Korean Potato Side Dish (Gamja Jorim) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

12 ounces baby potatoes (or substitute any other waxy potatoes, cut into cubes if they are larger potatoes)
2 dried shiitake mushrooms (optional but they add nice umami flavor)
3 1/3 tablespoons soy sauce (jinkanjang)
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon sugar
3 1/2 cups water (separated)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil (approximate measurement of the swirl of sesame oil)
1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Preparation

Rinse potatoes. There is no need to peel if using thin skinned, waxy potatoes. Place them in a pot with enough water to fully cover. Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes. Drain.
Add potatoes back to pot, add 2 C water, 3 T soy sauce, sugar, vegetable oil and shitake mushrooms. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 30 min or until the liquid has reduce to about 1/3 the original volume.
Uncover, add 2 T maple syrup. Further reduce until there is almost no liquid. Taste and add more (up to 1 tsp) soy sauce or to taste. Simmer while stirring a few more minutes until the added soy sauce has reduced.
Finish with a swirl or two of sesame oil and sprinkling of sesame seeds.