Seafood Jjamppong Pasta in Spicy Tomato Broth [Recipe]

---

Jjamppong, the fiery seafood noodle soup from Korean-Chinese restaurants, is one of Korea’s go-to hangover cures. This recipe borrows that broth and pairs it with spaghetti to make Seafood Jjamppong Pasta, a dish Koreans would call haejang (hangover-cure) pasta. The base is spicy and sharp, loaded with seafood, and the noodles simmer right in the pot. The clean savory depth of the seafood meets a punchy tomato broth built on gochujang and gochugaru, and the combination works really well. It makes a solid meal, a hangover fix, or even a drinking snack. Let’s get into it.

---

📋 At a Glance

• Dish: Seafood Jjamppong Pasta (Korean haejang pasta)
• Type: jjamppong-style soup pasta (a meal, a hangover cure or a drinking snack)
• Servings: 2
• Main ingredients: spaghetti, 250g frozen seafood mix, a handful of frozen shrimp, 400mL tomato sauce, 2 tbsp gochugaru, 1 tbsp gochujang
• Tools: a deep wok-style pan and a pot for the pasta
• Time: 15 minutes prep + 25 minutes cooking
• Difficulty: easy — the frozen seafood mix means almost no prep
• Key point: bloom the gochugaru in oil first until red chili oil forms, since that is the jjamppong base

---

Ingredients for Seafood Jjamppong Pasta

The method is straightforward. Sliced garlic and onion go into olive oil first to build aroma, then gochugaru turns the oil red. Next the seafood is stir-fried, water and tomato sauce go in, and everything simmers together. Chicken stock or oyster sauce supplies the savory depth. Because the seasoning is already bold, you don’t need much salt in the pasta water.

[Seafood Jjamppong Pasta Ingredients for 2]

• Spaghetti for 2 servings
• 250g frozen seafood mix
• A handful of frozen shrimp
• 1/2 to 1 onion
• 7 to 8 garlic cloves
• 2 to 3 Cheongyang chilies (Korean hot green chilies)
• 2 tbsp fine gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)
• 1 tbsp gochujang
• 400mL tomato sauce (2 cups)
• 4 to 5 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp mirin-style cooking wine
• 600 to 700mL water
• 1 tbsp concentrated chicken stock (or oyster sauce)
• A pinch of salt
• A little black pepper

[Recipe Summary]

1. Boil the spaghetti al dente. The seasoning is strong, so you can skip the salt in the water.
2. Slice 1/2 to 1 onion and 2 to 3 Cheongyang chilies, and thinly slice 7 to 8 garlic cloves.
3. Rinse the 250g frozen seafood mix and the frozen shrimp once under cold running water.
4. Heat 4 to 5 tbsp olive oil in a pan, sauté the garlic and onion briefly, then add 2 tbsp gochugaru.
5. Shake the seafood mix and shrimp dry, add them, and stir-fry with 3 tbsp cooking wine and a little pepper.
6. Once everything is partly cooked, add 600 to 700ml water, 400ml tomato sauce, the chilies, 1 tbsp chicken stock and 1 tbsp gochujang, and stir well.
7. When the sauce starts to bubble, drop in the al dente spaghetti and bring it back to a boil.
8. Once the noodles are done, taste and finish with salt and pepper as needed.

​🦐 Rinse the frozen seafood mix under cold running water first to remove any fishy smell, then shake it dry so the seafood flavor really comes through!
🍝 The spaghetti cooks again in the sauce, so boil it 1 to 2 minutes short of al dente to keep it springy instead of mushy.
🌶 When the gochugaru starts releasing red chili oil, that’s your jjamppong base. Give this step enough time and the broth turns properly sharp and spicy.
🍅 The seasoning is bold, so there’s no need to salt the pasta water.
🥄 No concentrated chicken stock? One tablespoon of oyster sauce delivers plenty of savory depth instead.

​🦐 Prep time: 15 minutes
🍳 Cooking time: 25 minutes

​A frozen seafood mix is wonderfully convenient! That said, feel free to use the seafood that usually goes into jjamppong, such as clams, mussels, squid or giant squid tentacles. I used Cheongyang chilies that I had sliced and frozen in advance, so keep that in mind as you follow along.

---

Prepping the Ingredients

Let’s start prepping. Rinse the 250g frozen seafood mix and a handful of frozen shrimp once under cold running water, then drain them well. This step helps get rid of the fishy smell that builds up in the freezer, so don’t skip it.

Since this recipe relies on a frozen seafood mix, there’s very little else to prepare. My chilies were already sliced, so I only needed garlic and onion. Thinly slice 7 to 8 garlic cloves and cut one onion into slices.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

And that’s the prep done. The seafood mix and shrimp have been rinsed, and all that’s left is garlic, onion and chilies. Follow the recipe and it barely takes any effort, which makes this really convenient. Keep each prepared ingredient in its own bowl.

---

How to Cook Seafood Jjamppong Pasta

Time to cook! I had a pot of boiling water ready first. The spaghetti will simmer again in the sauce, so cook it al dente, roughly 2 minutes less than the package says. The recipe is heavily seasoned, so add little to no salt to the water, or at least far less than you would for other pasta. I used a medium deep wok-style pan. Warm it briefly, then add 4 to 5 tablespoons of olive oil.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

Build the Chili Oil with Garlic and Onion

Once the oil is warm, add the garlic over medium heat and cook just until it turns lightly golden. Next add the onion and keep sautéing over medium heat. Since this dish leans toward jjamppong, there’s no need to caramelize the onion.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

When the onion has softened slightly, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of gochugaru on top and keep stirring. As the flakes toast in the oil, a gentle red chili oil starts to appear. That oil is the key to the broth’s sharp heat. Feel free to use a hotter chili powder or adjust the amount to taste.

Stir-Fry the Seafood and Build the Broth

Keep the heat at medium. Once the chili oil rises, add the well-drained seafood mix and frozen shrimp and stir-fry them together. Turn the heat up to high briefly when they first go in, then drop back to medium once they start to cook.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

Partway through, add 3 tablespoons of cooking wine and a little pepper. Together they take care of most of the remaining fishy smell. The seafood releases some liquid as it cooks, so keep stir-frying just until that moisture evaporates.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

Once the ingredients are mostly cooked, pour in 600 to 700ml of water, followed by 400ml of tomato pasta sauce. For a thicker, saucier style, use a little less water and scale the tomato sauce to match.

Then add the sliced chilies, 1 tablespoon of concentrated chicken stock and 1 tablespoon of gochujang, and stir well. If you don’t have chicken stock, 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce works too. Personally, I like Lee Kum Kee chicken stock best. Gochujang adds a slightly sweet heat, so go easy on it, and feel free to add more gochugaru or chilies instead.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

Add the Noodles and Finish

When the sauce begins to bubble, lift the al dente spaghetti straight into the pan and simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes. As the noodles absorb the sauce, the jjamppong flavor starts to soak in.

If you cook the noodles all the way through, they start to resemble Chinese-style noodles. Adjust the cooking time to the thickness of the broth and your own preference. Once the noodles are done, taste and add a little salt and pepper if it needs it.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

---

The Finished Seafood Jjamppong Pasta

And here it is, the finished seafood hangover pasta. At a glance it looks a lot like jjamppong, yet the tomato sauce gives it a distinctive savory character of its own. The refreshing depth of the seafood and the sharp tomato broth, sharpened with gochujang and gochugaru, pair beautifully with spaghetti.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

Using fresh clams, mussels and squid instead of the seafood mix makes the broth deeper and more refreshing. Still, convenience won out for me, so I went with the mix. Adding green onion is a good way to make it taste even fresher. And pouring rice into the leftover broth is a treat all of its own.

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

ⓒ

Copyright PAKOC https://pakoc.net

How about a steaming bowl of spicy soup pasta? It works as a full meal, as a hangover cure, and even as a drinking snack. A single bowl packed with seafood is plenty on its own, no side dishes required. When you want something a little different from your usual jjamppong, give this a try for a genuinely new experience. You won’t regret it. Outside Korea, gochugaru and gochujang are easy to find at most Asian grocery stores.

To learn more about jjamppong, the Korean-Chinese noodle soup behind this pasta’s flavor, see the Wikipedia article on jjamppong.

---

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How do I make it more or less spicy?

Adjusting the gochugaru and Cheongyang chilies is the easiest way. For more heat, use a hotter chili powder or add extra chilies. Gochujang adds a sweeter heat, so keep that amount moderate.

Q. Can I use fresh seafood instead of a frozen mix?

Yes. Clams, mussels, squid or giant squid tentacles, the seafood typically used in jjamppong, all work. Fresh shellfish gives a deeper, more refreshing broth, and a little green onion helps too.

Q. How long should I boil the spaghetti?

About 2 minutes less than the package directions. It simmers in the sauce for another 2 to 3 minutes, so this keeps the noodles from going soft. The seasoning is strong, so the water needs little or no salt.

Q. What if I don’t have concentrated chicken stock?

One tablespoon of oyster sauce is a good substitute and still gives plenty of savory depth. If you can find it, Lee Kum Kee chicken stock was my personal favorite.

---

Youtube