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

WKB (Worldwide Korea blogger) Treats

What's better than getting paid to blog or work? Well, it could be receiving these sweet treats from the Korean Culture and Information Service aka www.korea.net for service as a Worldwide Korea blogger! Living overseas away from Korea we may not reap the same benefits as those able to attend cultural events in Korea. However, this year we will be united by remembering each other and looking at our cool Kpop calendars. They function as calendars, photo books, and a paper weight. Fantastic isn't it? A calendar with multiple uses. This calendar is stuffed with pictures of all the hot kpop groups and even filled with facts about Korean traditional instruments. For the Kpop and Korean tradtional music loving soul this is the perfect gift.  Thank you korea.net for this gift.

I hope that fellow bloggers will enjoy this gift and smile as 2012 kicks off to a great start.

Published with Blogger-droid v2.0.2

Happy New Year!

새해 복 많이 받으세요!

Happy New Year to my friends, family, and readers both near and far! Lunar new year is only a couple of weeks away, but here in the United States we're celebrating with the solar calendar.

2011 was a great year full of challenges, surprises, new friends, big moves, new jobs/internships, and more. It had its fair share of ups and downs. I learned lessons in patience and gratitude. As I look back and learn from the past, I'm ready to jump into the new year full force!

There is so much more to come in 2012. Many of my friends faced new challenges and endured many hardships. We only look forward to growing in 2012 and living a more full life.  I do not yet know entirely what the next year holds, though I know it's going to be pretty epic.  Hopefully it includes a few travels and maybe even a few more exciting blog posts.

I am happy to announce that I'm on for another year of blogging with The Korea Blog. After the first few busy weeks of the month, I hope to devote more time to updating this blog. I moved to San Diego for volunteer/internship work and in the meantime will be looking for more opportunities to explore the Korean communities and learn Korean while down there.

Since the inception of this blog less than three years ago, I went from South Korea to a small shigol town in central California (where I'm currently spending the holiday with my family) to San Diego, a large diverse city. There may be more moves in the future. However, along the way I'll be sure to take my love for Korea and explore the local culture. Thank you for following me on this journey.

Happy new year to all of you! May you be blessed and filled with joy as you welcome 2012.

새해 복 많이 받으세요!

Happy Pepero Day

Hello, everyone! It's Pepero Day in Korea. (빼빼로 데이) Even better, it's Millennium Pepero Day. A once in a millennium occurrence of all ones and three 11's lining up with each other on the same day.

I love numbers!  Isn't this line up beautiful? Wouldn't it be more beautiful if that line up of numbers represented some sweet treats melting in your mouth?

11.11.11

What is this crazy Pepero Day? On this day much like Valentine's Day, school children and couples exchange pepero [aka pocky in Japan and America] with each other. The cute little cookie sticks made by Lotto are dipped in chocolate and other delicious flavors or treats. Often, individuals give pepero to the people they like. It has grown into another very romantic holiday. Not that Korea needs another one.


Since it's inception in the 90s, the holiday has grown to epic proportions. Large boxes of peperos and even cute gift boxes are among the many gifts. Other companies have their own line of products they try to sell in mass on this day. Products range from cute toys, gifts, stationary, cards, etc.  Advertisers, marketers, and business owners swear they did not create the holiday for sales purposes. However, this year they coined the Millennium Pepero Day term. It makes one wonder. That aside, it's always nice to enjoy some sweet treats, toys, and maybe even a nice little date with a loved one.

Although we do not have much pepero in the regular American stores, I still enjoy looking at pepero and thinking about the taste in my mouth. Thanks to Google I found a few images of my favorite pepero.  No need to explain. Let the mind and salivary glands go wild.  What are your favorite peperos?

almond pepero - I like the crunch

colorful pepero

yummy assorted pepero.

This is plain awesome. A pepero cake. Too beautiful to eat.

[EDIT} It is not millennium pepero day if you consider the many other days. It is century pepero day. Because the next century will be 2111, it will not be the year '11 in this Millennium. If you get too far into the technicalities you could go crazy. The real year 11 occurred 2,000 years ago. Before many (I hope) of you were born.  Regardless, I hope you enjoyed your very crazy pepero day.

San Diego Asian Film Festival (SDAFF)

Looking for something to do this month? Check out the San Diego Asian Film Festival, one of the largest film festivals in the nation. Join others to watch films from around the globe representing many genres and forms from our friends across Asia.

Check out the website: http://sdaff.org/festival/2011/

You just might find me there peaking into a few Korean films.  It is said that some hit films will be screened at the festival. Michael Kang's new romantic comedy "Knots" will be showing on October 21st while on Saturday the 22nd, Nancy Kwan is said to be receiving a lifetime achievement award.
Check out the event!

A mini tour of Korean Culture at the LA Korean Cultural Festival

Would you like a taste of Korea in America? I know I sure do. You're about to get a mini whirlwind tour of Korean culture.

Last Saturday I set out with a friend on my very first trip to K-Town LA to catch a bit of the Los Angeles Korean Festival. This annual week-long cultural festival seeks to promote understanding and cultural enrichment to Koreans that grew up in America as well as promote the sharing of cultures with those of other diverse cultural backgrounds.  The festival consists of food (yes, I love food), vendors of all sorts, art-like fun, cultural presentations, performances, and shows. I only caught a couple of hours at the festival since I do not live in LA, but it was well worth the momentary feeling of being in Korea again.  If you have been in Korea, the festival and the market-like atmosphere have a Namdaemun Market-esque feel to them.

The day started out a little gloomy weather-wise. The overcast clouds are not your typical southern California sunny weather. Eventually the sun brought in a small heat wave midday.  The overcast weather reminded me of the hazy, somewhat cloud-covered skies of Korean summers.  However, no humidity and little rain kept my brain grounded here in California.  Asia is known for it's monsoons and thankfully we haven't had much of that in California.

On the ride up I had the opportunity to read  this months KoreAm magazine while my friend took charge of the wheel knowing her way around the streets and highways of southern California.  A little Tim Kang, a Korean American actor on the show called The Mentalist, eye candy and some insight into the work the wonderful NGO known as Mercy Corps does in North Korea kept my eyes busy.  Both the actor and NGO do some pretty cool work. Check them out if you have a spare minute.

We eventually arrived in K Town and headed straight for the festival.  Since I had never been to Korea Town or in the heart of LA for that matter, I had a grandeur image of what K Town might look like. I half expected lights, high rise buildings, and lots of fun things to do. I also partially expected  unpleasant street-side activities as friends warn the importance of personal safety in K Town and LA. K Town was not short of interesting things to do, but it wasn't the same as walking the streets of Seoul. A few people said their first experiences in Korea were similar to walking the streets of K Town. Seoul is definitely one-of-a-kind. You will have to visit yourself.  Nevertheless, there were enough similarities such as the flood of Koreans walking by speaking rapid-fire Korean and the Galleria department store that put me at ease.  Not to mention, the festival itself redeemed any strange feelings. It was a great place to get lost in a sea of Koreans and cultural fun.

What did I do for less than five hours in K Town? Come and take the whirlwind tour with me.

There were many vendors, booths, and activities to observe and interact with. I started by visiting some booths I was familiar with and others that were new to me.

Checking out the market.

I love tea! The containers are cute, too!

Ready for business. She happily modeled for me, ready to sell her teeth cleaning kit and supplies.

Korean pear (or Asian pear) is undoubtedly the sweetest tastiest pear ever. Try some!  

A little overcast weather didn't bother anyone. 

Rice cake snack.

I explored a little more.  It was rest time for this couple and a great time to eat some delicious food! 

The next stop was the Koean Cultural Center of Los Angeles (KCCLA) booth. No official representative of the center were available to speak with me, but I found some cool materials and crafty things to do nearby.

The awesome post cards!

Next to the KCCLA table I observed the art of making Korean rice cake (떡 or tteok). Korean rice cake is a snack eaten in many forms and often found during celebrations or holidays. Some of its well known forms are found in tteok guk, a soup eaten on New Year's Day, and in a sweet covered eaten during birthdays or other celebrations.  Songpyeon, the sweet colorful shaped rice cake eaten during Chuseok, is also a formed type of this tteok or rice cake.  How do they make it? 

Pound and pound. Then knead and pound some more.  Watch out for his fingers!

Roll it up and shape it. 

Cover it up in something tasty and shape it some more. 

Then onto the art of origami: 

And my favorite stop at the Korean festival was at the hand made lantern table.  I spent a good hour   (yes, that's at least 1/5th of my whole time at the festival) observing the lanterns and creating a mini lotus flower lantern of my own. 

My turn:

The making of the lotus flower lantern. 

The final product and its reflection. 

After the fun arts and crafts I went on a few more ventures....

Water purifiers. These are in most homes in Korea.

Woman dressed in traditional wear and selling traditional souvenir gifts.  The traditional hanbok is beautiful.

Wood carving.

Many performances including the traditional salmunori were held on this stage. 

Finally,  it was parade time! The two hour parade consisted of local marching bands, representatives from Korean businesses and professionals, military men, clubs, and more. 

Even Ronald made an appearance!  

 

Live tae kwon do action!

When the parade drew to a close, I visited the Hanmi bank booth and won a signed baseball. I honestly have no clue who signed it, so if you know, please tell me!

I concluded my day in the streets of the Korean Cultural Festival by visiting a few more booths and eating some delicious Korean rice dishes. I also purchased a special gift at the hand made souvenir/gift table for my mother's birthday!  Overall, I enjoyed being surrounded by Koreans trying to make me take their fliers, taste their food, and buy their goods. That's what I came to do!  My ears were happy hearing Korean and my senses were satisfied with the taste of Korea all around. It was a wonderful way to spend a weekend after a year away from Korea.  

There you have my whirlwind mini tour of Korean culture during the Los Angeles Korean Cultural Festival in Korea Town, Los Angeles, California, USA.   Thank you for joining me!  

Korean Cultural Center of LA

On one of my first trips to LA and Ktown this weekend I attended the Korean festival for a few short hours and attempted to catch up with the KCCLA (Korean Cultural Center of LA).  Unfortunately, I missed meeting any of the staff on site. They seemed to take a long break the day I was visiting. Instead, I collected some colorful post cards promoting the KCCLA and met a fun volunteer maintaining the booth but shy of the camera.

Briefly, the Korean Cultural Center of LA promotes Korean culture and heritage in LA while opening up its doors to the public welcoming individuals to come and learn about the rich culture and traditions of Korea. Their facilities include a museum, auditorium, art gallery, and library full of Korea related materials. The center offers many programs from Korean language learning groups to cultural workshops and film viewing nights.  I haven't had the opportunity to tour their facilities since I'm rarely in the area but that day may come!  Please check out the cultural center if you are in LA or have time to catch some of their events.

For more information see their website listed here: http://www.kccla.org/english_/home_.asp

Here are some pics of the KCCLA booth and the post cards I collected at the Korean Cultural Festival!

The booth lacking the cute volunteer in the pic.

The reverse of each card is different. These were some of my favorites!