Emergency Kimchi - Maangachi

Emergency Kimchi - Maangachi

Friday, November 12, 2021

Ingredients:

•  Cabbage, 
• kosher salt, 
• hot pepper flakes, 
• fish sauce, 
• sugar, 
• garlic, 
• green onions, and carrot. 

Directions 1. 

• Cut 2 pounds of cabbage into thin strips about 2-3 inches in length and ¼ inch wide. Place into a large bowl. 
  
  
• 2. Add 1 cup cold water and ¼ cup kosher salt. Mix it well with your hands to properly salt the cabbage. 
  
  
• 3. Set aside for 10 minutes. 
  
  
• 4. Make kimchi paste by mixing these ingredients in a bowl: ⅓ cup hot pepper flakes, 1 tbs sugar, ¼ cup fish sauce, ¼ cup minced garlic, 3-4 stalks of
   chopped green onion (⅓ cup worth), ¼ cup’s worth of julienned carrot 
  
  
• 5. Wash and rinse the salted cabbage in cold water a couple of times. Drain the water.
  
  6. Mix the kimchi paste into the cabbage thoroughly.
  
  7. Put the kimchi into a container, jar, or plastic bag.
  
  8. Press the top of the kimchi down with your hands to protect your kimchi from being exposed to too much air.
  
  9. You can eat it right away, just like salad. Or keep it at room temperature and it will ferment in a few days. Fermented kimchi can be used for kimchi stir-fried rice or kimchi stew, and it will be delicious.

Grilled pork belly Samgyeopsal-gui 삼겹살구이

Grilled pork belly Samgyeopsal-gui 삼겹살구이

Friday, August 28, 2020

 

Ingredients

(for 4 servings)
3 pounds of pork belly (fresh or pre-sliced frozen)

Green onion salad (pajeori):

• 14-16 green onions (about 5 cups), sliced thinly
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 2 tablespoon hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)

Doenjang-gochujang dipping sauce (my special kind of ssamjang I make for samgyeopsal-gui):

• ¼ cup doenjang
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tablespoon gochujang
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

Vegetables:

• 1 bunch of lettuce, washed and drained
• 2 dozens of perilla leaves (optional), washed and drained
• 2 carrots, cut into bite size sticks
• 1 English cucumber, cut into bite size sticks
• 7-8 green chili peppers, chopped
• a dozen of raw garlic, sliced
• 1 large onion, cut across into ¼ size pieces

Directions

1. Slice pork belly into bite sized pieces. Put it on a large plate and keep it in the refrigerator.

Make green onion salad

1. Soak shredded green onion in cold water for 5 minutes. Rinse and drain.
2. Combine soy sauce, sugar, sesame seeds, toasted sesame oil, and hot pepper flakes in a small bowl. Mix well and set aside.
3. Portion the green onion into small serving bowls, and put some sauce on top of each. Set aside.

Make ssamjang (dipping sauce)

1. Combine soybean paste, hot pepper paste, sugar, green onion, garlic, sesame seeds, and toasted sesame oil in a bowl and mix well. Set aside.

Prepare vegetables:

From the left: onion, garlic, green chili peppers, cucumber, carrot, and perilla leaves

How to cook:

1. Heat up your grill plate or pan. Put a little toasted sesame oil on the hot plate for flavor.
2. Cover the grill plate with pork belly. Grill them and turn them over when the bottoms get a little crispy. Keep cooking and turning them over until both sides are crispy.
3. As the pieces get ready to eat, take them off the grill and put them on a small side plate. People can take the pieces from this plate, or if they’re too hungry they can take them right off the grill!
4. Eat, but keep cooking!

Doenjangjjigae (Korean fermented bean paste stew: 된장찌개)

Kongnamulmuchim (Soybean sprout side dish: 콩나물무침)

How to eat:

1. Put a piece of lettuce on a plate or in your hand. Add a piece of perilla leaf and a piece of cooked pork.
2. Add ssamjang, cooked onion or garlic, and some green onion salad on top.
3. Fold the lettuce leaf over so you have a little package.
4. Pop it into your mouth in one shot. Don’t bite it in half, it will break open! One-shot!

Blistered Korean Peppers

Blistered Korean Peppers

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Kimchi Soondubu Jjigae - Kimchi Tofu Soup

Kimchi Soondubu Jjigae - Kimchi Tofu Soup

This warming and comforting soondubu jjigae is made with extra soft tofu, soondubu, thinly sliced meat, kimchi and anchovy broth. It takes less than 30 minutes to prepare this bubbling pot of stew packed with robust flavors!

Ingredients

• 1 package 12 ounces sundubu (extra soft/silken tofu)
• 1/3 cup thinly sliced kimchi
• 3 ounces pork or beef
• 1 to 3 teaspoons red chili pepper flakes gochugaru- add more for a spicier stew
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil use a little more if using more gochugaru
• 1 cup water or anchovy broth See note
• 2 to 3 tablespoons juice from kimchi
• 1/2 teaspoon saewujeot (salted shrimp) or salt to taste
• pinch black pepper
• 1 scallion, finely chopped
• 1 egg - optional

For the best results, always use fully fermented kimchi to cook with. If you have some salted shrimp (saewujeot, 새우젓) leftover from making kimchi, use a little to season the stew instead of using salt. It adds a nice layer to the flavor of the soft tofu stew.

I like to use anchovy broth as a stew base, which is typical, but you can use any other broth or water.

This recipe combines kimchi and pork, a classic match. Feel free to use beef, chicken, or seafood and switch out the pork. Mushrooms are a good substitute if you don’t like meat. If you start with vegan kimchi, you can even make the stew vegan. 

Soondubu jjigae is often served with a raw egg to be cracked in to the boiling hot stew at the table. The egg adds richness to the stew, but you don’t need to add an egg if you don’t want to. It’s a matter of preference.  

Instructions

• Cut the meat and kimchi into small thin strips. Add the kimchi, meat, red chili pepper flakes, garlic and sesame oil to a small pot, and place it over medium heat.
  
• Stir-fry until the meat is almost cooked, 3 - 4 minutes.
  
• Pour in water (or broth) and the juice from the kimchi. Bring it to a boil, and continue to boil for 3 - 4 minutes. Skim off the scum.
  
• Add the soft tofu in big chunks. Stir in the salted shrimp or salt to taste (start with 1/4 teaspoon) and black pepper. Cook for 4 -5 minutes. Add the chopped scallion just before removing the pot from the heat. If desired, crack an egg into the stew to serve while it’s still boiling hot.
  

  Notes

  Water is fine for this stew, but use anchovy broth for an extra layer of flavor. 

Sunday Lunch - Korean Feast

Sunday Lunch - Korean Feast

Sunday, April 19, 2020

Tofu Light House Lunch

Tofu Light House Lunch

Saturday, December 1, 2018