Microwavable quick and easy Korean food

Have you ever had a hankering for a quick fix and some microwavable savory, yet somewhat healthy Korean food? I've found the college student's quick Korean food fix dream come true! Last week, I meandered into H Mart in San Diego with my friend.  We are usually slammed by the smell of the fishy items like in many Asian markets and the aroma from the carby-licious bread goods from Paris Baguette. This is a Korean market with lots of fresh produce, fish, meat, and all the good Korean foods you could ever want. There are plenty of ramen options, too! : ) 

Walking through the store on the weekend you will hear from all corners, "SAMPULL, SAMPULL, TRY A SAMPULL..." In the most Korean ahjumma accent you can imagine. To me, they quickly begin speaking Korean. After all, I am a Korean / Asian face. In most cases I'll start out speaking English because I want to set the foundation for being American and then attempt to spat out some broken Korean when trying to get a point across or confirm something. 

My friend and I discovered bibimbop and japchae bowls. They were on sale for pretty much dirt cheap. By now, the sale price is likely no longer valid, but I'd still recommend checking out these bowls. They're not that bad! The sample assistant persistently challenged us to sample both foods as well as have me snap a quick picture of them. She was inviting and friendly explaining that college students bought baskets full of these pre-made meals. Well...sorry, lady! We are not college students, but we won't pass up a good sample! I'm gluten-free and therefore had to refrain from any food potentially doused in soy sauce. 

Japchae

Lady modeling Bibimbop bowl, but not wanting to show her face!

Kimchi on my mind

Kimchi.

I can't get the blessed thing out of my head. I went out to Korean restaurants every other day this week - maybe a minimum of four times - and indulged in all kinds of kimchi side dishes.
The extremely fermented, bitter, and sour kind.
The freshly made with more than just a hint of sugar or sweetness added.
The bland flavored kimchi.
The hot 'n spicy kimchi in my kimchi kimbap.
The radish kimchi.
The dongchimi kimchi.
You name it. Chances are I had some of it.

Then, I got fed up with not having my own kimchi and went to Zion Market to eat some kimchi kimbap (the Korean version of sushi) and picked up a small jar of kimchi that I've already eaten half-way through in two days. I have a very old jar sitting in my roommates' fridge that I will recover when I return tomorrow.  I've been craving kimchi THAT much. My old jar is so fermented and sour by now that it's probably ready to be turned into a tasty stew.

What did I eat for lunch today? A large green salad with a side dish of kimchi.

What did I eat for snack today? A side of kimchi.

What did I eat for dinner today? NOT kimchi!  I went for a walk and got some tasty pho! Whether I had another bite of kimchi to top the night off, is something I'll leave you to determine.

Dear God, please spare my stomach. I hope these filled cravings are doing something good.

On another note, it's September 1st. Chuseok is next week. Autumn is almost here.

Happy first day of September everyone!

how NOT to eat bibimbap

Yesterday evening my friend and I decided to go to a meeting to inquire about writing for a Korean magazine in San Diego. 'twas a very interesting and fun experience learning about it and meeting all of the people. Though almost all of the people were familiar faces to me, my friend met lots of new people.

Afterwards, we ran out in a flash to find a Korean restaurant.  We originally intended to eat dinner beforehand, but we got a late start. By the end of the meeting our stomachs were making the gurgle gurgle, "please feed me" sounds.

We ended up on Convoy St. at Grandma Tofu and BBQ. In Korean it is known as 할머니순두부!
We ordered a selection of favorite Korean foods.

I usually like to eat fairly healthy and enjoy eating a good hearty bibimbap. I always order the hot stone pot bibimbap. If you would like to sound like you know what you're ordering you can say you want the dolsot bibimbap, which written in Korean is 돌솥비빔밥. The hot stone bibimbap is the best! It cooks up all the vegetables and makes the rice and other foods at the bottom crispy. The stone pot itself always adds extra flavor.  Because I am abstaining from gluten for an undetermined amount of time, I order mine without meat. Most restaurants will add soy sauce to their meat marinade. Though Koreans will tell you that their soy sauce was and is traditionally made without wheat, in America almost all soy sauce is made with the glutinous goodness that we know of as wheat.

As many stereotypical Asians do when their food comes out, we started snapping pictures.  My friend snapped a picture of me while I grabbed my chopsticks and picked up the first vegetable in my stone pot. HOWEVER, might I inform you that this is traditionally NOT how to eat your bibimbap.  See below.

Modeling how NOT to eat bibimbap

How do you eat bibimbap? I would say it's best eaten after adding some gochujang, Korean red chili pepper paste to the top. Using your spoon and or chop sticks mix all of the vegetables, egg, meat, sauces, etc. together.  If you're eating the bibimbap in a hot stone pot, be sure to scrape the food off the sides and allow the other parts to warm up, too.  You can then eat your bibimbap with a spoon!  It's okay to eat with chopsticks too, though it's much more commonly seen and easier to be eaten with your handy dandy spoon. Note: be careful not to burn yourself against the edges of the hot stone pot. When they say hot, they mean it!

My friend ordered the combo with soondubu jjigae (tofu soup) and kalbi (tasty marinated ribs) that comes with a hot stone pot of rice.  A look at what we ate:

Left: Friend. Right top: hot stone bibimbap, bottom: the dishes

Tea: my non-traditional tasty delight.

This is a post from last year that may (or may not) have been published, but in the editing phase it bumped it up to today.   Enjoy! : )


This week I awoke with an intense tea-craving for which I have not yet fulfilled!  I was in Trader Joes, a health foods store here in America, with my mom and walked by the tea section. I saw a box of pomegranate white tea! It looked delicious, but right now I'm on a no caffeine kick. Although I now know it has less caffeine than natural green tea, I'm trying to hold strong to the no caffeine.  Pomegranate is delicious and white tea is loaded with antioxidants, all the good stuff that helps you fight off illness and bad things in your body! The combination is difficult to beat. Pick some up if you have the chance.

The color of pomegranate white tea reminds me of one of my favorite Korean teas: omijacha.  It literally means five-flavored tea and is supposed to satisfy the five distinct tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent).  This tea, often slightly bitter to first time tea drinkers, is made of a berry from the schisandra chinensis vine originating from China and is used in herbal medicine. The red berries have healing properties that can soothe the raspiest cough or open up the airways of asthmatic individuals. They're also known for keeping the liver healthy and helping digestion among other properties.  Don't take my complete word for it! You'll have to try it yourself!  No one individual will react the same way. If it doesn't work for you, just enjoy knowing you're putting something tasty and healthy into your body! I'd be down for a cup of omijacha any day.  The flavor and health benefits are too good to be true.

With the thought of omijacha comes the flooding memories of my first experience drinking it  at a cultural village in a tea house in South Korea. I remember traveling with a group of new friends in 2008 in the Joellanamdo province. After a day of touring the cultural site, learning about pottery, and creating some traditional Korean crafts, we sat down for a refreshing cup of tea. Because it was my first time ordering tea in Korea, I looked at the menu and chose something that sounded flavorful and looked pretty. Of course I don't judge a book by it's cover or a person by his looks! I just have a peculiar interest and obsession with the presentation of food and beverage. Presentation is half the taste. If it looks good, it should taste [at least a little] good!  I chose the iced omijacha to soothe my soul and cool down on a day of humid delight.
My first, and definitely not my last, tea experience was amazing!  I knew I loved tea. However, this experience sealed the deal and developed a long-lasting relationship and devotion to Korean tea houses.

Kale Kimchi Omurice and a kind Korean Ahjussi

Today I walked around downtown to do some exploring and spend quality time with myself. Who stays cooped up inside when the sun is shining and its almost 70 degrees in January? Not me!

Look at that beauty of a day!

After my adventures,* I decided to get more adventurous with my food. With an hour of exercise and three hours of walking in the sun later, I worked up an appetite. Though I drank a delicious green drink packed with kale, spinach, broccoli, apple, etc that I picked up at the Farmer's Market and my typical daily fix of a Kind bar,  I still figured I better eat a good evening meal. As usual, I didn't have much food and will need to go grocery shopping soon, so I made something up with the random foods I had. I came up with a rather fun and tasty kimchi and kale omurice! It probably exists somewhere, but I'd like to think I created something for once!! I come up with great ideas --more like yours truly reinventing the wheel. Hey, at least I can find how to best cook up what creative idea is brewing in my head if I need help bringing it to fruition.

About the kimchi and kale omurice...

I tossed extra special "sprouted" brown rice in the rice cooker....don't ask. I bought it at HMart and it was triple the price of any other rice on the shelf. I was looking for brown rice and the package says sprouted is healthier for many reasons. I don't know. Better go ask a Korean to find the legit reasoning behind it. Basically it's good for health and solves some of life's problems? Sounds good to me!

While that was cooking, I made the egg. I mixed up two eggs in a bowl (add a bit of milk or water for fluff and texture). After greasing up the old pan, cooking up the egg and placing it on a plate, I moved onto the fried rice fixins.

I started with the kale. I used the last half of an older bunch of kale. I cleaned, cut, and cooked the kale, much like the blanching you do with spinach, and set that aside.  Next, I fried and cooked the kimchi. Once that was cooked I added the kale back to the pan. Oh yeah! I snuck some carrots in and attempted to add garlic after realizing it was a bit too old. You can add more veggies, meat or whatever leftovers are in the fridge. In the future, I'll be sure to have meat protein lying around. With some sesame oil and the kimchi veggie mix, I finally added the rice! Cooked it all up and placed it in the egg!
Finally, choose the sauce. You can add ketchup or gochujang on your omurice delightful creation. All I had was sriracha as you can see in the pic below. After taking the picture, I garnished it with leftover avocado. You can never have too much avocado in any shape or form and it goes great with omelettes. The kimchi kale omurice was a lot of yumm in my mouth and quite a bit of food!
PLUS! It had kale. As far as I'm concerned, anything with kale is healthier. It's a super food! Right? Heck! You can argue the whole thing is healthy. Kimchi, kale, sprouted brown rice, egg, and sriracha. The only thing not so healthy is the sesame oil, but you've got to throw some in for the sake of having oil and that extra flavor!

Here's the creation::

Enjoy~~

Wanna try it? Make your own rendition and let me know how it works or tastes for you!

Have fun!

*Because this blog supposedly touches upon Korea related things, I'll add the part of my day where I met a Korean man (definitely ahjussi status!!) on my walk. He has lived in the US for quite some time but is originally from Daegu! Crazy! [I have this weird thing with ahjussis and boys/people from Daegu. I love Daegu dialect and happen to be able to find or attract random people from Daegu.] As I was walking, I noticed a cute dog that reminded me of my family's childhood dog. I stopped to ask the breed of his dog not knowing he was Korean...and a friendly one at that!  His dog is a maltipoo (Maltese/Poodle mix) and our childhood dog was a Bichontese (Bichon Frise/Maltese mix). They look very similar. My!...he was friendly. I knew he was nice based on the conversation with previous onlookers, but just how....I didn't know.  He asked me to sit next to him and take a picture with him and the dog. I politely declined!  He then asked if I was Korean. Apparently he could tell. I said, yes. He started speaking in Korean. Not that I needed to, but I did explain that I was adopted. I really hate when people, especially older people make assumptions and project their expectations wanting me to act culturally appropriate or speak perfect Korean. Sometimes I think by telling you I was adopted it will mitigate any strong expectations or predispositions. Who knows.

Once he found out I was Korean AND adopted he again asked me to sit down right next to him and talk. "Please!! Dear," he pats his hand down on the bench next to his lap and dog, "have a seat next to me and let's talk!" Again, I politely declined. I knew I'd be stuck there if I sat down. He is married folks! Nothing like that! (or so I hope!) He has a Caucasian wife and was giving a Korean friend and her child visiting from Korea a tour of various parts of California. They were off whale-watching while he was holding down the fort and taking care of the dog. He really wanted me to sit there and chat him up for another hour, so I could meet the woman and her 8 year old kid. Supposedly the woman spoke really good English. I talked with the ahjussi for a little longer [interesting guy] and I decided to carry on with my own day. As much as I'd love to meet more Koreans, I needed to get going.  I also love Korean kids and listening to them speak in Korean. Part of me wanted to meet them. I love the sound of the language. If not to communicate with my Korean family, I'd learn Korean to speak Korean with my future kids!  I must admit, I love having lots of older Korean friends with kids. As I walked further, just a minute later, I saw a Korean family with a very cute daughter under the age of 5.  My heart melted when I heard the daughter speaking to her mother.Too bad kids have to grow up so fast!  I might have stopped to "observe" them for a minute while stepping aside to avoid photobombing three Korean girls taking pictures of each other by the water.  : )

The dog:

K. End.


~HK~

Summer Samgyetang. Ginseng chicken soup.

Samgyetang (삼계탕) is a delicious hot ginseng chicken soup very popular in Korea during the summer, especially on bok days (복날 translated as dog days).
The bok days are the three hottest days according to the lunar calendar.
Chobok: 초복 (begginning)
Chungbok: 중복 (middle)
Malbok: 말복 (end)

Samgyetang is often eaten for its health benefits and supposed internal cooling. I know! In America we think cold cold cold when it's hot whereas Koreans think just the opposite! Battle fire with fire, they say! When your body is hot, your blood pools at the surface of your body for cooling. That often leaves the stomach and internal organs without proper circulation and  weaker digestion. By eating a hot healthy soup, your body not only gets nutrients but the proper cooling and circulation it needs.
In the past, dog was the meat of choice in the soup during those hot days. Chicken or samgyetang is the most common meal of choice now. It is traditionally eaten on these three days as a way to rest after a long days work and replenish the body with nutrients and energy.  It is tasty and rejuvenating.

For 2013 the bok or dog days fall on:

Chobok: July 13
Jungbok: July 23
Malbok: Aug 12

Samgyetang is a soup made with a whole chicken stuffed with rice, garlic, ginseng, ginger, and jujubes (dates). It is cooked and placed in a broth made for samgyetang. The broth comes in variations with salt and more spices or even creamy milky-like mixes and flavors while other times it is allowed to take on the flavors of the tasty stuffed chicken. A simple broth that soaks the flavors of the chicken is my favorite!

I made a new Korean friend in San Diego and in honor of Chobok we went on a journey to find samgyetang.  We found this delightful dish at "Old Village" Korean BBQ Restaurant on Convoy St in San Diego. I believe it costs $16.99 for one bowl.Believe me, it is worth every penny and I would go back for more! It tasted fabulous! Even my friend said there was no difference in taste and feeling from the samgyetang eaten in Korea.

I felt a little uneasy and queasy that day, but after eating the soup my stomach felt calm, satiated, and satisfied. I was happier and had more energy to take on the next day!  Old Village Korean restaurant has a lot of other varieties of good traditional flavors and Korean foods that you may also consider trying, if your stomach doesn't favor this ginseng chicken soup!

I hope you will taste your way to some samgyetang this summer. I'm ready for more. There are a few days left of summer. Rest and enjoy!!

So I went to Korea...the beginning of something new.

If you didn't get to see any pictures, I will share some first experiences here and include brief intermixed excerpts of the rare journal entry or two I wrote. :)

I went to Korea for 2 weeks on a whirlwind of a journey. I barely had time to process the events as we moved from one place to the next so fast. I was honored to be able to go to Korea with the InKAS Summer Camp program. InKAS stands for International Korean Adoptee Service. During our 10 day trip we traveled to various cities, toured cultural sites, learned a large amount of history, and made many friends. I also received the opportunity to reconnect with my Korean biological family, meet my brother from my real adoptive family (+ his bff and bf's gf) and spend the last few days of my journey meeting many old friends. I planned on journaling or spending time processing through the trip, but found myself rather busy meeting people and keeping up with the excitement.

Even three weeks after my return, I come back to ponder remembering the people I met and the novel experiences in South Korea.  Not until landing in Korea, did I realize how blessed I am to know so many precious people all in one small country.  There are many people in my life connected to that country. Korea will always have a large place in my heart regardless of where I live in the world.  

Koreans are very hospitable to their foreign friends and especially loving and kind because of what they call "jeong" - a special term for a deep bond, love, or affection only known in Korean.  I was warmly welcomed and experienced this feeling of "jeong" immediately after arriving in Korea.  

The first day, I landed at 430am and had the whole day free. I spent some time lollygagging around the airport until shuttle service opened, soaking in the "fresh" hot, humid Seoul air. I use quotes here because I actually arrived on one of the hottest days of the year thus far and on a day with "ozone layer" warnings cautioning people to be careful and stay indoors because the air was so dirty! I began to process the weight of what was to be on my shoulders as I journeyed forward. On the limousine bus, I did some deep breathing and meditative prayer to prepare my mind for the next couple of days.  I felt extremely peaceful and in a state of complete serenity.  I knew that this is where I was meant to be at this very time. 

I checked into my guesthouse. It was really uncomfortable, and the beds had some bugs or dirt in them, but the joy and exhilaration of being Korea alone overrode any negative feelings.  God only knows if I'll be living like this in a developing country or a country that doesn't have clean running water one day, so I figured I might as well let this be the beginning of that experience (even though I paid a lot for the room!).  By noontime, within four to six hours of landing, I was waiting outside of the all too familiar Sinchon subway station. The Sinchon area is home to some of the best universities including Yonsei, Ewha, and Sogang as well as lots of nightlife, food, bars, shops, and things to do for the young crowd.  I met with JH (friend's initials for anonymity), a good college friend. 'twas a beautiful day spent with this friend. She took me to a park where we walked around and then found a shady spot to rest and converse. It had been 3 years since we last met. Though much time had gone by, we reconnected like best friends picking up where we left off. We both hadn't changed a bit, we even looked the same. (Agh, I'm trying to look older! My baby Asian face doesn't always gain me the most respect or best treatment in the real world.) That evening another friend barged into the room with the guesthouse owner while I was deeply sound in my REM sleep finally able to rest after almost 30 to 40 hours of no sleep and a whole lot of jetlag. After the initial shock, and eventually coming to my senses she pulled me out of bed. We went out around 9pm and enjoyed a hot soup called samgyetang made up of a whole chicken. Eating this hot soup on a hot day increases sweating to cool the inner body. This lovely friend stayed the night.

The second day I met up with a different friend I briefly met during her last week in San Diego before returning to Korea. She asked me to meet her if I went to Korea. I kept that promise!  

That evening,  the Korean adoptee fun began with our welcoming dinner. I sat with my roommate and her friends from the Netherlands and the special Danish guy on the trip! From that moment, people began building friendships and sharing their stories. We were each fascinated with the number of other people present in the room from different countries clothed with various expressions of curiosity. We began to engage in social activities and travel the countryside with the help of some of the best leaders, organizers, and one of the most amazing women I've ever met - the President of InKAS. Her story and history deserve its own post in itself. She inspires me beyond comprehension.

My connections to Korea and friendships extended around the world after meeting adoptees on this trip from many different countries such as Canada, the Netherlands, Australia, and France. Each and everyone of the adoptees had a very unique experience and background. Though different, we all shared the bond of being born in Korea and displaced or moved to grow up in another culture and country from the one of our blood.  This common factor brings the Korean adoptee community together creating an immediate connection. Korean adoptees as a whole have a unique history, a history that wants to be known and communicated to the Korean community.

We visited more sites than I can remember. We walked around Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, watched Nanta, traveled down to Mokpo to  visit the orphanage, met college students, toured a factory where gochujang sauce is made, visited COEX, went to the National Assembly, walked through Independence Hall in Cheonan and so much more. It was quite a trip.

The trip also had a fair share of its challenges and mini culture shocks. Having been to Korea in the past, I still find myself surprised by some of the differences. Despite these challenges, each time I return, I become a stronger person. There's always a new piece of me I didn't know existed until I return to the Motherland. Many of the other participants felt the same. After the short trip, several fellow participants already began making drastic changes altering the course of their life path.

I had been longing to go to Korea and only through a special opportunity such as returning with a program like InKAS was I able to return. To InKAS, I'm beyond grateful and indebted to you for this opportunity. Because of this trip, my eyes were opened to a parts of Korean history not only fascinating but relevant to the history of orphans and adoption in and out of Korea.  

This trip was only the beginning of many new things to come. I pray that my faith in the unknown circumstances of my current life situation will continue to grow as I prepare to find new ways to not only rediscover my own identity but give back in a relevant way that uses my life experiences.

So it is...


More to come later!

PS. I'm sorry the photos are really bad. My computer crashed and I have no good source for photos at the moment. Editing to come  

Let's get ready to roll! The fun of kimbap making.

If you haven't already seen the pictures floating around my Facebook and Instagram, I thought I would share the tasty kimbap I made this past weekend! It was the first time I made a successful batch of kimbap. I am rather proud of it and am excited to make more tasty (and presentable) Korean foods.  Kimbap is Korea's version of sushi with lots of different goods stuffed in the roll. Some include a variety of foods including cucumer, yellow radish, fish cake, egg, spam or meat, carrot, and spinach.  Often this food is made and prepared to take on picnics or to send children off to school. My friends decided to attend a baseball game. Because I was in a cooking mood, I made some to bring along.

See below for basic instructions and pictures of the fun:

What are some things you need to make kimbap? 

• kimbap mat also known as a sushi roller
• rice and rice cooker
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds
• dry seaweed for making kimbap and sushi. Grocery stores usually carry this labeled as such or will show a picture. 
• and all the good fixings. I usually choose 6 or 7. Some suggestions include:
• fake crab
• bulgogi
• fish cake
• tuna
• cucumber
• carrots
• spinach
• yellow radish
• egg

1. Prepare the rice. 2 cups of dry rice makes about 6 or more servings of cooked rice.  Prepare it as you usually would, but use slightly less water to make your rice more sticky cohesive.  After the rice is cooked, let cool while still maintaining its warmth. Warm rice makes for easier kimbap rolling. Then, add a teaspoon or more of sesame oil and one teaspoon of sesame seeds. Mix and keep warm. 

2. Prepare all other fixings. Some only include chopping or slicing. 

• Spinach: Boil water and blanch or boil the spinach for approximately 1 minute (or one more if you like it cooked, but it begins to rob it of its nutrients). Remove from water and squeeze water out. You may add a small amount of sesame oil if you wish, but not necessary. 
• Egg.  Crack 4 eggs and mix well. Add a small amount of water for better mixing. Fry like a pancake in a frying pan on low heat and flip. Cook evenly. Remove from heat. After cooling, cut in one centimeter thick pieces. 
• Julienne (or cut/slice) carrots as seen below. 
• Cut and prepare all other foods as you like. 

3. Let's get ready. Line up all the ingredients for the kimbap rolls. 

From left to right, these are the ingredients I used:
spinach, carrot, egg, cucumber, yellow radish, and tuna off to the side

Pull out the mat. It's best to wrap it in seran or plastic wrap. This makes the kimbap rolling much easier. I learned this while watching ahjummas prepare kimbap in church kitchens and at my favorite kimbap place in Korea: Kimbap Chonguk (translates: Kimbap Heaven). It's a heavenly kimbap place and considered the McDonald's of Korea. Don't worry, you can still find McDonald's in every major city in Korea! 

Put down a piece of seaweed on the mat. Add rice to the seaweed placing it from the bottom edge at .75 cm thick and covering 2/3 to 3/4ths of the seaweed.  If the rice does not spread easily, add some sesame oil to the spoon or the rice spoon as you spread. I had a bit too much sesame oil or just enough in my rice that it spread well.

Begin adding your goodies one by one. It's best to add the same amount of each. Or if adding different vegetables with various consistencies, add enough that makes them of equal thickness.

Now, let's get ready to roll!  Hold everything together and begin rolling the seaweed using the kimbap mat.  Hold it in carefully. Once you roll kimbap so that the insides are covered begin to pull the kimbap towards the edge of the mat closest to you again.  Finish rolling and wrapping to the end. To better seal the kimbap, wet your finger and dab the smallest amount of water necessary to seal the kimbap together.

This might be something you come up with! 

Full of good food. It looks tasty.

After rolling your kimbap, you will need to cut it into pieces. I bought a sharp knife just for this very task. In the past I tried to cut some rice rolls with a dull knife. Quite the disaster. Cut them into bite sizes. Once cut, wrap them in foil or place them in an airtight sealed container to maintain freshness. If you're like me, you'll begin eating right away!

Here they are:

What do you like in your kimbap? I also like to make kimbap wraps with kimchi and tuna. You can get creative and add whatever you like!

I hope you like them and will try making some for yourself in the future.

Happy eating and have a great weekend.

Cheers,

HK

Pepero in the nude.

Yep, it is pepero nude. The chocolate is on the inside and not the outside. It's a nice treat. I like that Koreans post the manufacture date, but sometimes it is best not knowing.  I've eaten snacks with a manufacture date of more than year prior to the day I am eating it. Eww...

 

Simplest tuna kimchi soup ever 참치 김치 찌개 in pictures

When you only have kimchi and tuna what can you do? Put it in a pot and expect something tasty? Try this tuna kimchi jjigae.

Grab a cup of kimchi, a can of tuna, two or more cups of water, some gochu garu (red pepper powder) and a bit of sesame oil for other flavor and there you have it!

I would suggest adding other meat, tofu, and veggies if you have it within arm's reach! This was definitely a last attempt to nourish the stomach with nothing fresh in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Kimchi!!

My American friend loves kimchi. Her favorite place to eat kimchi in San Diego is at a place called Convoy Tofu House.

It has the most delicious sweet savory and spicy flavor. It is a darker red than the average kimchi and is always fresh. A plate of kimchi and a bowl of rice is a fantastic meal in itself.  Do you know the secret to kimchi recipe at Tofu House? It beats me! Let us know if you find out where she can buy containers of this goodness!

Tofu House is best known for its tofu stews. 순두부 찌개 Why else would it have tofu in its name? You can eat tuna tofu stew or seafood tofu stew or meat tofu stew and so much more. You can also choose from combos that give you the option to choose one stew and then an add on like kalbi or sushi.  If the regular menu items don't suit your fancy, then you can always fall back on bibimbap or dolsot (hot pot) bibimbap! Those shouldnt fail you.   
Eat the kimchi!

Food - 떡뽁이 ddukbokki

Last week I got to do some quick cooking.  I probably won't be able to cook ethnic food at my own residence for a while longer, but that week I was lucky...  My friends and I stayed in a hotel to have fun and relax before starting work and school again.  The hotel was more like a resort or suite with a full kitchen. We had a lot of fun staying up late chatting and eating ramyon and ddokbokki. We made ddokbokki two nights in a row. The first night we made it together. The second night, I had the honor of making the batch while my friends were out. It was tasty and satiating to our ravenous bellies.
The ddukbokki is made of the long rice cakes, red sauce or gochujang, and any other items we wish to add. We didn't have everything. Instead we added some onion, cabbage, fish cake or odeng, and sausage.

Preparation is easy. After adding enough water to the pan, mix in the sauce, and then add the ddukk or rice cake when the water begins to boil. As the rice cake softens (it will be hard in the sealed  cold package), chop up and add cabbage, odeng, sausage, carrots etc. As an extra add on, you can put in some ramyon. Make sure there is enough liquid mixture for the noodles to cook and soften. Once the rice cake is soft and chewable and your extras are cooked, it's all set. If you wish, you can add sesame oil for flavor and sesame seed for texture and presentation.  Total prep and cook time is under 25 min. With friends working together it can be ready in as few as 10 or 15 minutes. Team work is always best.

I hope you like this quick meal, too!

---
I also observed my eating out patterns and realized I frequent Korean restaurants when my friends are in the mood for it.  It is about time to share some good eats. The next time I see something yummy I will share a picture.

Sriracha: It's delicious. It's good for your health.

Do you like to spice up your food? Do you like sauce?  I always love a little gochujang added to my Korean dishes. A bit of Sriracha for added spice and saucy flavor when gochujang isn't readily available never hurt either. In fact, sriracha has many health benefits. Cookingschools.net created this infographic and asked to spread the word. Check out the benefits of sriracha and be sure to add some to your next meal whether it be your leftover plain rice, tasty meat dish, or even a bowl of ramyon. Eat up and enjoy the health benefits!



Created by: CookingSchools.net

Fun with Food: simple kimchi fried rice (김치 볶음밥 )

I was in a bit of frantic rush to make triangle kimbap for my lunch the other day. It was already approaching 3pm and I had a schedule to keep. This was about to become a linner (lunch and dinner) combo. I made rice the night before with my delicious bulgogi (yumm yumm marinated meat) meal and packaged the leftovers into the refrigerator to be used the following day. I wasn't worried if the rice didn't turn out for my kimbap because I bought a fresh bag of rice earlier in the week.  It would be no biggie to heat up a new pot while preparing for the day.  (No rice cooker here folks. I've been house sitting for a week. This is where crafty improv skills come in handy.  Since I could not find a pot cover either, I used another pot to cover the larger pot. It didn't completely seal the rice cooking pot, but we got some decent rice.)

Back to that no-big-deal-because-I-had-more-rice situation. What I failed to clearly think about was my house and pet sitting responsibility to care for cats.  I set the rice on the higher counter top hidden away in the corner. Maybe I just forgot the sly nature of cats.]  Despite my good intentions to keep the house clean, the next morning I woke to a little surprise.  The cats clawed through the bag of rice and you can guess what I was sweeping up for the next several minutes.  so... I open the fridge take out the leftover box of rice and separate the plastic wrap on the seaweed for my triangle kimbap. The spoon goes into the rice and out comes a crumbly mess of rice allover my lovely laver (seaweed).  I guess the missing cover on the pot created an interesting rice consistency and texture.  No sticky rice and no more fresh rice to cook.

Now what?  I pull open the fridge and look in.  Fantastic! There are approximately two servings of kimchi left in a small plastic container. Perfect timing because I've got to clear the fridge of any suspicious (aka interesting ethnic or slightly odorous) items before the home owners return. (They're not Korean or Asian for that matter.) At this point, I'm a hungry hippo. What do you make with old rice and kimchi? Well, kimchi fried rice I tell ya!  Let's do this, I tell myself.  There's a can of tuna sitting on the counter.  What else? It seems we have nothing else, so we'll make do. 

How do you (or I) make kimchi fried rice? Here's a quick and very simple Americanized version of fried rice. 

Some basics you'll need: 

• your old rice (밥) [1 cup?]*
• kimchi (김치) [1/2 a cup?]*
• sesame oil  (참깨 기름)

Some optional add ins:

• tuna (참치), or
• bacon, or
• other meaty source such as chopped up spam
• other veggies
• peppers
• green onion
• take your pick here. 

*Mix and match. Choose your portions according to total serving size. 

And to top it off the proper way let's add a tasty fried egg. 

Here is a photo story of my scramble to make kimchi fried rice: 

Get your kimchi. Chop it all up. Then heat up your frying pan. Use a dab of sesame oil to prevent food from sticking to the pan.  Toss in the kimchi.  Warm up. Fry. Stir up. Warm up, fry, and stir some more.

Toss in your extras such as tuna, spam, or veggies.  Stir and fry some more. Add your rice.
Fry some more. Add some water and oil to preference if necessary and don't forget to pour the extra kimchi juice in the pan for extra color and spicy flavor!  Pack up your fried rice into a nice little mound and set it aside.
Prepare the pan and fry the egg!

And wallah.  I'll admit I was hungry and although I go for presentation this tasted just fine in my mouth and ravenous belly. Sadly, that's the same egg. Sunny side down.  No worries the sun will come out and shine again tomorrow. :  )

There you have it.  A crazy spin on kimchi fried rice.   The next one will be better, but this one is difficult to beat.  It tasted just fine in the heat of the hungry moment! 

[Photos uploaded from phone with less than 3 megapixel quality. Excuse the quality of the photos please.]

Until next time! 

Simply Yujacha

With winter creeping in like a thick fog and creating a frigid chill in the air, a hot beverage to soothe the mind and body sounds just about right.  What? You say you have a slight cough or sore throat, too?  It's that time of year isn't it?

I know the beverage for you. Yujacha (유자차) or citron tea.  Yujacha is similar to what most people know as marmalade. It is made of the citron fruit. Unlike the lemon or orange, the citron fruit is a smaller somewhat longer shaped fruit with little tasty juicy fruit to be eaten. The fruit is thinly sliced and made into a jelly-like preservable substance with the addition of honey or sugar.

In November (yes, this post is getting up a bit late), I received some citron tea from someone at a small company, Dalhae Trading, in exchange for some information and quotable remarks from my post about my love for tea and omijacha. To say the least, I was very excited to receive this package in the mail!  I absolutely love tea and yujacha is great during the winter cold season.

What do I do next? I grab a pot and boil up some water. I dish two spoon fulls of this delightful substance into the mug and I pour in some boiling water. Stir it up and give it a second to flavor up the water. Then, down my throat it goes all in one smooth relaxing move.  You'll notice, if inspecting the citron tea part of the fruit or pulp is used to make the substance. This makes reaching the bottom of the mug fun because now you have a chewy bittersweet treat awaiting you.  You've gotta like the pulpy-ness to enjoy the bottom of the mug and I certainly do!

Why do I drink this? 

1. It tastes good.
2. It's loaded with vitamin C-like healthiness and used as an herbal remedy to fight off winter illnesses.
3. It soothes a sore throat and a cough.
4. Did I say, it tastes good? Yes! You should try some.

Where can I find some of this goodness in a jar? 

You can find this in most Asian markets like the tea aisles of Korean or Japanese stores.
Or you could be adventurous and try to make some yourself.  Many cultures have their own version of the citron tea used to treat the common cold.

Where can fellow San Diegans find this? 
Well, I'm still working on answering this question. However, the Vietnamese and Chinese markets both sell the Korean version of the yujacha even with pretty Korean labels.
Writing on my love for all things Korea, I'm going to be biased and say that the Korean market/store Zion Market is the best place to shop, even for tea. Granted, I've only been there once as I'm still making time to get out and explore, but it was very large and fun to explore.  Look for more on that store later.

What other creative things can you do with your yujacha/citron tea/marmalade mix? 

The sky is the limit on this one folks.  Personally, I've used jelly and or this yujacha in chicken and salmon marinades. I've also used it as a sweetener on my morning toast.
How have others used it? And what ideas have I thought of or am I going to steal and recreate on my own?
One could make rolls, cake, muffins, cheesecake, mixed beverages, and so much more. Let your imagination run wild.  Check back in the next month for some of my crazy ideas.

This tea is simply delicious and may find itself marinading and glazing multiple treats of yours. Enjoy brainstorming the many things you can do with it while sipping on a hot mug of yujacha in order to stay warm and healthy this winter!


HK

Fun with food: Seaweed and egg wraps.

What do you get with little money, few food options, few cooking utensils, a large appetite, and a bit of creativity? Possibly some scrumptious food.

I rarely do very personal posts, but here's a fun food post just for the heck of it. I recently moved to the southern most city in California for a year of volunteer service with a pretty cool NGO. As a result, I'm on a tight budget and also in the process of looking for a place to live, getting resettled, collecting items, etc. Since I didn't bring more than my suitcases on this new adventure, I've had to cut a few corners in the food department. Thankfully there are a few things at my current residence.

The past several days I've been craving seaweed and kimbap (rice and good fixings wrapped in seaweed) for a take-to-work lunch meal.  I didn't have any kimbap makings, but there happened to be some small seasoned seaweed package and tuna I purchased the previous week. My mission was clear: I had to to put these food items to use and satisfy the kimbap craving senses of my tongue. I snatched them up taking the the egg and carrot along with them. Usually you would never use the small seaweed or seasoned seaweed for these wraps, but what can I say. I was fairly desperate.

So I took to the kitchen and had some fun.  Here's what my hunger and creativity came up with for my lunch the next day and for my evening meal!

The makings of my lunch for tomorrow: seasoned seaweed pieces, tuna, minute rice, carrot, and egg.
I scrambled the egg and fried it in a frying pan. I was very satisfied with the flat pancake of an egg.  

Cute little kimbap rolls for tomorrow's lunch.  Crossing my fingers this will turn out and not be too soggy.
A few more to come.  Half of them landed in my mouth before making it into the container. : (

The leftovers... 

...became my dinner.

wallah.  Egg wrap sandwich. 

After eating my little dinner, I thought of omurice. It never dawned on me how similar this is to omurice. I think I'll have to venture into the omurice recipe world on the net and come back again very soon. Although it is more of a Japanese food and name, omurice is very popular in Korea!  

Yesterday I popped into the Korean festival in LA for a few hours.  I'll be sure to post a few pics within the next 24 hours. Be sure to look out for them! Have a great day. 

Happy Black Day - April 14th

Are you a lonely single?  Well, then today is your day!  It's the 14th of April, which means it is Black Day (블랙데이). The 14th day of every month is a special romantic day observed to express love for couples or drown in loneliness for singles.  Not all of the days such August 14th-Green Day, a day for couples to seek nature and relax while singles drink soju (it is a green bottle) to drown in sorrow, are as well-known or openly celebrated as Valentine's Day, White and Black Day.

Black Day, coined solely by Koreans to "celebrate" singleness, is marked by dressing in dark colors and together with friends eating jajangmyeon (자장면) or noodles with a black bean sauce.  Black Day is a day for those that did not have a date or love interest to exchange chocolates with on Valentine's Day or White Day. On Valentine's Day in Korea, girls give guys gifts such as chocolate while on White Day, a day that started in Japan and rapidly picked up attention in South Korea, men return the gift of chocolate more often giving candies and gifts to the women they received chocolates from on Valentine's Day.  Koreans eat noodles covered in black bean sauce or other dark colored foods on Black Day to represent their sorrows of single-hood.

About Jajanmyeon 

Pronounced with a hard j like jjajangmyeon 짜장면, but spelled 자장면

jajang (자장) - fried sauce, myeon (면)- noodle.

The jajangmyeon that Koreans traditionally eat on Black Day is a Korean-Chinese dish that originated in Incheon, South Korea from Chinese immigrants to Korea.  It was believed to be founded in 1905 in a Chinese restaurant called Gonghwachun (공화춘)  It is made of noodles known as sutamyeon ( 수타면) that are traditionally hand-made with white flour instead of potato starch that other noodles like japchae are usually made of.  The specifically hand-made noodles are an essential for good jjajangmyeon.  Due to its long history, jajangmyeon is considered a special "national" food of Korea.

In making black bean noodles, after noodles are quickly boiled, sauce is added to the mix. The sauce consists of pork and vegetables cooked in a pan. To make the sauce- pork, veggies, and seafood are stirred in a frying pan.  The black bean sauce made of chunchang (춘장) is added to the cooked goods. A stock is added to cut the saltiness and cornstarch added to thicken the sauce.  Mix it up a little with some chop sticks and the dish is ready to eat.

Are you sad to be single?  Put on your dark clothes, grab a few friends and commiserate with each other over a bowl of jajangmyeon. They say misery loves company.  If you're lucky, you may just end up finding another charming single out there. Who knows, by May 14th (Rose Day) you may be exchanging roses with someone.  Smile and have a happy Black Day.

A.Korean Flavor: Let's make seaweed soup. 미역국

Are you ready to get back in the kitchen and cook up some magic? Last month was the first post in a new series of "Korean flavors" blog posts.  We made the simple yet delicious dish, bibimbap.  We're finally back for round 2.

*Note: If you read the previous post you are probably seeing this again. Don't worry. Your eyes are not seeing double. It is double.  I compiled the contents of two posts into one, but would like to keep this one here for easy viewing.*

Let's see what it takes to put together this nourishing soup.  We will make the most simple dish here and explore some other common ingredients.

You'll need some of the basics, so check your cupboards and refrigerators first. Then head to your local Asian mart if you need something else.

   soy sauce               sesame oil                             dried seaweed                                         minced garlic                          water                  

You will need:

• dried seaweed (미역 or wakame in Japanese) ~ 1 oz package
• Korean sesame oil (기름) ~ 1 tablespoon 
• soy sauce (간장) ~ 1 1/4 table spoon or to taste
• minced garlic ~ 1 tablespoon (optional) or as much to taste.  
• water (or a soup broth of your choice) ~ 6 cups
• pinch of salt (optional)

Soak dried seaweed in a bowl of warm water for approximately 20 minutes to allow to expand.  Make sure the seaweed is soft. Soak time may vary according to brand of seaweed. When soft, rinse well and drain. Then cut the seaweed into 2 to 4 inch pieces.

Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Once heated add sesame oil, 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce, a little dab of salt and cook for 1 minute.*  Slowly stir in seaweed and remaining soy sauce. Cook for 1 minute more.
Pour in 2 cups of water and bring the ingredients in pan to a boil.  Add garlic and stir.

Pour the ingredients into a large pot.  Add the  remaining 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, cover, and let simmer on medium heat for 20 minutes or until seaweed and ingredients of choice are tender.
Season to taste with salt, soy sauce, or other fun flavor.  

This soup, like most dishes, is often served with or over rice.  Prepare some rice in advance. If you're like most Asians, there is always rice in the cooker.  Make sure you have enough for the eager mouths.  

When ready, dish the soup into bowls. Quickly serve this healthy delight.  Feel the warmth and energy running through your body with every swallow.
ENJOY ~~~

Extra goodies:
Add scallions for additional flavor and consistency.  Cut off the white ends, using only the green part. Chop green part into 2 inch pieces. Add while adding the last 4 cups of water.

Others will like their soup with one, some, or all of the following:

 

         beef sirloin                                    osyters and/or mussels                                tofu (tubu 두부).

*If you choose to use the beef or oysters and scallions, be sure they are prepared [i.e. cleaned and chopped] for use.  Find the (*) and insert where you add the sesame oil and soy sauce.
**You may also purchase a soft tofu and add this to your soup.  You will use approximately half of a cube. Clean and chop small tofu cubes before pouring into the soup.   I add the tofu right before letting the pot simmer.  Others will add it at the very end.  Do a little experimentation and figure out what works best for you.

Hope you enjoy your seaweed soup!  Have fun with it and make it your own! Korean cooking isn't about following a recipe or an exact science it's about mixing, matching and finding the flavors you love most.

Be nourished and loved with a warm bowl of miyok gook today!  

Birthday seaweed soup (미역국)

Happy birthday to many of my Korean friends on this second week of March!  The coolest triplets I know celebrate their birthday this week.  It's time to celebrate with some yummy miyok gook (미역국) aka seaweed soup.

WHAT?? No birthday cake?

Yep, the Koreans like to stir things up a bit and eat seaweed soup. Koreans traditionally eat miyok gook on their birthdays every year. Why you ask? This tradition stems literally from the day of birth.  The new mother usually eats seaweed soup as the first meal after childbirth and for several weeks following the birth. There are a few reasons miyok gook is eaten as one of the first meals.

Seaweed soup is made of a type of seaweed called miyeok (brown laver), the only kind of seaweed used to make soup. The seaweed, slightly smooth, rubbery, and slimy in texture, is rich in iron and iodine.  The iron is an element that gives blood its color and is an essential nutrient in blood production.  Because a significant amount of blood is lost during the labor, mothers eat the seaweed to replenish the cells and blood supply in the body.

Koreans also believe that new mothers should have a time of rest. They take extra care of their bodies to ensure they are suited for all the tasks of motherhood. This rest period is much like "maternity leave" for new mothers in America, but usually also includes the help of the mother of the new mother. As a part of this rest period, they eat seaweed soup due to its soft texture and ease in swallowing.  Hard, chewy foods take too much work to eat while spicy foods are harsh on the system.

Thus, as mothers eat this as their first meal, the children are also eating the nutrients of the seaweed soup as their first meal through the mother's breast milk.  To remember the first meal of both mother and child as well as the hard work and labor of the mother, individuals eat /drink this soup in memory as their birthday meal.

Happy birthday friends!!  Enjoy your delicious miyok gook today.




Hey! What about those of us that are not Korean or do not have a Korean mom or halmoni (grandma) to cook us up some miyok gook?  We certainly have the right to honor the Korean tradition or even enjoy some of this nutritious soup on a cold winter's day.  High school students also often eat this simple meal the night before an important exam due to the belief that seaweed supports optimal brain function. Optimal brain function would be nice anytime, wouldn't it?!

Let's learn to make our own miyok gook.

You'll need some of the basic Korean ingredients, so check your cupboards and refrigerators first. Then head to your local Asian mart if you need something else.

      soy sauce         sesame oil                    dried seaweed                   minced garlic                    water

You will need:

• dried seaweed (미역 or wakame in Japanese) ~ 1 oz package
• Korean sesame oil (기름) ~ 1 tablespoon 
• soy sauce (간장) ~ 1 1/4 table spoon or to taste
• minced garlic ~ 1 tablespoon (optional) or as much to taste.  
• water (or a soup broth of your choice) ~ 6 cups
• pinch of salt (optional)

Make it: 

Soak dried seaweed in a bowl of warm water for approximately 20 minutes to allow to expand.  Make sure the seaweed is soft. Soak time may vary according to brand of seaweed. When soft, rinse well and drain. Then cut the seaweed into 2 to 4 inch pieces.

Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Once heated add sesame oil, 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce, a little dab of salt and cook for 1 minute.*  Slowly stir in seaweed and remaining soy sauce. Cook for 1 minute more.

Pour in 2 cups of water and bring the ingredients in pan to a boil.  Add garlic and stir.

Pour the ingredients into a large pot.  Add the  remaining 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, cover, and let simmer on medium heat for 20 minutes or until seaweed and ingredients of choice are tender.

Season to taste with salt, soy sauce, or other fun flavor.  

This soup, like most dishes, is often served with or over rice.  Prepare some rice in advance. If you're like most Asians, there is always rice in the cooker.  Make sure you have enough for the eager mouths.  

When ready, dish the soup into bowls. Quickly serve this healthy delight.  Feel the warmth and energy running through your body with every swallow.

ENJOY ~~~

Extra goodies:

Add scallions for additional flavor and consistency.  Cut off the white ends, using only the green part. Chop green part into 2 inch pieces. Add while adding the last 4 cups of water.

Others will like their soup with one, some, or all of the following:

 

         beef sirloin                                    osyters and/or mussels                                tofu (tubu 두부).

*If you choose to use the beef or oysters and scallions, be sure they are prepared [i.e. cleaned and chopped] for use.  Find the (*) and insert where you add the sesame oil and soy sauce.

**You may also purchase a soft tofu and add this to your soup.  You will use approximately half of a cube. Clean and chop small tofu cubes before pouring into the soup.   I add the tofu right before letting the pot simmer.  Others will add it at the very end.  Do a little experimentation and figure out what works best for you.

Hope you enjoy your seaweed soup!  Have fun with it and make it your own! Korean cooking isn't about following a recipe or an exact science it's about mixing, matching and finding the flavors you love most.

Be nourished and loved with a warm bowl of miyok gook today!