The Pajeon Princess

Restaurant review - Moksuidona, Apgujeong (먹쉬돈나)

2010-06-13T09:06:00.000-07:00

Tteokbokki Heaven - Moksuidona, Apgujeong (먹쉬돈나), Seoul

I am lucky in that due to having a boyfriend who is Korean I often get to go to places that other foreigners don't hear about. I've been to Itaewon and had amazing samgyopsal and been the only white person there, just a few back streets away from the largest foreigner area in the city.

I had been hearing rumours through Korean friends about the best place to eat tteokbokki in Seoul, where people routinely queue for 30 minutes outside to get a table. Finally last week I got to try it out. Moksuidona has 2 branches, one in Gangnam and the other in Apgujeong, which is where I visited. In case you don't know what tteokbokki is, its a delicious spicey dish made with rice cake and pepper paste, beloved of school kids and often enjoyed as a street snack.

This restaurant specialises in tteokbokki and it cooks in front of you on the table on a gas stove rather than being served already cooked on plates as is the normal style. On the menu you can select various kinds, for example cheese tteokbokki (its good), seafood tteokbokki etc.... for only 3,500 KRW per person and then there is an list of extras which you can also ask to be thrown in too eg ramyon, odeong, mandu, etc - so its a bit like mix and match tteokbokki. And its DELICIOUS. The sauce is not too thick and its spicey but not enough to stop you breathing (unlike the chokomi octopus I ate at the weekend. ouch)

We chose haemul 해물 떡볶이(sea food tteokbokki) and 치스 떡볶이 (cheese tteokbokki) and ordered 못난이 and 김말이 as extras which are a bit like kind of dumplings, one of which has glass noodles inside (당면).

You are unlikely to see any foreigners in this place unless their Korean friends have brought them. Not only was the food delicious but the service was very friendly. We were there on a Sunday evening and therefore were able to get a table straight away -I recommend this kind of timing unless you don't mind queueing.

To get there, go to Apgujeong station on the orange line (line number 3), exit 3, walk straight , past CGV cinema and then turn level. You will find it down that street on the right.

Address:
먹쉬돈나, 서울시 강남구 신사동 600-5
Tel: 02-545-8089

Long time no see

2010-06-01T08:40:00.000-07:00

Wow it's been about a year since I updated my blog. As I hunted for ways to get back to Korea it took a back seat. A lot has happened in the last year. Good, bad, weird....but I am finally back in Korea studying for a masters degree and getting someone else to pay for it. Nice!

Right now should be a strange time to make a blog post. Its 3.15am in the morning and I am up studying for next week's exam hell - 4 exams and a presentation. No mercy. In fact someone told me there is no Korean word for mercy. Not sure if that's true. I am in a hazy half dream world. My brain is constantly drifting from the finer points of international law to more immediately pertinent issues like what am I going to eat at the weekend?

So before I get my arse back into gear and share some of the recipes I learnt in my long absence, I want to delight you with some images of some of my recent food experiences. Never let it be asked why I live in this wonderful country.... and writing my blog again feels like putting on a lovely, warm, familiar fur coat which has been sat in the wardrobe all year, waiting for me.

King of Crabs: Ilsan, Korea 2009

2009-06-25T23:38:00.001-07:00

Two weeks in Korea = Food Heaven!

So I will start with the seafood.........

King Crab

I had never tried King Crab before so was pretty excited about this. We stopped off in Ilsan (a city just North of Seoul) on our way back from the Imjin river and found a place that only sells crab. Its a pretty usual thing in Korea for the resturant to specialise in a particular type of food - so the question asked is often "what do you want to eat?" rather than "which restaurant do you want to go to?".

Anyway, so there is a guy at the front of the place who is the "tank man". He helps you choose one of the huge crabs swimming around in the big fish tank there. Well I say swimming. Wriggling would be a more accurate description since the poor things hardly have any space to move.

He then fishes it out and gives it to the restuarant who will cook it up for you. We sat down and were served an assortment of seafood related side dishes and within 10 minutes we had our freshly steamed crab in front of us cut up into sections. For anyone who has seen the Lost Boys, I was reminded of Michael's Texas Chainsaw Massacre comment when he opens the door to his grandfather's taxidermny workshop. Just check out the picture and you'll see what I mean!

Ok so it doesn't look pretty. But it was delicious. They give you a pair of scissors to cut open the shell and the meat comes out in big soft, white, tender chunks rather than the flakey meat of smaller species. You can dip in the hot sauce of course, although I prefer mine pure. Eaten with plum wine is great as it compliments the flavour.

I will try anything once, so I when the waitress took the crab away and brought it back with the brains mixed up with fried rice, I gave it a go. Not for me. Too bitter and worse is the knowledge of what it is. I think a few more attempts and I might get over the psychological barrier (as an ex-vegetarian of 11 years I now eat pigs trotters (Chokbal)without too much trouble which is an achievement!)

Yum, just thinking about it is making me hungry. hmm what do I have in the cupboard? Ah. baked beans. oh well.

Choices choices

2009-06-25T23:32:00.000-07:00

Apologies to my small gathering of readers for my long absence. The big issues in life, and also moving house to a tiny kitchen sharing with 5 other people had somewhat put pay to my cooking whims.

Two weeks ago I returned from my third trip to Korea. The first trip was in 2005-6 teaching english, the second in 2007 for a holiday. But this one was pretty special for a few reasons. Firstly I visited Jeju Island off the South Coast which, contrary to some reports I had heard was stunning. Lush, green with volcanic rock formations and a beautiful coast I really couldn't fault it. Added to which I went on my own and found friends there at the guesthouse, and since one of these people was born on the island and knew the place like the back of his hand we all toured the island together.

Also this trip was special because I had to decide something really major. Can I live here again? Can I give up a life in the UK and make one here? This isn't an easy decision to make once you have embarked on a career and not one to be taken lightly. There are plus point and negative points in all places, it's just a question of balancing these with what your fundamental needs and ambitions are. Months of mental wrangling eventually led me to one conclusion. I had to go and visit again first.

I think the answer came to me in the first week of being in Korea. It was about 11pm and I was sat in the office of my Hapkido master's dojang chatting with his wife and playing with their baby daughter. My master had finished training for the night and he was using chiropractic technique to straighten out Ha Kyung's bad back while we sat and drank tea. I realised that I couldn't remember the last time I felt so at peace. It was like going back in time, like the last three years never happened. Some connections are never broken. After that, we went to a restaurant where we stayed, talking about hapkido, the world, everything until 6.30am. At the end of the day all anyone wants is to feel that they belong somewhere, and in Korea I am never alone.

Silly perhaps but there it is. And damn it I'll finally learn to speak Korean and cook Korean properly with any luck.

ok so back to the food.... my foody review of my trip is coming up in the next day.

Fried Tofu

2008-10-16T13:45:00.000-07:00

Ok I stunned myself when I cooked this tonight. It was totally yum and it's my own recipe. I have had a go at it before but not been so impressed with the result. This evening, I first consulted the Lee Wade book on Korean Cookery and as often happens with that book the ingredients and instructions combined simply do not add up to what is in the picture so I hurled it aside in frustration and improvised.

Pictures soon I promise...I was too busy eating it to think about photographing it this time.

Ingredients

half a block of tofu cut into one inch long and 1 cm thick pieces

soy sauce

approx 1 tablespoon sesame oil

approx 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil

sea salt

quarter of a spoon of dwaenjang

a few pinches of sesame seeds

1 small spring onion

Directions

Cut the spring onion into diamond shape slices and put to one side

Mix about 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and the dwaenjang together in a small bowl. You might need to add a tiny amount of hot water to the paste to get it mixed, depending on how solid it is.

Heat a small amount of sesame oil and olive oil together in a small frying pan.

Fry the tofu for about 5-10 minutes, turning ocassionally until it is well browned on both sides. Sprinkle a bit of sea salt on ocassionally. Once it is almost done, pour about half a tablespoon of soy sauce into the pan and as it sizzles away, move the tofu pieces through it.

Arrange the tofu pieces on a plate in an attractive manner. Add a bit more salt depending on how much you like ( I like mine quite salty). Sprinkle the spring onion on top and then drizzle the soy sauce and dwaejang mixture over the top (put a bit on first...then add more if, having tasted it you want more). sprinkle a few sesame seeds over the top. Voila, a yummy side dish or snack!

Sheer beauty on a plate. ^^

Aiiigo!

Dwenjang Chigae (Soya bean soup)

2008-10-15T12:40:00.000-07:00

Dwenjang is the DADDY of korean soups. One of the most famous of Korea's soups, its super easy to throw together using what ever items you happen to have in the cupboard and its really healthy. Cheap, healthy and yum..it doesn't get much much than this does it? Its perfect for when you get home from work and want to sort something out quickly. The base soup is also vegetarian although you can add fish and meat if you want to.

Are you sold?!! I damn well hope so because dwaenjang rocks. Can't comprehend my irrational love of soup? Ermmm. Yeh me neither.

So I have seen a lot of dwaejang recipes right? Just google it and you'll find tons. Different ingredients everytime which might leave you wondering if it really is a kind of soup on its own. Well, the beauty of it is while there are a few pretty much essential ingredients, you can be flexible after that and add the things you like in the quantities you like. Therefore I am going to be a rebel and depart from the usual recipe format ie insistence that you have a strict list of ingredients and instead I list core ingredients and suggested optionals. Kind of a pick n mix salad bar idea really.

This recipe is sufficient for one person as a main dish (with rice of course) and perfect as a sidedish in a meal for say three or four people.

Ingredients

Core Ingredients

about 4 cups of water - or enough to fill most of a black Korean cooking (see picture)

If you are boiling the rice as opposed to using a rice cooker, do the rice first and save the water you cooked it in...it is common in Korea to do this and then use the water for soup...plus it's more energy efficient.

roughly 1 and a half large table spoon of dwaenjang

1 teaspoon gojuchang

1 medium potato cut into 1/2 inch cubes or about 4 baby new potatoes cut into halves

half a small courgette cut into half moon shape slices - I think that they are known as zucchini in the states - a thin green squash (see picture for example) ho pak in Korea

half a block of tofu -cut into slices or cubes

half a small onion

sea salt

sesame oil

one piece of ta shi ma seaweed (if you don't have any don't worry too much)

Suggested extra ingredients - add however much you think you would like (use your instincts)
shredded chinese cabbage
anchovies
shell fish eg clams or mussels - very commonly used in Korea
sliced beef -fry first before adding to soup
chillis -sliced - This is one of my favourite extras - but I like my soup with a kick
mushrooms of varying types -shitake especially recommended (and the long thin mushrooms - enochi)
a few pinches of gochugaru red chilli powder - again, this will hot it up
1 spring onion/green onion/yang pa (same same) sliced - if you add it, either do it right at the end or just sprinkle on top for decoration
fried pork pieces

Directions

Put the water in the bowl and bring to the boil. If you are using the ta shi ma, put it in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes with a few anchovies if you have them. Then take the ta shi ma out but leave the anchovies.

Add the gochugaru (if you are using it) and and the potatoes. Let it cook for about 4 -5 mins - you need to give the potatoes a chance to soften up a bit but not too much.

Add the onion and the courgette/squash and a dash of sesame oil and pinch of salt.

Stir in the dwaenjang and the gochujang.

Add whatever other ingredients you are going to (unless I say above to add them at the end) and let the soup bubble away for about another 5 minutes, adding the tofu a few minutes before serving.

Serve with rice and kimchi.

Lovely jubbly.

Le Grand Chef

2008-10-05T13:53:00.000-07:00

This movie is a must see for anyone interested in Korean food, and its also a thoroughly enjoyable story. The story is based on a manga series and follows the fortunes of two rival chefs battling it out in a cookery competition to win a rusty sushi knife (yeh go figure).

It's pretty easy to tell who is going come off better from the start (just look at the picture and work it out if you don't believe me!) but its enjoyable along the way, and full of intricate, and beautifully presented food. Your mouth will quite literally be watering afterwards. There are some fun sub plots and also some genuinely sad moments that are handled in the film with beautiful sensitivity.

You can see it on the mysoju.com website although of course if you have access to it by buying it you should do that (ahem).

Ingredient Notes 1: Key items for the cupboard

2008-09-29T14:21:00.000-07:00

So this will be an ongoing post, starting small and growing (I hope) into a useful guide on items to keep stocked up on if you plan on doing a fair bit of K Cuisine. I'm putting photos up so that when I start referring to "myol chi this" or "go ju that" you will be able to check back here and see what I am referring to...

Above. Left: Myol Chi (fish sauce), Centre: Korean soy sauce,
Right: 2 bae yang jo shik cho (double fermented vinegar)

Above: Left: Mat Kimchi, Right: Go ju Jang red sauce

Above: Dwaen Jang (Soya bean paste)

Above: Gochu garu red chilli powder

Cham kirum (Korean sesame oil)

OK. Pay close attention to the two pictures above: top one: Da shi da (fish powder) bottom one: Da shi ma (type of seaweed). Similar names (you can see from the names on the packet even if you don't read Hangul) but totally different products .....both of them I recommend you keep in the cupboard.

Oi Kimchi (Cucumber Kimchi) 오이 김치

2008-09-23T12:35:00.000-07:00

This kind of kimchi is spicey but at the same time you get the freshness of the cucumber which is lovely.

I originally tried the recipe that is in Lee Wade's book Korean Cookery which was published back in the 1970s. This book has been brilliant for me as it has given me a starting point from which to explore Korean recipes. Lee Wade was an American lady who learned Korean cookery while she was working as a librarian for the Eighth US Army Recreation Services in Seoul from a lady called Kim Samsun. Tragically she died in her thirties and her book was finished off by a friend. That is all I can find out about her, but her detailing of the ingredients involved in Korean cookery is such a valuable aid. On the other hand some of the quantities in the book are rather strange when you come to make them.

Ooops...back to the kimchi. I mention quantities because Wade's book says use 10 cucumbers!!!! 10 frickin cucumbers? Forget it. Unless they are pigmi cucumbers or you are planning to feed the korean five thousand. The thing with oi kimchi is that it does not stay fresh for long. So make it and eat it...otherwise the cucumber goes soggy.

This recipe will make enough to use as a side dish for a meal with say 4 people.

Ingredients

1 large cucumber

sea salt - unground - about enough just to go in the palm of your hand
this is the type of salt you would put into a grinder. If you only have finely ground salt it doesn't matter too much.

4 cloves of garlic chopped finely

2 small green onions sliced diagonally so you get nice diamond shaped pieces (see picture at the bottom of the page for an example)

roughly 1 small handful of Korean red chilli powder - change according to taste

1/2 teaspoon of fresh finely chopped ginger

1/2 teaspoon of sugar

1 teaspoon of fish sauce - (myol chi sauce)
Don't be tempted to add any more than this

salt to taste

Directions

Cut the cucumber horizontally into 2 inch long pieces and then then vertically through each circular piece to halve it. Then cut thse in half one more time so you have chunky 2 inches sticks. There is another way you can cut which is to not totally cut through the sections - make cross slits in them instead and then you can stuff the mixture inside.

Rub the unground sea salt into the cucumber pieces and then leave them in a bowl for 2 hours to soften up and take in the salt.

In the meantime, make a separate mixture with the green onions, red chilli powder, garlic and ginger. Add fish sauce and sugar. Also add salt to taste. You need it to be a bit salty but not too much because the cucumbers already have salt on.

After the 2 hours is up rinse the cucumbers in a little cold water (not too much you don't want to lose the flavour) and then add them to the mixture rubbing it into the cucumber. Taste it and if it needs more chilli or anything else, then add some at this point.

Put the mixture into a small container with a lid on so that the mixture and the cucumber is tightly packed together and then leave it in the fridge at least overnight.

Then voila....a nice lunchtime snack or dinner time side dish for the next day.

The picture below illustrates the way I recommend cutting the green onions..simply because it looks pretty :)

Chapchae (sweet noodles with vegetables and beef) 잡채

2008-09-21T10:43:00.000-07:00

For anyone new to Korean food or if you are cooking for the uninitiated, this is a pretty good dish to start with.

It is a sweet, noodle dish which requires only a few vegetables and often comes with beef, although this can be removed to cater for veggies. It is essentially a side dish but can also be fried up with rice to create a light meal in itself called Chapchae Bap. The noodles are Korean Vermicelli which is a strong, stretchy transparent noodle - I've never seen anything similar to them.

If there is one thing I've learnt about chapchae, it is that, like bulgogi, you can NEVER cook enough of the stuff. Whatever you don't eat the day you make it will always make a nice lunch the next day. If you don't want a complete chapchae fest however, just half my quantities. Also a word on ingredients......the ones I list are suggestions, you can add other vegetables or ommit the ones you don't like.

Ingredients

about 200g of Korean Vermicelli
If you have bought the Ottogi one in the medium yellow packet you are looking at about just over half of this (see bottom of this page for picture).

230g of beef

3-4 table spoons of soysauce

2-3 table spoons of sesame oil

some vegetable oil for cooking

1 heaped table spoon of sugar

3 tea spoons of salt

pinch of black pepper

1 cup of cooked spinach
To achieve this you will need to cook at least 7 big handfuls of fresh spinach in boiling water for about 1 minute

1 large carrot cut into very thin match sticks

7 thin green onions cut into one inch long pieces
or the equivalent depending on the size of green onion you have

1 shallot (small onion) chopped finely

4 shitake/pyogo mushrooms

7 neutari or oyster mushrooms

4 white button mushrooms

mushrooms - use what ever you can get your hands on! If you can find some other varieties as well or instead such as mogi (jew's ear) and songi (pine mushroom) then go for it.

Directions

Cut the beef into thin strips - if you can use beef that is part frozen this will assist.

Add the sesame oil to the pan and heat gently on a very low setting. Add the beef and cook gently for a few minutes until it looks cooked on the outside but is not over done. Add the sugar, soy sauce, salt and black pepper and let the mixture cook on a low heat for about 4 minutes. When it is done, put it to one side, or transfer it into a bowl if you need to use the pan again.

Cook the noodles in boiling water for the length of time shown on the packet - about 6 minutes should do it, but keep checking. Add a little soy sauce and sesame oil to the water to give colour, flavour and stop the noodles from sticking together. They can be a bit of a pain to get in the pan because they are quite rigid. What you can do is soak them in some warm water for a while and then cut them into smaller strands. Even when cooked the noodle will be strong. Drain the cooked noodle in a sieve and rinse in cold water. Get your hands in and make sure that as much of the water as possible comes off the noodles. This can then sit to one side until you are ready to combine the ingredients.

Soak the mushrooms in warm water for 10 minutes. If you are using songi mushrooms you need to boil them for a few minutes.

While the mushrooms are soaking, fry together the carrots, green onions and shallots in a little vegetable oil on a low heat for about 7 minutes or until they are soft. You don't want them to brown though...if that happens they will have a slightly burnt flavour...not the end of the world but irritating nonetheless. You probably won't have this problem if you are cooking on gas as you'll have maximum control..unlike my shoddy electric cooker ring.

Transfer the fried vegetables to a bowl and then cut the mushrooms into strips and fry them in a bit of sesame oil on a low heat for about 8-10 minutes or until they look cooked and soft. Again, don't brown them.

Mix all the ingredients together except the sesame oil which you should add last as otherwise it will prevent the noodles soaking up the flavour. Heat the chapchae through before serving. You can eat this cold too so don't freak out if its cooled down by the time it hits the table. You will find that the lengths of noodle are ridiculously long and so you can use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut into the mixture and chop it up a bit.

Yum.

Chapchae= very happy dinner guests

Korean Vermicelli

Gori Gomtang (Oxtail Soup)

2008-09-09T11:43:00.000-07:00

This one is a little special. It isn't really a recipe...more a technique or a skill (trust me..its got like three ingredients)

It is reputably good for stamina if you believe that kind of thing. It is a lovely heart warming broth which is delicious all year round, although I prefer it in the winter when it is freezing outside. It is particularly good comfort food if you have a cold.

Ingredients

5-6 oxtail sections (not tails...its easier to give the amounts in cut sections as this is typically how one would find them in the shops outside of Korea)
You can buy these in butchers shops or supermarkets

a load of spring onions (7 of the english sized ones...if you have access to the korean ones you don't need so many)

water

rice noodles (optional)

Directions

Fill a very large saucepan with cold water. Add the oxtails and leave for 2 hours. A lot of blood will come out (mmm yummy). Once the time is up, take the oxtails out while you get rid of the dirty water and rinse the pan. Put the oxtails back in and then fill the pan so the water is about 4 times the height of the oxtails.

Bring the water to the boil and boil on a high setting for 30 minutes, A lot of fat and oil and dirty looking scum will rise to the top. Spoon this out and get rid of it. Add a little more water to bring the level back up and simmer gently on a low heat for 12-16 hours.

Keep checking the water now and again and keep spooning off the scummy stuff. You will also need to keep topping up the water. The amount of water you end up with determines the flavour of the soup to a certain extent. If there is very little water, the soup won't go very far and will be very greasy but too much water and the soup will lack flavour. You have to experiment to find a happy medium that you prefer.

Add a generous amount of spring onions sliced horizontally so they are like little rings - USE the green bits! British people tend to only use the white section of the onion which is a waste and you don't get that lovely colour.

Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with rice and kimchi. Very important that you eat it with Kimchi because the flavours compliment eachother so well. And kimchi rules. But you know that anyway right? In Korea you will often find this served with rice noodles in it...this is delicious and you can just boil them up very quickly.

Dan Ho Pak Salad (Squash Salad) 단 호박

2008-09-07T11:37:00.000-07:00

This is a gorgeous sweet, slightly sticky but very fresh salad dish that appears in the salad bars of Pizza Hut in Korea. I'm not sure I've yet be able to recreate it quite like it is in Korea but each time I get a little closer. I will post a picture soon as I'm about to make it again.

You can eat it straight away but I find that if you leave it overnight its better the next day, and the texture is nice and firm. This is a great summer side dish, but can be eaten at anytime....and is especially good along side pizza!!

This recipe will do as a side dish in a meal for 4 people and uses half a squash. However, as I wouldn't want you to waste the other half, you can easily double everything up and then eat it over a few days.

Ingredients

1/2 Korean Ho Pak squash (don't panic..you can use butternut squash too!)

I have always had to make this with butternut squash in England because of the difficulty with getting Korean squash. I scanned country markets in autumn for various squashes and while finding some pretty weird and wonderful squashes (which in my humble opinion are completely underrated) I never found a ho pak until I moved to London. Now I can get one by driving 15 minutes to New Malden (or New Maldong as it is affectionately known).

1/2 a small red pepper - diced into small pieces

2 spring onions/green onions chopped finely

I prefer not to have too much of the darker green bit of the onion in this recipe though

1 small tin of sweetcorn (approx 100g) drained

You need at least 1 tin but I would have another on standby incase you like more corn - you can pretty much fill your boots with the corn

1 table spoon of golden syrup (or corn syrup - but you probably won't get that in England)

roughly 2 level table spoons of mayonnaise

Directions

Seed the squash and, leaving the skin on, cut it into thick slices, all of the same size. Steam the squash slices until they are soft BUT not in any way mushy. It still needs to have a firmness. If it goes mushy, the salad will be too soft - if this happens let it chill in the fridge for an extra day before you eat it and it should firm up a bit. 10 minutes steaming will probably be fine.

Let it cool down and then cut the slices into chunks. If there are any bits of really nobbly skin that you don't think you would be able to eat then this is a good opportunity to cut them off. Put the chunks into a glass bowl.

Put the onions, peppers, corn, mayonnaise, syrup into the bowl on top of the squash chunks. Now mash the mixture with the back of a metal spoon until it is mashed together but still a bit chunky. Too much mashing and it will go too smooth.

Taste it and add more syrup or mayo if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Jin Bang 진 빵 (steamed buns with redbean paste)

2008-09-06T10:44:00.000-07:00

Its a pleasure to present a guest blog here from my good friend Ben with his recipe for Jin Bang. Ben is possibly the best cook I know, and I am always bowled over by the dishes he manages to construct...and I am always a willing guinea pig! He is also becoming somewhat of a Korean culinary pro so I look forward to further guest blogs from him........

Jin Bang (steamed buns with red bean paste)

Ingredients:

Red bean Paste:
1 ½ cup dry adzuki beans
Sugar to taste.
Touch of salt (optional)

Starter:
1 tbsp active dry yeast (or a British fast action yeast packet)
1 tsp white sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼cup warm water

Dough:
½cup warm milk
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
½ tsp baking powder

Supplies:
Bamboo steamer (or some kind of vegetable steamer)
Baking Paper

Yield: about 15 buns.

Instructions:

Bean Paste:

This is best done in advance. If you have access to a Japanese or Korean shop, you may be able to buy sweet red bean paste or pre-cooked adzuki beans. Otherwise get some dried red beans, measure them out into a saucepan, cover with plenty of cold water, and let them soak for about 8 hours. Drain the beans, replace the water, and bring to the boil. Reduce the temperature and let simmer for about an hour, or until they have softened and are just past al dente. Drain again. Add a few tablespoons of sugar to the pan (you may need to add more to taste), let the sugar warm up with the beans. Now use an immersion blender to make a paste. You may find the beans need a little water added for a pliable paste. Mix in a touch of salt to taste if desired. Let cool. This will probably make more bean paste than you need for the bun recipe, so make less if desired.

Dough:

Get two mixing bowls - one small bowl for activating the starter and another large one for making the dough. Start by measuring out the dry ingredients listed under dough, except the baking powder. Put them into the large bowl and mix together with a fork. Set to one side.
Next prepare the starter. In the small bowl, mix together the ¼ cup warm water, the ¼ cup flour, yeast and sugar for the starter. The warm water should be warm to the touch but not hot. Cover the starter loosely and put it someplace warm to activate. In about ten to twenty minutes the starter will have become quite foamy .

Get the bowl with the dry ingredients for the dough. Make a well in the center and add the oil and starter. Start slowly incorporating the flour. Add the warm water or milk a little at a time. You should end up with fairly moist dough. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface and kneed until it is quite smooth. The longer you do this the better the texture of the buns; I’d say 10 minutes. Roll the dough into a ball. Grease your large mixing bowl with vegetable oil. Lightly rub some more oil on the outside of your dough bowl. Put the dough in, cover, and let rise for one to two hours or until it has doubled in size.

Making the buns:

Punch down the dough with the back of your fist, and then spread it on the lightly floured working surface. Sprinkle the baking powder evenly over it and then knead it for five minutes. Then put half of the dough back in the bowl and cover it again, and pull off bits of the dough you still have out and shape them into spheres. Flatten these with the palm of your hand or a rolling pin. Put a rounded teaspoonful (or a little more) of red bean paste on each one, and gently pinch the dough together to form the bottom of the bun. You can put these on squares of baking paper so they don’t stick to your steamer. You should end up with about a six to eight rolls from half of the dough. Take out the other half of the dough and do the same thing. Then cover the rolls - a deep pan will do, as will a "tent" made out of plastic wrap and four tall glasses - and let them rise for another half hour.

Whilst the buns rise, get a bamboo steamer or some other kind of steamer. Bring the water to the boil. Take the risen buns and put them in the steamer (you may have to cook more than one batch depending on the size of the steamer). Put the steamer over the water and reduce to a simmer. Steam for 15 minutes or until firm.

Let the buns cool for a few minutes and enjoy.

From Ben (www.elrohil.blogspot.com)

Bulgogi 불고기 (Sweet Beef)

2008-08-01T02:08:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favourite ways to eat beef. It is not complicated to make either, although you need a few hours for it to marinade. This is one of the best things to cook if you are introducing someone to Korean cookery because its not too unusual in flavour or appearence.

This recipe is a combination of a few that I have found in various places, with my own changes too.

Serves about 4 people as a side dish. Quantities are approximate!

Ingredients

1 pound of beef

I have successfully used a variety of cuts before. Sirloin Steak is the best however, although more expensive. A word on quantities..... if in doubt about how much you need, go for more rather than less because meat shrinks when you cook it, and I never seem to cook enough of this stuff when I make it.

1 Kiwi, with skins removed and roughly chopped

I read that you can also use a Fuji apple but I have never tried it. You can get fuji apples in Korean stores in England and also sometimes in supermarkets (referred to on the packet as snacking apples). But I would just buy Kiwi, as you can get those anywhere and it adds a lovely sweet taste to the marinade.

3 tablespoons of sesame oil

I have English sesame oil which is fine. My boyfriend says that Korean sesame oil is better and has a slightly different flavour but it is pricey if you live in England.

3 green onions/spring onions

1 small onion - roughly sliced

1/4 cup of soy sauce

When I say cup I mean small cup. Use Korean or Japanese soy sauce, not Chinese. Japanese soy (eg Kikkoman) is pretty easy to source most places and does fine....I use it a lot.

sugar - add to taste, but probably about a tablespoon

garlic - 2 cloves

black pepper - a dash or two

Directions

Firstly, slice the beef really thin with a lovely sharp knife, taking care of course not to slice your finger as I once did with some onions. As thin as you can, even if it seems to fall apart. I read in one recipe that you can freeze it and then defrost a little and slice it. I have never tried this myself and I don't think it's necessary unless you are really obssesed with getting it that thin.

Put the sliced meat into a glass mixing bowl, sprinkle sugar over it (probably about 1 tea spoon) and mix it it with your hands...don't go over board with the sugar. You can always add more later.

Finely chop up the garlic. Chop the spring onions. I prefer to cut them horizontally in the white part so that you have little circles and then vertically in the green part into 1 inch pieces. Add the chopped onion and garlic to the meat/sugar mixture.

Prepare the marinade by putting the onion and kiwi into a blender and blending until it becomes a liquid.Put that in a bowl on its own.

Mix together the soy sauce, remaining sugar, sesame oil and black pepper. Then taste it. It should be slightly salty but sweet too. If it is too salty, add more sugar.

Put all the mixtures in with the meat and mix well...again with your hands - it gets it properly mixed and feels nice and messy!

If possible leave this in the fridge to marinade overnight. If that is not an option, try and give it at least a few hours. It does improve the flavour. I have made it all and cooked it in one go beore and it was OK but not as good.

When you are ready to cook, simply cook in a frying pan on a low/medium heat for a few minutes - depending on how rare you like your beef and serve hot. You don't need to add oil to the pan when you cook it.

What to eat it with - I usually do this as a side dish with rice dishes where there are salad leaves that you can wrap the meat and rice up in. However, it has a gentle, sweet flavour and would go with most things that you want to cook. If you make enough of it you can use it as a main dish.

Enjoy!!

Welcome!

2008-07-11T15:27:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my Korean cookery blog!

After talking about it for weeks I finally have a page!

Why Korean cookery? Because its absolutely my favourite kind of food. Its clean, healthy (well mostly!), light, and full of flavours and is a contrast to the stodginess of much British cookery. That stodginess was what I was used to before I spent 9 months in Korea a few years back. I think its fair to say my stomach has never been the same since.

The best thing about Korean food for me is SIDE DISHES. One of the most exciting parts of visiting a Korean restaurant for me is seeing what variety of little dishes come out after you order. It a bit like Korean tapas.

The reasons I am making a blog? ....well I would like to be good at Korean cookery and during that process to collect in one place and share with others, recipes that I have found, been given, changed and put together.

Korean cookery in general is time consuming. That I have already discovered. For me, that is OK. Its part of the art of creating something special. That said, there are some simple and quick things that can be thrown together very easily.

This is not a site for Korean food purists...I am a pure beginner. I also live in London and have to source alternative ingredients where the originals are not available. Fortunately I live in New Malden, the Korean area of London/Surrey where I have access to a proper Korean supermarket, and a few really good restaurants.

Anyway, time I added some recipes!

Claire

Beef Galbi and side dishes at restaurant in Osan City, South Korea