan.

Now you can either crush the garlic, put it on the carrots and pour hot oil over it; or you can fry the garlic clove in the oil to make it more fragrant, throw away the fried clove and pour fragrant oil over carrots (which I find tastier to be honest).

#3 Mix the contents of the bowl gently, and leave to marinate for at least 20 min.

If you're not sure whether the marinade is too spicy or not, mix it in a separate bowl and taste it first before adding it to the carrots.

Adding soy sauce will make the carrots turn an unpleasant shade of brownish, but it will still be delicious!

Other optional ingredients are : fried onions, fresh parsley, cumin powder.