Jeju Island Food Porn

Three weeks ago, I was coming home from a wonderful vacation. My mom and I went to Korea this summer, returning after 19 years. Too long a time between seeing my cousins, my aunts and uncles, and my grandma. I can't imagine the joy that my grandma felt when seeing her oldest daughter again. My mom also got to take a real vacation for the first time so it was long overdue in many aspects.

Not only did we get to do amazing sight-seeing, but I also got to learn about myself and my culture. I got to see how important family is to us, how my mom's brothers and sister dropped everything in their lives to do as much as they could for my mom while she was there. Growing up with a small family of just my mom, dad, and sister, it was heartwarming to see other family members so happy to see us. I miss everybody and I wish I could be back but I made a promise that I'd visit more often instead of waiting 19 years the next time.

Another part of this vacation that I miss so much, of course, was the food. The amazing food. Some dishes were classics, some I'd never heard of. If you are a foodie, you need to go to Korea. Visit the country side, visit the big cities, visit the island near the south of the country. Everything I ate was great there - even the airport and airplane food! Tickets may be expensive, but everything is worth it. Okay, fine; if not, try New York City or another big city in America where Koreans gather, but nothing will compare to the actual country. Believe me.

Let me start with the food from the Jeju Island. My aunt came with me and my mom and we were there for 3 nights and 4 days. We ate a lot in that time and they were all different! The island is very small and rich in seafood and the land is rich in minerals so all crops grow well. It's a 1-hour flight from Seoul and I was hungry when I got to the airport so here's what I ate as a snack:



Rice cakes are a big and important part of the Korean food culture so it's everywhere. This wasn't enough to satisfy my stomach though so once we landed and got our rental car, we drove to our first destination but on the way we found a restaurant specializing in Mackerel Stew. I never had this stew kind of stew before. The mackerel is wrapped in kimchi and cooked. Then you make a lettuce wrap with some rice (or none - up to you), some mackerel meat, and a piece of kimchi, and you eat it! It was pretty good. Mackerel is one of my favorite fish to eat.



It's seems pretty normal for restaurants to give a complimentary stew in addition to whatever you ordered so we got a spicy seafood stew as well (to the left). There were some weird-looking shrimp in that stew so I had to show you. It's like the lovechild of a lobster and a shrimp!



Then for dinner (I think the same day), we found a well-known black pig grill restaurant. I don't know what's so special about black pig, but I wasn't gonna complain - it was still good! They also gave us seafood to grill - shrimp and abalone. My mom and my aunt ate them raw but I couldn't handle it with the way it was moving and such. They also gave us a piece of pig skin, which is very popular to eat in Korea because of the collagen. As always, delicious side dishes were complimentary.



My aunt has already been to this island a couple times so she knows a few good restaurants and probably hears about a lot of others as well. Jeju Island has always been the vacation spot for many couples and families. She took us to a restaurant run by grandmas she had only heard was very good - and no doubt it was. All seafood dishes and all guaranteed fresh. There are some weird looking seafood in the island and I can't remember a lot of the names but the one I do remember is abalone and this place was known for its abalone porridge. It was hearty and filling and good!



For dinner that night, we found a restaurant specializing in spicy octopus, especially the kind you cut up and mix with rice like in the picture. You know, I can handle some spiciness but Koreans can definitely handle way more. Knowing this, my aunt asked for the waitress to make it less spicy; yet I was still tearing up, sweating, and had a runny nose. It was the spiciest thing I have ever eaten in my life! But it was still so delicious. I love spicy octopus stir fry so this was great.



Jeju Island is famous for a lot of things and one of them is the fish Largehead Fishtail. We've eaten a lot of this growing up in America as well but it just doesn't compare to how tender the one in Jeju was. I had no idea the fish was that tender - how sad to think I've eaten bad fish all my life. Importing it probably doesn't do anything to make the fish taste better anyway.



Dinner that night was extravagant. My cousin on my dad's side currently lives on the island and wanted to treat us to dinner. This restaurant was very busy and we got there at the right time because after us, people had to wait. This restaurant's specialty is "Cutting Board Pork" called that because it's pork served on a cutting board. They give you three different things to wrap the pork in: lettuce and sesame seed leaves, rinsed kimchi, and dashi. All the side dishes were complimentary and they gave way more and more interesting ones than any other restaurant. That mackerel is a side dish!



The last day we had to return the rental car so we made an arrangement with a private taxi driver who took us to the last places we needed to see on the island. He has lived there all his life and has been driving tourists around for a living for many years so he knows everything. He also took us to a restaurant that serves a somewhat hard-to-find dish. Kalguksu is one of my favorite noodle soups but the broth is usually made of chicken or beef (i actually don't remember right now what my mom uses) so it was strange to hear that they made this soup with sea urchin broth. Of course we had to try it and it was delicious! Again, a hearty and deep warm-in-my-belly dish. Very interesting and very good.



Don't you just wanna eat all this off the screen? I sure do. I can't even recreate a lot of these at home because the freshness of the seafood and the ingredients just doesn't compare! I probably couldn't even find half the ingredients anyway. So, enjoy these pictures and please come back to see pictures of food that I ate back on the mainland and in the city. Yes, I took way too many pictures probably.

Jjajangmyun (짜장면)

This summer, my mom and I are visiting Korea for the first time in 19 years. My family and I moved to the States when I was four and my dad's the only one who has gone back a few times. A few of my relatives have visited us here but not recently. I am really excited because, one, it'll be great to see everybody. My aunt is excited to show my mom and I around and apparently have already made arrangements for us so we've got nothing to worry about.

The second reason I am very excited about this trip is the food. Nobody will beat my mom's cooking, but there are just some dishes that my mom doesn't cook due to limited access to ingredients and equipment. There's nothing all that fancy about Korean food though. Sometimes it's as simple as this dish I'm sharing with you today.



It might not be so simple when you don't have access to the black bean sauce, but any Asian market should have a jar of it. If not, ask the owner and see if it can be ordered. As for the noodles, you can use any you like, though the thick white Korean ones are the best. Or avoid all that hassle in even looking for the noodles and go with rice. It can get kinda messy when you're eating these noodles so just have some napkins ready! This recipe is also easy to make for a big group and very adjustable. Vegetarian? Just take out the pork! Don't like zucchini? Then add some carrots. What I listed has just always been the standard in our household, but I'm sure you can add whatever you like as long as they are cut into small pieces. Look for pickled radish at an Asian supermarket as well. It's a must-have side dish for Black Bean Noodles.



When I used to watch Korean dramas, I remember that in every single one of them, somebody at one point always ordered delivery. The delivery man showed up on a scooter with this dish, in an actual bowl (not styrofoam), covered in plastic wrap with a bunch of side dishes (also in actual dishes, covered in plastic wrap). The food got eaten and the delivery man came back for the bowls. I hope that's how they still do it nowadays because that is on my list of things to do while in Korea!

Black Bean Noodles/Rice
From Maangchi and my mom

1/2 lb pork belly (or pork roast), diced
1 tbsp + 2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 small potato, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 zucchini, diced
1/4 cup black bean sauce
2 cups water
2 tbsp cornstarch + 1/4 cup cold water

Korean noodles or white rice, cooked

In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil on medium high heat and stir fry the pork until golden brown and crispy on the outside. Pour out excess pork fat.

Add the potato, onion, and zuchinni and saute for 3 minutes until the potato is translucent. Clear a space in the center of the saucepan and add 2 tbsp vegetable oil and the black bean sauce and stir for 1 minute. Then mix black bean sauce with everything else and cook.

Add water and bring to boil. Cover saucepan and lower heat to let simmer for 10 minutes. Sample the potato to see if it is fully cooked. If so, stir in cornstarch water little by little and keep stirring until well mixed and the sauce is thickened. Take off heat.

Place cooked noodles or cooked rice into bowl. Spoon black bean sauce on top of choice of starch and serve!

California Roll

I love an outing to a buffet once in a while. The variety of foods that buffets offer amaze me and I love getting a little bit of everything and finishing off the meal with some fruit and ice cream. I found a great buffet in Roanoke and I've been there twice in the past few months. The price is a great deal (especially with coupons) and the food is great. I love that they have a whole booth dedicated to seafood so I get to eat as much cuttlefish, clams, and mussels as my stomach can fit. It's also impressive that they have sushi at the buffet. It's limited to just rolls but it's still pretty good. Of course, it inspired me to make homemade sushi.

It's actually pretty easy to make, but rolling it sure is an art. I tried my best to explain how to roll in the instructions below, but videos or picture are more helpful. I'm sure you can find a good instructional video on YouTube. Thankfully, my boyfriend was accepting of the not-so-perfect rolls. I guess I technically made Calidelphia or Philornia rolls since there was cream cheese in these but no salmon and imitation crab instead.



Do you like the dish I used? No real fish in these rolls but it was the fanciest dish I had in my cabinets. No pickled ginger though. Make this for a date-night dinner. Two people working at it together will make the process go quickly. I was even able to take step-by-step pictures for this recipe! Enjoy.

California Rolls

2 cups uncooked sushi rice
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp salt
Cream cheese, cut into 1/4-inch sticks
Imitation crab sticks, cut in half lengthwise
Avocado, cut into 1/4-inch sticks
Nori sheets, cut in half

In a medium pot, place the uncooked rice and 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Cover and let simmer until done, 30 minutes or so. Or use your rice cooker. Fluff and let cool.

Once cool enough to touch, place cooked rice in a large mixing bowl. Add rice vinegar, sugar, and salt and mix well. Set aside. Prepare the cream cheese, crab sticks, and avocados and set aside.

To make the rolls, have a cup of cold water available to wet your fingers. It will help keep the rice off you and stay on the rolls instead. Place bamboo roll on counter. Place a piece of plastic wrap over the roll. Place a half sheet of nori on lower half of roll. Wet fingers and grab a handful of rice. Spread out the rice to create a single layer.



Since California Rolls have the rice on the outside, we need to flip this. Take the upper half of the bamboo roll and plastic wrap and fold over the lower half. Flip over and turn so that the nori and rice are on the lower half of the bamboo roll again. Now the rice is on the outside!



Place the cream cheese, crab stick, and avocado in a line on the lower third of the nori sheet. Now, time to roll. Hold the plastic wrap and bamboo roll with your thumb and index finger and use your other fingers to hold onto the filings. That way, you can make sure that they stay inside when you start rolling instead of slipping out. Once you get the rice and nori over the fillings, squeeze along the seam so that it sticks together. Then grab the plastic wrap and bamboo with one hand and roll the rest of the way with your other hand.



Once you reach the end, wrap the whole thing in the bamboo roll and squeeze all around evenly. Release and behold! Your beautiful sushi roll.



To cut, place the roll on a cutting board. Wet your hands and your knife every time you cut a slice. If not, the rice will stick on your hands and it will come off. Wetting the knife will also make sure you make a clean cut each time. Place on serving dish and serve with a blob of wasabi and a side dish of soy sauce. I like mixing a little wasabi into the soy sauce for dipping.

Kimchi Pizza

Kimchi has been in my life a lot lately because I wanted to eat up the batch I had before it got past its fresh and crispy stage. I also wanted to make room for my third (and possibly my best) batch. I've made a simple stew (kinda like an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink stew), fried rice, and even pizza.



Kimchi is not an ingredient I would have imagined using in pizza, but it actually works really well. It had been on my mind for a few weeks because the idea just popped into my head when I was trying to come with different ways to eat kimchi. So I went Googling and I'm lucky I found this one recipe. This is exactly what I had in mind: an all-Korean pizza. I have seen pictures of pizzas in Korea where they have kimchi and cheese on top which I thought was weird so I kept looking until I came across this one. The pork belly adds a nice meaty texture, but you don't have to add it if you want to keep this meatless. Bacon would probably work but keep in mind that bacon is a lot saltier than pork belly.



This was definitely a successful cooking experiment. I didn't think this could go wrong anyway because they are all ingredients that I'm a big fan of. My cooking experiments this weekend, however, are another story. To celebrate St. Patrick's Day, I tried to cook with Guinness as much as I could. I made Guinness pancakes (this recipe with half milk/half Guinness), which weren't too bad. Then for dinner, I made Guinness mashed potatoes and Shepherd's Pie meatballs with Guinness gravy. Bitter is all I can say. My boyfriend said it was fine, but he could have just been saying that. He was nice enough to keep eating it though. Next time, we'll have to make Guinness brownies instead so that most of it is baked out! Enjoy this pizza meanwhile.

Kimchi Pizza
From No Recipes

For the sauce
1 tbsp Korean red pepper paste
Kimchi juice
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 clove garlic, crushed

For the pizza
1 lb of dough
Flour
Cornmeal
1/2 cup kimchi, squeezed of excess juice and chopped
4 very thin slices of pork belly, cut into squares
1 scallion, sliced thin on the bias

Put the oven rack in the upper middle position, put a pizza stone (or baking sheet) on it and preheat to 475F.

To make the sauce, just mix the gochujang with enough kimchi juice so it’s thin enough to easily spread (but not watery). Add the sesame oil and garlic and stir to combine.

On a well floured surface, roll the dough out until it is less than 1/4″ thick. Dust a pizza peel (or wooden cutting board) with course ground cornmeal and lay the dough on top. Use a spoon to spread the sauce on the dough. Top with chopped kimchi and sliced pork belly.

Gently transfer the pizza to the preheated pizza stone and bake until the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven, sprinkle with scallions, slice and enjoy!

Kimchi Pancakes (김치전)

Growing up, I didn't eat the kind of pancakes that are considered the norm around here. Instead of the sweet, maybe fruit- or chocolate-filled, fluffy, Sunday-morning-brunch pancakes, my mom made us savory pancakes. There were two kinds that she always made: chives and kimchi. For some reason, I never was and still am not a fan of the chive pancakes. I was turned off by them as a kid and I guess I've just stuck with that feeling. It's probably also because kimchi pancakes are the best. Spicy and crunchy from the kimchi with crispy edges from pan-frying in oil. Actually, I remember sometimes eating just the edges and leaving the middle for my mom to finish. Teehe.



The batter sure doesn't look appetizing, but I promise it's great. This makes for a great side dish to your meat and rice dishes. Serve whole or cut them into pieces for easier picking and eating.



It's not often that I have kimchi in my fridge, so whenever I do, I always make this dish. I was sorely disappointed when I wanted to make kimchi a few weeks ago, but when I went to the market, I was greeted with signs saying that a freeze had caused a vegetable shortage. So I waited until last weekend to visit the market again. This time, they had the napa cabbage! They were smaller than before but it was better than nothing. My mom tasted my last batch and told me I was probably using too little salt and too little seasoning so I amped it up for this batch and it turned out so much better. Still haven't tried making homemade kimchi? Interested? Check out my post!



Kimchi Pancakes (김치전) 
From Maangchi

1 cup chopped kimchi
3 tbsp kimchi juice
2 tbsp chopped onion [I left this out]
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup water

In a medium bowl, mix together all the ingredients.

In a 12-inch pan, heat 2 tbsp oil at medium-high heat. Place the kimchi batter in the pan and spread the batter evenly and thinly. Let it cook for about 2 minutes or until the bottom is golden and crispy. Flip the pancake and let the other side cook for 2 minutes, or until golden and crispy.

Serve!

Soy Sauce Ddukbokki (간장 떡볶이)

When I first moved to Roanoke, I wasn't aware of the big Asian population. It took me a year to find the many Asian markets that are in town. Now I don't have to wait six months until I go back home to New Jersey to get my hands on Korean food products! Of course, the stores don't have everything, but it's surprising what they do have. Most of the staples are there: red pepper flakes, red pepper paste, instant ramen, even fermented shrimp (for kimchi and such), and snacks. Some surprising products are rice cakes (in oval shapes and in tube shapes), enoki mushrooms (which are really hard to find in non-Asian markets), black bean paste, and various fish cakes. I was so excited when I saw these products, I wanted to buy everything even though I knew I wouldn't be eating them right away. I made myself get just a few things to make the recipe I am sharing with you today.



I've made the spicy version of this before. My mom has actually made this dish only a few times when we were growing up. I prefer the spicy version just because spicy is the best, but this is just as good when you're not in the mood to have your nose constantly running and your tongue tingling during the meal. This still technically isn't the right shape of rice cakes for this dish, but I had already bought these oval ones before I went to another Asian market and saw that they had the tube-shaped rice cakes. I was especially excited when I saw the fish cakes though. It adds to the flavor of the dish so add those if you can find them at your local Asian market! They are always sold as sheets. Mine was rolled up, but they also sell them flat too.



Ever since I found the Asian markets, I have been returning every few weeks or so. I can't make every Korean dish but a lot of the basic ones I can, especially with access to more ingredients. And for the ones I can't make, there's a local Korean restaurant called Wonju. It's not the best I've had (because everyone thinks that his or her own mom's cooking is the best), but it certainly does beat some of the restaurants in my hometown. It's good enough to satisfy any cravings I might have for dishes that are too complicated for me to cook up. If you're ever in Roanoke and wanting to try some new foods, try Wonju!

Soy Sauce Ddukbokki (간장 떡볶이)

3 tbsp soy sauce
2 cups water
1/2 tbsp sugar
1 clove garlic
1/4 onion, sliced
2 cups rice cake (떡)
2 sheets fish cakes (오댕), optional
1 green onion, chopped

Add the soy sauce, water, sugar, garlic, and onion to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium, and let it simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the rice cakes and fish cakes (if using) and let it cook for 5 minutes or until the rice cakes are soft and the sauce has thickened. Add the green onion and cook for 1 more minute.

Serve immediately!

Kimchi (김치)

The way I am, I like to follow a recipe, especially when it comes to baking since there's more science involved there. I was never good with science experiments anyway. The way my mom cooks, there is no recipe. She does everything by taste based on her years and years of experience. I can't ever recreate what my mom makes on my own, so I ask her for the recipes. Since she has been baking more recently, she gives me ingredient measurements in teaspoons and tablespoons which helps me out a lot.

Anytime I make a Korean dish successfully, it feels so satisfying. Well, I feel that way with any recipe honestly, but I think Korean dishes are more difficult for me to recreate the right combination of seasonings and spices. That's why I get picky when it comes to Korean food because there are some great restaurants and there are some terrible restaurants. I grew up with the best, but I guess every child thinks that of his/her mom. Every mom has her own way of cooking, even Kimchi (김치). Kimchi is THE dish of Korea and is rated one of the world's healthiest foods. Traditionally, it is spicy fermented cabbage but it can also be made from cucumbers, green onions, radishes, etc, and it doesn't have to be spicy.



I made a batch out of just one cabbage and it lasted me a while! I didn't eat it every day, but I did try to finish it quickly before it became too sour. I made fried rice with it and it was delicious. I put it in some tofu stew and it was delicious. I also made savory pancakes with it and it was indeed delicious. You could eat just plain too and it will be delicious. There are so many ways to eat Kimchi and I wouldn't get sick of it.

One of the most important ingredients in kimchi is Saewoojut, salted fermented shrimp. I mentioned this ingredient in the recipe for Steamed Egg. It really makes a difference in the taste of your kimchi, so go to your local Asian market and try to look for it!

Kimchi (김치)

1 Napa cabbage
Salt
1/2 cup Korean red pepper flakes
3 T water
2 tbsp Saewoojut
3 cloves garlic
1/2 - 1 tsp minced ginger
3 green onions, cut into 1/2-inch slices

Cut cabbage in half lengthwise. Chop off the root end. Peel off leaves one by one and cut bigger leaves in half lengthwise again. Then cut leaves into 2 inch slices. Rinse and drain the cabbage. In a colander, put on single layer of cabbage and sprinkle generously with salt. Put on another layer and sprinkle with salt. Repeat with remaining cabbage slices. Let drain for 1 1/2 hours. Flip so that most of the top layers are on the bottom. Drain again for 1 1/2 hours or so.

After draining for a few hours, wash off the salt and drain again. Let the cabbage dry for 30 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix red pepper flakes with the water to make a paste. Add cabbage slices and mix with a hand - the best tool. Make sure all of the cabbage gets covered with the red pepper paste. Add in saewoojut, garlic, giner, and green onions and mix again with a hand. Taste a slice and adjust seasoning.

Transfer to either a stainless steel or glass container. Kimchi will stain your plastics. Leave out at room temperature for 2 days. After a couple days, place in your refrigerator and enjoy! Kimchi is best served cold, or stir-fried in sesame oil for 15 minutes. Or as pancakes. Or in stews. Mouthwatering!

Steamed Egg (계란찜)

Yesterday, we had 11 eggs in the house. Today, we have none. I used 9 for the baby shower cake and my sister used two for pancakes. I was at the store twice yesterday, once after I used all the eggs, but didn't think to buy more because I was frantically trying to get home in time to finish the cake. So this morning, my sister didn't have any to make pancakes (she used flaxseed meal instead) and I didn't have any to make Lemon Pull-Apart Coffee Cake. Sad! No access to a car today, so I had to postpone that even longer than I already have.

We do try to keep eggs in stock all the time as it makes a frequent appearance in my baking. But not so much in our meals, which is sad because they are a great source of protein and there are a variety of ways to eat them! My breakfast one year in high school was rice and a fried egg. My parents ate egg and ham bagel sandwiches for breakfast for a while. I sometimes eat two eggs over easy, home fries, and fruit as an easy, simple meal. But before I discovered that nothing can beat breaking into a runny yolk, my favorite way to eat eggs were steamed. Steamed Egg is a staple side dish for our family. Whisking together eggs, water, and a bit of salt will yield a custard-type dish. Originally, in order to get the salty flavor, Koreans use salted fermented shrimp called Saewoojut, but it's hard to come by unless you're shopping at an Asian mart, so you can just use salt.



Because of the custard texture, it's best to eat this with a spoon. However, when my sister and I were younger, we would always compete against who could pick up more with chopsticks. At one point, I think it got too extreme because I remember my parents telling us to stop. I'm sure they just wanted to eat some, too, and stop us from hogging the whole dish.



Steamed Egg (계란찜)
From Maangchi

3 eggs
1/2 cup water
1/4 to 1/2 tsp salt (to taste)
1 scallion, chopped

In a bowl, beat the eggs. Add water and salt and mix well. Place chopped scallion on top. Do not mix.

In a large shallow pot, pour about 2 cups water. Place bowl with egg mixture in the center of the pot. Bring the water to a boil, reduce heat to low-medium, cover with lid, and steam for 15 minutes.

Alternative method: Put bowl with egg mixture into the microwave and cook it for 5 minutes. Make sure the bowl is microwavable.

Hodduk (호떡)

Spring Break started last week and I drove back home on Saturday. I couldn't have chosen a better day to drive for 7 hours. Rain, rain, and more rain. Oh, and some wind. I'm surprised I even survived that trip, but I'm alive and I arrived home safely. So far, my break has been decent. Yesterday, I went on a shopping spree because I was in desperate need of new clothes and new shoes since the bottom of my 80/20 pair is ripping open. I also made crepes for breakfast for me and my sister (recipe soon!). Today, besides watching Nikita and memorizing Shakespeare, I made these stuffed pancakes for my parents. I've made these for my friends before and they were a huge hit!



This is the kind of dessert that my family and I bought from either the street carts or the supermarkets. But considering how easy it is to make at home, I will always opt for homemade now. Very minimal amount of kneading is necessary for this dough. It's quite sticky to work with, so make sure you have a whole lot of flour ready. The dough is fluffy once fried and the cinnamon brown sugar becomes a syrupy gooey delicious filling. These are best eaten right after they've been cooked: when it's too hot to hold that you toss it from one hand to the other and when it's too hot to eat that you inhale a bit of air to cool it down.



Hodduk (호떡) [Makes 8 pancakes]
From Maangchi

- 1 cup warm water
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp yeast
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 cups flour, plus more for kneading
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon

1. In a large bowl, add warm water, sugar, yeast, salt, and oil. Stir and let sit for 10 minutes. Add flour and mix with a spoon until flour is well incorporated.
2. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for an hour at room temperature.
3. Knead the dough to remove gas bubbles. Cover and let sit again for 10 to 20 minutes.
4. Place a handful of flour on a cutting board. Place the dough on the cutting board and knead. Pat into a ball and divide into 8 equal-sized pieces.
5. Take one, flatten it, place some filling into the center and bring up the sides to the center and seal it to make a ball. Repeat with the remaining.
6. Heat a pan to medium and add 1 or 2 tbsp oil. Place a pancake in the pan and cook on one side until golden brown. Flip. Flatten the pancake with the spatula. Cook until golden brown. Let cool for a bit and serve.

Ddukbokki (떡복이)

When I was growing up, my parents worked late hours and got home around 9 every night so it was just me and my sister for the most part. I couldn't wait until my parents got home to eat dinner, so sometimes my mom left us real meals before she left for work. Other times, she was in a rush to head out the door, so my sister would cook for the two of us. We always had a package of rice cakes in either the fridge or the freezer, so Ddukbokki (떡복이) was a frequent meal.

At that point in my life, I wasn't too interested in learning how to cook. I was still fascinated by everything my mom did, so I would bother her in the kitchen, asking her what, why, and how. It seemed too complicated for me, though, but maybe it was because she was trying to do many things at once. But when I asked my mom for the recipe a couple months ago, I wondered why I thought this was so difficult. It's probably not as complicated as the chefs in Korea make them, but it's still really good.



I've made Korean food for my friends twice now and this was on the menu both times. I purposefully reduced the amount of red pepper paste (or gochujang) so that it wasn't too spicy. I had considered making a non-spicy version, but there was already too much soy sauce in the other dishes I was serving. I delayed writing this recipe because I wanted to share the spicy and the non-spicy in one post, but I ran out of rice cakes and I prefer spicy anyway. I promise, though, that I will eventually post it.

You can pretty much add whatever you want into this dish, but try to keep it as simple as you can because, really, the main flavors of this dish are the rice cakes and the spicy sauce. One thing I always like to add is fish cakes, also known as odeng (오댕). I didn't add it this time because nobody else really eats fish around here, but it's definitely a must for those who do. Rice cakes come in different shapes. I used the shapes that are used for Ddukgook (떡국) because a company sells them frozen and I was able to bring that down here from home. Go for fresh ones if you can get your hands on them. Slice into 2- or 3-inch segments. For this recipe, you should buy ones that are shaped like the ones below, but smaller in diameter.



Ddukbokki (떡복이)

- 2 tbsp red pepper paste or gochujang (고추장)
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 2 cups water
- 3 anchovies (optional)
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 cups rice cake (떡)
- 2 scallions, chopped in 1-inch pieces

1. In a saucepan, add gochujang, sugar, water, anchovies (optional), soy sauce and garlic. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
2. Add rice cakes and cook until they are soft and chewy. Add scallions and cook for 2 more minutes. Serve immediately. When this dish gets cold, the sauce gets very thick and the rice cakes stick together so it gets difficult to eat.

Yangnyumjang (양념장)

These days, it's been more difficult for me to come up with satisfying dinner ideas when one, I haven't gone grocery shopping in a while and two, I barely have time to sit down and think! I like to fall back on something simple for dinner, such as fried tofu. Fried tofu is an easy side dish addition to a lunch or dinner meal. I love tofu in every way, but I think it's best when fried. When my mom makes fried tofu for dinner, she always serves it with this dipping sauce, which I am sharing with you today.

This dipping sauce will make everything taste better. Maybe not everything... But it's certainly a taste booster for certain foods. Another way I like to eat this sauce is in a roll. Take a layer of dried seaweed that you would use to make sushi, spread rice all over, sprinkle the sauce all over the rice, and roll up to munch on! I basically grew up on this and ate it for dinner or as a snack. This dipping sauce is a non-spicy version. You can add red pepper flakes to match your desired level of spice.



Soy Sauce Dipping Sauce
From my mom

- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 green onion, chopped

1. Mix together all ingredients in a small bowl. Serve as dipping sauce or sprinkle over food.

Miyukgook (미역국)

Besides dairy, my other favorite food group has to be seafood. As I try to incorporate more fish into my diet, I also try to add other items such as seaweed. A main dish that features seaweed is Miyukguk (미역국), one of my favorite soups. It's traditionally eaten on one's birthday, but you can also eat it whenever you'd like.

Whenever I tried to make Miyukgook, it tasted alright, but never like the way my mom made it, so I finally asked her. There was a secret step that I missed: sauteing the seaweed in sesame oil. It made all the difference and I was finally able to have a taste of home 400 miles away. I don't make this as often as I'd like as some do not appreciate the smell of seaweed as much as I do. But there are times when I really crave it, so I just turn the kitchen fan on high.

There are several ways you can make this soup. My mom always makes homemade beef broth and puts in pieces of beef into the soup. But you can also make it with mussels. Just toss in several cooked pieces per serving when you're sauteing the seaweed. And if you don't want any of that and want just plain ol' seaweed, then you can leave even the mussels out. I did it that way and it still tastes great. When dried seaweed has been soaked in water, it balloons in size, so even though 1/2 oz may not seem like a lot, look at it again after you have soaked it at least overnight. If you don't have access to a kitchen scale, just use two handfuls of dried seaweed and then determine if you'd like more or less the next time you make it.



Miyukgook (미역국)

- 1/2 oz dried seaweed
- 3 pieces mussel meat (optional)
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 3-inch square dashi
- 5 cups water

1. In a bowl, soak the dried seaweed in cold water for at least 12 hours.
2. Drain soaking water and fill bowl with water again. Squeeze the seaweed a couple times to soften. Rinse and drain the seaweed 3 times. Cut long pieces of seaweed into shorter pieces.
3. Heat pot to medium-high heat. Add sesame oil, seaweed, and mussels and saute for a few minutes.
4. Add water and dashi and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.
5. Discard dashi and serve!

Bulgogi (불고기)

After I heard a funny story about Bulgogi from a housemate, I decided that I would cook it for my housemates (who eat beef anyway) to give them a taste of Korean home cooking. Of course I couldn't serve just beef and rice--it's just not the Korean way. Other side dishes included Ddukbokki (떡북기), fried tofu with a soy sauce-sesame oil sauce, and a salad with Kraft's Asian Sesame dressing. The recipes for the first two will come later, but let's focus on the main star of the dinner, shall we?

Asian markets sell meat that has been specifically cut to make Bulgogi, but I doubted a Wal-Mart in the South would have the same cuts, so I just looked for a chunk of ribeye so that I could cut thin slices myself, but I was surprised to find that Wal-Mart did sell them! But when I went back to buy the meat yesterday to make this, they didn't have it anymore. Instead, they had thin slices of sirloin, so I just bought that. It tasted great anyway. Usually, my mom adds a slice of Asian pear or a tiny piece of a kiwi or a pineapple to soften the meat, but I just pounded the slices with the back of a knife and that helped a lot. My friends really enjoyed this dish. Just one step closer to my mom's level of cooking.



Bulgogi (불고기)
From my mom

- 1 2/3 lb sirloin or ribeye, sliced thinly
- 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp water
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 small onion, sliced
- 2 green onions, chopped

1. If you can't find pre-sliced sirloin or ribeye, buy a chunk of either and slice into 1/8" thick pieces. My local Wal-Mart sells thinly sliced sirloin steak, so I'm sure yours does too. Pound the beef with back of knife to soften it.
2. In a bowl, mix together sesame oil, sesame seeds, sugar, soy sauce, garlic, onions, and green onions. Add the beef slices and knead the beef about 4 times until covered in marinade. Leave in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. (Even longer is better.)
2. Heat skillet on medium-high heat. Add beef and cook until no longer pink.

Ddukgook (떡국)

Happy New Year! How is everyone celebrating? I'm celebrating with Ddukgook. As it is tradition for some to eat black-eyed peas on New Year's for luck, it is a Korean tradition to eat Ddukgook (떡국). Ddukgook consists of dashi and beef broth and thinly sliced rice cakes. Eating this soup on New Year's brings good luck in the upcoming year and adds a year to one's life.

I'm happy to say that I've finally learned how to make traditional Korean food. I have only watched my mom make everything, but with so many ingredients, I can't remember everything when I'm trying to make it on my own. I thought it was about time to write things down, so this morning, I followed my mom around in the kitchen with pencil and paper. It is very simple to make once you've got your ingredients. Unfortunately, there is no Asian market near my university so I can't get a hold of rice cakes. My first thought upon realizing this was that I should make my own rice cakes, so I googled for some recipes and I actually found one that seems somewhat promising! I bookmarked it because I know I will be making it some time in the future. For now, I am just going to take some frozen rice cakes back to Virginia with me. Hopefully, you will have more luck finding rice cakes. There are frozen rice cakes that are already sliced for you sold in the markets, like so:



But fresh is always better. Find ones that are shaped like rods about 3/4-inch in diameter. You can always buy a whole bunch and freeze them for later use. Actually, freezing them before slicing is probably the best idea as it'll be hard to slice through ones that are soft.



Just a few notes about the soup. The amount of rice cakes is really your preference. I don't like too many so my serving size would be probably 1/2 cup, so no need to follow the 4 cups. Want more? Just keep adding! Dumplings are also a tasty addition to the soup. My mom made some homemade kimchi dumplings, so we had those with the Ddukgook. Just add to the soup before serving. You can also garnish the soup with thinly cut pieces of dried seaweed. For the egg, you can opt to leave it out of the soup and instead make a plain omelet, thinly slice it, and place it on top of the soup with the dried seaweed before serving. Hope you enjoy and if you have any questions, I'll gladly answer them as I'm not sure I wrote the instructions very well.

Ddukgook (떡국) [Makes 4 servings]
From my mom

- 1/2 lb beef heel meat (don't know how available this is in regular markets, so try brisket or flank steak)
- Dashi, size of your hand
- 4 cups rice cakes
- 2 scallions, chopped
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- 1 egg

1. Place beef and 8 cups water in a large pot. Boil for 10 minutes, reduce heat to a vigorous simmer, cover, and cook for 30 minutes.
2. Add dashi and simmer for 20 more minutes. Discard of dashi. Remove the beef, chop into bite size pieces, and place them back into the pot.
3. Bring to a boil. Add some water if the broth has reduced too much. Add rice cakes. Cook for 5 minutes. Add scallions. Season the soup with garlic powder and salt to taste.
4. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Add to soup by spoonfuls and swirl to make ribbons. Turn off heat and remove pot from heat. Enjoy!