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Kimchi Dumpling – Cooking with Momma

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Kimchi Dumpling. Most people first learn how to cook from their mom. It was the same for me. One of the vivid cooking memories I still have is making Kimchi Dumplings with my mom.

Kimchi Dumplings

She woke me up from bed – nagging at me that it was 10:30 already! She told me to wash my hands and help her squeeze the water out of a tofu block. I remember being annoyed – with sleep leftover in my eyes. I would effortlessly squeeze the water out and then stand by her side as she mixed it into the dumpling mixture.

My next task was then to help my mom fold the dumpling skins. She showed me once. But I could never get it right. The meat mixture would always be seeping out the sides. And they didn’t look too appetizing. But I remember sitting down in a sun-lit kitchen with my mom, making these dumplings and talking about random things for hours.

Kimchi Dumpling is a labor of love – an experience which you may remember in the future. Not necessarily because of how tasty the dish is, but because it gives you the time to talk and connect. I share below a simple but delicious recipe that you can try with a loved one.

Kimchi Dumplings
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Kimchi Dumplings

Kimchi Dumplings are delicious snack to eat in between meals. Requires some work (and alot of love). But the end result will make you smile. 
Course: Medium
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • 60 Dumpling Skins

Dumpling Mix

  • Kimchi - 1 cup
  • Minced pork - 1 cup
  • Korean sweet potato noodles - 1 cup
  • Asian garlic chives - 1/2 cup
  • Spring onion - 1/2 cup

Seasoning

  • Korean red chili flakes - 2 Tablespoons
  • Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
  • Sugar - 1 Tablespoon
  • Oyster sauce - 1 Tablespoon
  • Soy sauce - 2 Tablespoon

Dipping Sauce

  • Soy sauce - 2 Tablespoons
  • Vinegar - a splash
  • Sesame oil - a splash
  • Sesame seeds - a shake

Instructions

Make Dumpling Mixture

  • Chop kimchi into very small pieces. Make sure the pork is finely minced pork with your knife.
  • Cut asian chives and spring onion into small pieces as well.
  • Then grab a large handful of Korean glass noodles and boil in a pot for 7 minutes. Drain the pot and rinse the boiled noodles in cold water. Chop the long noodles into small pieces as well. Place all of these chopped pieces into a bowl.

Season Dumpling Mixture

  • Add all of the listed "seasoning" ingredients into the mixture.
  • Then mix it all together very thoroughly with your hands.

Make Dumplings

  • Fill a small dish with cold water.
  • Then get a dining spoon. Grab one spoonful of the dumpling mixture and place into the middle of the dumpling skin.
  • Dip your finger in the water and wet the outer edge of the dumpling skin.
  • Fold the dumpling in half and squeeze it shut with your fingers (like a mini-quesadilla). Then make two creases on each side of the dumplings (watch the video again!). Finish by making one fold in the top-center.
  • Repeat until you run out of dumpling skins.

Pan-frying

  • Put frying pan on medium-low heat. Place oil in frying pan. Once hot, place dumplings in.
  • Once the bottom-side gets crispy, lay on one side. Once it gets crispy on one side, then flip over to the opposite side.
  • Let it cool down and enjoy! Dip dumplings in soy sauce as well.

Notes

  • This will make around 50-60 dumplings. Sounds like alot - but they get eaten quickly! Instead of pan-frying the dumplings, you can also use them in a soup.
  • Watch video below for more details

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Chuseok Jeon (Dongtaejeon, Pasanjeok)

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Chuseok is Korean Thanksgiving. During Chuseok, Koreans families head back to their hometowns in Korea. It creates a mini-exodus every year – especially in Seoul. The major highways get extremely congested – creating traffic nightmares. Trust me, I get stuck in 5+ hours traffic congestions, almost every year. Everyone is an rush to rendezvous with their extended families and spent time together as one.

Chuseok Jeon

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During Chuseok, families will typically hold a memorial service for their ancestors. This has been done for thousands of years in Korea (and is not tied to religion, belief, etc.) It is a sign of reverence and a way to honor those who have come before you. One part of this ceremony is setting up a large table with specially prepared foods (shown below). Note the positioning of each food. Typically, rice and soup are placed in the north. Fruits and vegetables are placed south of the table. And in the west or middle, meat dishes are served. This changes by region. For example, in my family, we place food by each horizontal row (i.e. the first horizontal row is reserved for rice and soup, last row for fruits and vegetables.)

Chuseok Table - Wikipedia

[Chuseok Table – Wikipedia]

Thus, a large part of Chuseok is preparing food as a family. At my grandmother’s place, I am usually put in charge of the Chuseok jeon (Korean pancakes). This year, I wanted to share our family recipe with you (our neighbors!). That way, I can also do a practice round before the actual holiday. My grandma tells me every year that it could look “prettier”. Sigh – somethings never change 😉

Chuseok Jeon
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Chuseok Jeon

The Pasanjeok and the Dongtaejeon are among the popular types of Korean pancakes made during Korean Thansgiving. 
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

Pasanjeok Pancake

  • Bell pepper - 1/4 of a whole use a red and yellow
  • Green onion - 4-5 stalks
  • Oyster mushrooms - handful
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 4
  • Skirt steak - 150 grams
  • Toothpicks - 10-15
  • Korean pancake mix - 1/2 cup all-purpose flour ok too

Beef Marinade

  • Soy sauce - 3 Tablespoons
  • Sugar - 1.5 Tablespoons
  • Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
  • Sesame oil - 1 Tablespoon
  • Sesame seeds - 1 Tablespoon
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Egg Wash

  • Eggs - 3
  • Salt -few shakes

Dongtaejeon Pancake

  • Frozen Pollock Fillet - 200 grams cod filet is also good
  • Salt - few shakes
  • Black pepper - few shakes
  • Korean pancake mix - 1/2 cup all purpose flour ok too

Dipping Sauce

  • Soy sauce - 2 tablespoon
  • Vinegar - 1 teaspoon
  • Sesame seeds - 1 teaspoon

Instructions

Make Pasanjeok

  • Make the beef marinade by mixing the listed ingredients. Save a 1/3 of the sauce in a separate bowl - we will use it later
  • Place the remaining 2/3 of the sauce in a mixing bowl. Cut skirt steak into a finger's length and place them into the marinade in the mixing bowl.
  • Bring a pot of water to boil. Quickly blanche the Oyster and Shiitake mushrooms for 30 seconds. Give them a quick rinse in cold water. Squeeze out the water from each mushroom. Set Oyster mushroom aside. We will marinate the Shiitake mushrooms.
  • Pour the remaining 1/3 marinade over the Shiitake mushrooms. Set Shiitake mushrooms aside. Then place a frying pan on medium-high heat and quickly sear the beef pieces (no need to cook completely through).
  • Cut bell peppers and spring onion into finger's length. Then cut the marinated Shiitake Mushrooms into similar length.
  • Then place each one of the ingredients onto the toothpick. You can use more-or-less of any specific ingredients - but try to get a nice balance in color.
  • Then set aside each completed pancake for the egg-wash (skip to step 3, when ready to cook)

Make Dongtaejeon

  • Rinse the frozen filet thaw in water. Then set in a bowl and let them dethaw in room temperature.
  • Use paper towels to pat-down the filet pieces and soak up any excess water.
  • Salt and pepper both sides of each piece.
  • Then cut the fillet into thinner, small bite-sized pieces (cut the filet at an angle). Go to next step.

Pan-fry pancakes

  • Put Korean pancake batter (or all-pupose flour!) into a plastic bag. Then place each pancake pieces into the bag and shake it around. Take out each one and make sure to tap-off any extra flour left.
  • Crack three eggs and whisk in a large mixing bowl. Season the egg mixture with a few shakes of salt. Then place each flour-battered pancake (pasanjeok or dongtaejeon) into the egg wash.
  • Place a frying pan on low-heat. Put in plenty of vegetable oil. Once it is hot, place each battered piece into the frying pan. Fry on both sides (a few minutes on each side) until a golden color. Adjust heat as necessary. Dip into soy-sauce and enjoy!

Notes

  • Before you dip the pancakes into the egg wash, give a few gentle taps to get rid off excess flour. A lighter coating tastes much better.
  • Get your frying pan hot and then reduce to a low heat. Cook on a low-heat (or medium-low heat, depending on your stove top). You don't want to burn the egg coating.
  • See video below for more details

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Veggie Nori Wrap – Clean fuel, happy body

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Veggie Nori Wrap is a great idea for a healthy lunch or dinner. I learned this recipe idea from my mom when I was in college.

Veggie Nori Wraps

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It was then (in 2007) when my father learned that he had early signs of diabetes. This news took him by surprise and he vowed to do a 360 change to his diet and lifestyle. In fact, I remember him vowing to never eat white rice or meat any more. I didn’t think he was serious. But amazingly, he did do just that on that day, cutting out meat and rice from his diet 100%. In cold turkey fashion.

10 years later, and he still hasn’t touched meat or white rice. My mom would love when I visited home from college. We immediately went to go eat Korean BBQ together!  For the last decade, my dad ate a variety of whole grain, beans and legumes as his “daily rice”. And he replaced meat with seafood. I am still amazed by his determination and grit! Six months after his transformation, the glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol all returned to normal ranges. He fought off diabetes and stays true to his commitment to this day.

One of the dishes we started to enjoy as a family was this Veggie Nori Wrap. It’s basically gimbap without the rice and meat, and with much more vegetables. I started to really like this dish as it never made me feel too full or bloated after the meal. I felt light on my stomach and high in energy. I thought it would be a good recipe to share with you in case you want to introduce more veggies into your weekly diet.

Veggie Nori Wrap
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Veggie Nori Wrap

Veggie Nori Wraps is a healthy lunch or dinner idea. A go-to recipe for my dad during his transition to a vegetarian lifestyle.
Course: Easy
Servings: 2 persons

Ingredients

  • Gim - 5 sheets
  • Bell pepper - 1/2
  • Red cabbage - Couple layers
  • Avocado - 1
  • Eggs - 3
  • Radish sprouts - pinch of

Dipping sauce

  • Soy sauce - 2 tablespoon
  • Wasabi - a dash

Instructions

Julienne Vegetables

  • Julienne bell peppers, cabbage and avocado into thin strips. Place onto a large plate.
  • Wash radish sprouts and place onto the plate as well.

Make Egg and Gim

  • Crack three eggs into a bowl. Mix thoroughly. Put frying pan on a low heat. Pour mixture in. Flip the egg patty once it has cooked on one side. Then place onto chopping board. Cut into thin strips. Clean out the residual oil from the frying pan with a paper towel.
  • Then place one gim sheet into the pan. You will see the gim slightly shrink and crinkle from the heat. Gently pat down the sheet with a spatula for a 3-5 seconds. Repeat for the other sheets. Cut the sheets with a pair of scissors.

Arrange Plate

  • Pour some soy sauce and wasabi into a small dipping plate. Then arrange all the vegetables.
  • To eat, fill each gim squares with vegetables of your choice. Dip it in soy sauce and enjoy. Bon appetit!

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Kimchi at home – Your First Batch

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Kimchi is the quintessential Korean dish. There are many different types of Kimchi, but the most famous one is Napa Cabbage Kimchi.

Korean Kimchi

You will find this healthy dish in virtually every refrigerator in Korea. It is so important to the culture of Korea that there is even a “Kimchi Index” in Korea. It helps Koreans track the change in price of the main ingredients used in Kimchi – Napa cabbage, chili, radish and anchovies. When the price volatility is high, it makes national headlines.

It seems with the ever-busy lifestyle of Korea, the art of making Kimchi is being lost. It is rare to see families (let alone, single dwellers) to make it at home. Traditionally, a family would schedule a weekend in winter to make a large batch of Kimchi for the year, often using up to 10 Napa cabbages at a time! It is a labor of love.

Today, we show you a simple recipe that you can make at home – using only one head of Napa cabbage. This way, you can sample the flavors, gauge spice level and reduce prep time. Also, it’s okay if you mess up with one cabbage. Big deal – just buy another one! However, if you mess up with a batch of 10 cabbages, chances are you will never try making Kimchi again! Our recipe is simple and has the right balance of Korean flavors

Key taste variable: Time
The taste of the Kimchi will change slightly as you leave it longer in the refrigerator. This is normal and you should try it at its different stages.  Try tasting it fresh – right after you finish coating it with the Kimchi paste. Then sample it after 1 day of sitting out (and fermenting). Then try it cold, after it has had time to chill in the refrigerator. You will notice the flavor get deeper and more concentrated. I think it taste best when it has had some time to sit in the refrigerator for a few days.

Korean Kimchi
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5 from 1 vote

Kimchi - A simple recipe for your first time

Kimchi is spicy, fermented cabbage. A quintessential dish to Korean cuisine. We eat it with just about everything.
Course: Hard
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • Napa cabbage - 1 head
  • Kosher salt or Sea Salt - 1.5 cups Don't use regular dining salt - the salt crystals should be large
  • Korean radish - 2 inch piece
  • Asian Chives - 20 stalks

Kimchi Paste

  • Dashima Kombu - iPhone size piece of
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 4
  • Glutinous rice powder - 2 Tablespoon ok to use all-purpose flour as well
  • Gochugaru Korean red chili flakes - 1 cup
  • Minced garlic - 2 Tablespoon
  • Minced ginger - 1 Tablespoon
  • Anchovy sauce - 1/4 cup
  • Honey - 2 Tablespoon
  • Sugar - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Kosher Salt - 1 Tablespoon

Instructions

Brine Cabbage

  • Cut the Napa cabbage into 4 pieces. Wash thoroughly and get off any dirt - especially near the stems.
  • Fill a large plastic bowl with 6 cups of water. Then add-in 1/2 cup* of kosher salt.
    [*NOTE: In the video, we state to add 1 cup of kosher salt. That's because we purposely didn't stir the water until the salt pieces completely dissolved. Some of our viewers have stirred the water until all of the salt crystals disintegrate - which makes the water too salty! To avoid confusion, we recommend using only 1/2 cup of kosher salt.]
    After adding the 1/2 cup, give the water a few stirs with your hands. (Again, no need to completely dissolve the salt into the water.) Then quickly dip each cabbage piece into the water - just so its wet, don't leave it sitting in the water. Afterwards, set it on a strainer and let it drip-off excess water for a few minutes.
  • Then pour-out 1 cup** of kosher salt - we'll use roughly this amount for the entire 4 cabbage pieces. Now, grab some salt with your fingers and toss it onto each layer of the cabbage - just a few sprinkles for each layer. (Imagine sprinkling salt on an egg - thats the amount you want to put on each layer.) Focus the salt onto the white stems of the cabbage.
    [**NOTE: You do NOT need to sprinkle on the whole 1 cup of salt - okay to use like 3/4 cup and have some leftover (as cabbage sizes are not always the same). Don't over-salt in this stage or your Kimchi will taste too salty]
    Then cover it with a lid (to prevent bugs from getting in) and let it sit in room-temperature for at least 6 hours (or overnight).

Check Cabbage

  • Next day, bend the cabbage stem and check that it doesn't snap. If it does snap, let it sit for longer in the salty water.
  • Drain the cabbage from the brine and wash each layer thoroughly under a running faucet. After one round of washing, wash again! This second wash will help reduce the overall salty flavor from the leaves.
    [IMPORTANT: At this point, taste the cabbage leaf - it should taste slightly-salty, but not overly salty.]
    Wash it again for a third time - if it tastes too salty. 
  • Set the washed cabbage pieces on a strainer and get rid of excess water.

Prep Veggies

  • Peel Korean radish. Then cut each section into thin circles. Then cut each circle into thin match sticks.
  • Cut asian chives into 2 inch sections.

Make Paste

  • Take out a pot and fill with 2 cups of water. Place in 4 Shiitake mushrooms and dashima pieces. Put it on a medium heat and cook for 10 minutes to extract broth. Strain the broth and let it fully cool down. (Note: It is important to let the stock broth cool down completely)
  • When the broth is cooled down, place in the glutinous rice powder (or flour) and mix into the stock. Mix thoroughly to get rid of all clumps. (Note: Don't turn on the heat until you have fully mixed the powder into the stock). Then place the pot onto a medium heat. Keep stirring until the paste thickens up and gets a gravvy-like consistency.
  • Get a large plastic bowl. Put in Gochugaru, minced garlic, minced ginger, anchovy sauce, honey, salt and sugar. Then put-in the paste as well. Give all of the ingredients a good mix.
  • Then put-in the Korean radish and garlic chive pieces as well. Mix veggies in and coat them in the thick paste.

Layering Kimchi

  • Place Kimchi paste on each layer of the cabbage leaf (reference video). Repeat for all 4 cabbage pieces.
  • Place the finished Kimchi pieces into a large Tupperware or large mason jar.
  • Place plastic wrap over the container and poke some holes into it. Let it sit out in room temperature for one day.
  • The next day, you will see bubbles in the kimchi liquid (from the fermentation). Now place the fermenting kimchi in the refrigerator. Let it chill in the refrigerator for a few hours
  • Once the kimchi is cold, chop the cabbage into sections and serve! Enjoy! 

Notes

  • Make sure to cool down the stock soup before placing in the glutinous rice powder. Fully stir in the powder until you see no lumps - then turn on the heat.
  • With each week, the Kimchi will taste more sour as it ferments longer. Kimchi is edible for many months. "Aged" Kimchi is popular in Kimchi Jjigae or Kimchi panackes.
  • If you have any specific questions, leave us a comment.
  • Watch video below for more details.

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Shrimp Tempura – Make it like a Japanese chef

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Shrimp tempura is my favorite type of tempura. And today, I will share with you a Japanese chef’s technique for frying shrimp.

Shrimp TempuraSkip to Recipe

When I lived in Tokyo, I routinely visited this tempura shop late at night for a few grab-n-go snacks. I remember their shrimp tempura batter being very light, crispy and flaky to the touch. I was curious on how they made the batter puff-out so much. Every time I tried to make tempura, the batter would be too thick and overpower the shrimp.

One day, I found out the answer when I was seated at the bar, where I could get a bird’s-eye view of the kitchen. I saw the chef pour tempura batter into the fryer first. He would stir it around and then wrap it around the shrimp. This is how they created such a puffy and crispy layer around the shrimp.

I was amazed by this frying technique and kept staring at the chef, wide-eyed in admiration. Try practicing this cool method at home and adding tempura to your repertoire.

Key taste variable: Oil temperature
Oil temperature is the other key ingredient. For those with a heat gauge, bring the oil up to around 340-360 degrees F. If you don’t have a gauge, drop a bit of the tempura into the oil. If the batter comes up right away instead of sinking to the bottom of the pan, it’s higher than 370F. If the batter goes halfway to the bottom and comes up, it’s about 340 to 360F. If your oil heats up too quickly, simply turn off the heat and let it cool down.

Shrimp Tempura
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Shrimp Tempura - Japanese Chef Style

Today, we will try a cool method for frying shrimp tempura - used by Japanese chefs in Tokyo.
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Shrimp - 10-15
  • All Purpose Flour - 1/2 cup
  • Vegetable oil - 1.5 - 2 liters

Batter

  • Water - 2 cups
  • Ice cubes - Handful
  • Salt - 1/2 teaspoon
  • Eggs - 1
  • Flour - 1 cup

Instructions

Prep Shrimp

  • Peel and devein each shrimp. Keep the tail on.
  • Cut the underside of the shrimp half-way through (at the joints) to straighten them.
  • Flip-over to the top-side and score the shrimp half-way through (at the joints) at a slight angle.
  • Use your fingers to squeeze the shrimp and stretch them out.
  • Dry them on paper-towels. Finally, coat each shrimp with flour and pat-off any excess. Set aside until frying time.

Make Batter

  • Pour cold water into a bowl. Place ice cubes in to keep it batter cold. Add the salt and egg. Mix everything together.
  • Then add in the flour. But do not whisk it in! Instead, gently push in the flour until all of it becomes moistened. It's good to have lumps in the mixture. (Reference video for more details.)

Fry Shrimp

  • Put oil into pot or fryer. Turn on medium heat and bring up to 340~360F. Place a few drops of batter into oil to gauge the temperature (refer to long text above).
  • When oil is ready, slowly pour a little bit of the batter into the oil. Stir-around with chopsticks (be careful of oil!). Let the flakes cook for 10-15 seconds.
  • Use a strainer (or other utensil) to gather some flakes into a corner of the pot. Then pick-up a shrimp and dunk into the wet batter. Place the shrimp in the corner, on top of the flakes. Use chopsticks (or a fork) to cover the rest of the shrimp with flakes.
  • Fry until light golden color (roughly 1-2 minutes). Repeat for each shrimp.

Notes

  • Throw in a few ice cubes to keep the batter cold. A cold batter translates to a light texture when fried.
  • Do not over-mix or whisk the batter. Gently push the dry ingredients into the water until they become soaked. It will look lumpy - that is what we are looking for!
  • See video for more details

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Tteokbokki – Korea’s most popular street food

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Tteokbokki can be found everywhere in Seoul! It is Korea’s most popular type of street food.

TteokbokkiSkip to Recipe

Tteokbokki is best described as Korean rice cakes that are stir-fried and reduced in a spicy gochujang paste. Typically, street vendors sell it alongside a basket of fried tempura and sundae (Korean blood sausage).

I don’t really crave Tteokbokki frequently – but all of the women in my life do. My mother, sister or Katie will often ask me to order and bring some home. For those who love Tteokbokki, here is a simple recipe that you can make at home. One bite and it will bring you back to late-night eating in Hongdae!

Key Taste Variable: Gochujang Sauce. Tteokbokki is all about the gochujang sauce. I personally do not like it too spicy. And the sauce in our recipe is not too spicy (similar to Korean Shin Ramyun). If you want to make it spicier, add a tablespoon of Korean red chili flakes.

Note: I have added a few minor adjustments to this recipe – since I recorded the video. (1) Reduced the # of dried anchovies from 15 to 10 (2) Added a step to roast the anchovies. This two modifications will make the broth taste lighter.

Tteokbokki
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5 from 1 vote

Tteokbokki - Korea's #1 street food

Nothing better than a plate of Tteokbokki and a cup of warm broth in your hands. If you've spent time in Korea before, you know what I'm talking about 🙂
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Korean rice cakes - 200 grams use the long-tube kind
  • Fish cake sheets - 2 sheets
  • Spring onion - 1 stalk
  • Cabbage - 1 cup
  • Eggs - 2

Soup Stock

  • Dried anchovies - 10 medium-sized
  • Dashima - 2x2 inch piece
  • Water - 5 cups

Gochujang Sauce

  • Gochujang - 3 Tablespoons
  • Sugar - 1 Tablespoon
  • Soy sauce - 1 teaspoon
  • Corn syrup - 1 Tablespoon Honey ok as well
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Instructions

Make Soup Stock

  • Clean 10 dried anchovies: Open them up and remove the black inner parts. Remove head as well.
  • Put frying pan on medium-high heat. Once it is hot, place dried anchovies in and stir around for 30 seconds (note: do not put any oil into the pan). Roasting the anchovies like this will help get reduce any fish smell from the broth.
  • Then pour in 5 cups of water. Put-in dashima pieces. Bring pot up to a boil. After 5 minutes of boiling, take out the dashima pieces. Then let the broth cook and simmer for 10 more minutes. Finally, take out anchovies. Place broth aside.

Prep Ingredients

  • Cut fish cake sheets into small triangles and/or rectangles.
  • Dice cabbage also into small rectangles strips. Cut spring onions into small circles. Then set these aside.
  • For the gochujang sauce, mix all of the listed ingredients in a bowl.
  • Then place the rice cakes in and toss in the gochujang sauce.
  • Hard-boil two eggs and set that aside.

Cook rice cakes

  • Place broth in a large pot. Place pot on high heat and bring up to boil. Then put in the coated rice cakes. (Pour some broth into the mixing bowl and get all of the leftover gochujang sauce into the broth.)
  • Let the rice cakes cook in the broth for 3 minutes. Then add-in the fish cakes and cabbage. Reduce the heat to a medium - a gentle simmer. Let it reduce for another 5-8 minutes.
  • Turn heat off and add the hardboiled eggs. (Note: If the sauce hasn't reduced enough, let it cook for longer. If it has reduced too much, simply add some water).
  • Garnish with chopped spring onion and a dash of sesame seeds.

Notes

  • If you accidentally reduce the sauce for too long, simply add a bit more water and gochujang paste.
  • See video below for more details

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Kimchi Quesadilla – Sauteed Kimchi with Cheese

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Kimchi Quesadilla – it makes complete sense! It’s just that you have never thought to put the two together before.

Kimchi Quesadilla
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The saltiness and spiciness of sautéed Kimchi pairs so well with cheese. In fact, the latest food rage in Seoul (well for the last 6 years) has been Korean-Mexican fusion food. From bulgogi burritos to carne-asada kimchi fries, there is an endless number of combinations to make as the two cuisines work so well together. For an nice intro into Korean-Mexican dishes, start off with this dead-simple kimchi quesadilla recipe. You can whip it up in less than 10 minutes!

Key taste variable: Sautéed Kimchi. Pan-frying the kimchi removes the moisture from the kimchi and infuses a nice smoky flavor.

Kimchi Quesadilla
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Kimchi Quesadilla - Sauteed Kimchi with Cheese

Kimchi Quesadilla – it makes complete sense! It’s just that you have never thought to put the two together before. Try it out 😉
Course: Easy
Servings: 1

Ingredients

  • Tortilla - 1
  • Mozzarella cheese - 1/3 cup
  • Kimchi - 2 Tablespoons
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 1 whole
  • Scallions - 1 teaspoon
  • Sesame seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
  • Butter - 1 teaspoon

Instructions

Make Kimchi Filling

  • Chop kimchi and Shiitake mushroom into small pieces.
  • Place butter into a frying pan and put it on medium heat. Put both into a frying pan and stir-fry together. Stop when the kimchi turns slightly brown on the edges. Garnish with sesame seeds.

Make Quesadilla

  • Put frying pan on medium heat. Place tortilla on frying pan and flip to get both sides hot. Then place the sautéed kimchi and mushrooms on one side of the tortilla. Add scallions on top. Add cheese on top.
  • Fold the two halves together. Flip and cook until both sides are golden brown. Garnish with scallions. Enjoy!

Notes

  • Cook the quesadilla on a medium heat - that way you get a slightly crispy surface and the cheese fully melts.
  • See video below for more details

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Korean Stuffed Peppers – Oh soo delicious!

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Korean Stuffed Peppers (Gochu Twigim) is now one of my favorite comfort foods. It is delicious, easy-to-make and brings me to a “happy” place.

Korean-Stuffed-PeppersSkip to Recipe

These green peppers are stuffed with a mixture of minced pork, tofu and diced vegetables and are double-fried for an crispy skin. After a bite, you will find yourself smiling and wanting to share the recipe with your friends.

In Seoul, you may have seen a version of these deep-fried chili peppers sold at Tteok-bokki street vendors. However, their peppers are barely stuffed and leave grease running in your hands. With this recipe, you will get more stuffing with less grease. When you get a free weekend, whip it up for your family and friends.

Korean Stuffed Peppers
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Korean Stuffed Peppers - Stuffed and double-fried

These green peppers are stuffed with a mixture of minced pork, tofu and diced vegetables. Double-fried for an extra crispy skin!
Course: Easy
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • Anaheim Peppers - 12
  • Flour - 1/2 cup
  • Vegetable oil - 1/2 liter or use any oil

Stuffing

  • Minced pork - 200 grams
  • Tofu - 1/2 a whole block 150 grams
  • Zucchini - 30 grams
  • Carrot - 30 grams
  • Onion - 1/2 whole
  • Spring onion - 1/2 whole stalk or use chives
  • Egg - 1
  • Minced garlic - 1 teaspoon
  • Salt - 1 teaspoon
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Frying Batter

  • Flour - 1 cup
  • Potato starch - 2 Tablespoon
  • Water - 1 cup
  • Ice cubes - 4

Dipping Sauce

  • Soy sauce - 2 Tablespoon
  • Vinegar - 1 teaspoon
  • Lemon juice - few squeezes

Instructions

Prep Peppers

  • Wash peppers. Slice peppers open with a knife and take out the seeds (careful not to tear the stems). Rinse peppers under water to take out all seeds. Set peppers aside and let them drip-off excess water  - do not pat dry them down with paper towels (we need them slightly wet)
  • Take out a plate and pour 1/2 cup of flour onto it. Take slightly wet peppers and roll into flour to coat both the inside and outside of each pepper. Save left-over flour for the third step.

Make Stuffing

  • Season minced pork with salt and black pepper. Mash the pork throughly with your hands.
  • Then smoosh down the tofu block with your knife. Repeat until the tofu get a consistency of cottage cheese. Place smooshed tofu into kitchen towel and squeeze out excess water.
  • Dice zucchini, carrot, onion and spring onion into small pieces. Take out large mixing bowl and place in the pork, smashed tofu and diced vegetables. Then break an egg into the mix.
  • Next season with minced garlic, salt, black pepper and mix it together thoroughly.

Stuff Peppers

  • Fill peppers with stuffing. Try to pack as much as you can.
  • Roll the filled pepper once more into the left-over flour from the first step.
  • Then make the frying batter: Take out a large mixing bowl and pour in 1 cup of flour, 2T potato starch, 1 cup of water and few ice cubes. Mix batter thoroughly. Dip each pepper into wet batter. We are ready for frying.

Double-Fry Peppers

  • Take out large pot and fill with oil. Bring oil up to 350F (180 C). Place peppers in. Fry until light brown.
  • Remove from oil and let peppers cool down for 5 minutes.
  • Then place back into fryer until golden brown. Let it cool down before eating.

Make Dipping Sauce

  • Mix soy sauce, vinegar and lemon juice together.

Notes

  • In the video, I am using Korean cucumber peppers (오이고추). They do not taste spicy at all - similar to a green bell pepper. However, these peppers maybe hard to find outside of a Korean grocery mart. 
  • If you are living in North America, use Anaheim peppers. If those are not available either, just use any local mild green pepper.
  • Watch video below for more details

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Yubu Chobap – Tofu pockets for a day outdoors

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Yubu chobap is a great idea for a lunchbox. It is marinated tofu pockets stuffed with seasoned rice and minced vegetables. It is light, healthy and perfect for eating outdoors with a friend.

Yubu ChobapSkip to Recipe

What does it taste like? The closest comparison is sushi but the flavor profile is different – taste slightly sweet and juicy. This is mostly from the sweet taste of the tofu skins, which come pre-packaged in a vinegar-based sweet sauce.

Please note that ‘tofu skin’ is actually a misnomer – it is more precisely, soybean milk skin.  It is made from the sheets that form on the surface after you boil soymilk. We will not make these tofu skins from scratch, but use readymade kits. These kits include both vinegar sauce and seasoning packets. You can find them at most Korean or Asian markets – simply ask for ‘Yubu-chobap’.

Yubu Chobap
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Yubu Chobap - A nice mini-meal for a day outdoors

Yubu chobap is marinated tofu skins stuffed with seasoned rice and minced vegetables. Pack it in a lunchbox and eat it in a park - with a date of course!
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Sushi rice - 1 cup
  • Yubu Chobap - 1 package
  • Carrot - 30 grams
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 1
  • Spring onion - 2 tablespoon
  • Salt - Few shakes

Crab Salad

  • Crab stick - 100 grams
  • Cucumber - 1/2 whole
  • Mayonnaise - 1 Tablespoon
  • Honey mustard - 1 Tablespoon

Instructions

Cook rice and prep pockets

  • Cook sticky (sushi) rice. Here is a video on how to do it.
  • Take out tofu pockets from the packaging. Squeeze the tofu pockets gently (once!) and get rid of excess juice.

Prep veggies

  • Dice carrots, mushrooms into small cubes - smaller the better. Slice the spring onions into small pieces as well.
  • Fry all the vegetables on a frying pan for 1 minute. Season with salt.

Cucumber Crab Topping (Optional)

  • Slice the (imitation) crab meat into small pieces. Shred any remaining big pieces with your hand.
  • Slice cucumber into small julienne pieces. Use a paper towel to squeeze out water from the cucumber strips.
  • Take out a mixing bowl. Add and mix-in the crab meat, cucumbers, mayonnaise and honey mustard together.

Stuff Pockets

  • Place cooked rice into a separate bowl. Fan-out the rice and let it sit out for 5 minutes. Then add the seasoning packet and vinegar packet from the kit. The vinegar packet is sweet, so don't add all of it at once. Taste before you add more.
  • Then add in your cooked vegetables and fold into the rice.
  • Take a tofu pocket and stretch it out. Take a pinch of rice, roll into a ball and place into pocket. Use your fingers to fill out the pocket. Add cucumber crab topping (optional)

Notes

  • When preparing the tofu skins, give a gentle squeeze. If you squeeze it too hard, you will lose too much of the sweet juice and flavor.  
  • Also, feel free to use your vegetable of choice - no need to stick verbatim to our recipe.
  • For the topping, we are using imitation crab. If you like to use real crab meat - even better!
  • Watch video below for more details

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Spring Onion Korean Fried Chicken – Straight Outta Seoul

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Spring Onion Korean Fried Chicken. This is hands-down my favorite KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) recipe!

Spring Onion Korean Fried Chicken

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This recipe went viral in Korea a few years ago – virtually all chicken shops put it onto their menu. In Korean, it is called Pa-dak! Padak is chicken that is double-fried for an extra crispy skin. It is topped with thinly sliced spring onion and dressed in a sweet and tangy Asian dressing.

What I love about this recipe is the mixture of flavors. First, you get the juicy chicken. We all know what that taste like. Then a refreshing kick from the spring onions. These spring onions strips help to offset that repetitive flavor of fried chicken. Finally, you will taste the sweet and tangy sauce. This combination of flavors makes this fried chicken dish one of my favorite.

Note: There are variations of the dressing sauce in Seoul. One type is a light wasabi sauce – but I find it to be overwhelming. The other style, which we will use today, is a vinaigrette sauce. It taste similar to Asian sesame salad dressing.

Thank me later for this recipe 🙂

Spring Onion Korean Fried Chicken
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Spring Onion Korean Fried Chicken - My Favorite KFC!

This is hands-down my favorite KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) recipe! We double-fry chicken until its extra crispy. Then top it with spring onion strips and pour over a sweet and tangy Asian dressing

Ingredients

  • Chicken - 1 whole 600 grams, or use any thigh, drumsticks
  • Salt - 2 teaspoon
  • Minced garlic - 1 teaspoon
  • Black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
  • Egg - 1
  • Flour - 3/4 cup if you have Korean frying mix 퇴김가루, use that
  • Potato starch - 3/4 cup
  • Spring onion - 1 stalk

Vinaigrette Sauce

  • Soy sauce - 3 Tablespoon
  • Water - 1 Tablespoon
  • Lemon juice - 1 Tablespoon
  • Vinegar - 2 Tablespoon
  • Honey - 2 Tablespoon
  • Olive oil - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Minced garlic - 2/3 Tablespoon

Instructions

Prep Chicken

  • Score the chicken and place into a mixing bowl. Place in salt, minced garlic and black pepper.
  • Give a thorough mix and rub onto the chicken (careful not to tear-off the skin from the chicken).
  • Let it rest for at least 15 min.

Prep Marinade

  • Pour soy sauce, water, lemon juice, vinegar, honey, olive oil and minced garlic together.

Spring Onion Prep

  • Split spring onion strips in half (white stalk portion). Separate each layer from each other.
  • Fold in half. Make thin Julienne cuts (reference video).
  • Fill a bowl with very cold water and let the strips soak in the water for 10 minutes. This will help get rid of the strong onion taste.

Battering

  • Drop an egg into the mixing bowl with the chicken pieces.
  • Then take out a separate mixing bowl and put-in the flour and potato starch. Mix this together. Then pour this mix back into the bowl with the chicken (from step above). Mix everything together and get each chicken piece thoroughly coated.
  • Shake off the excess flour and place each coated chicken strip onto a separate rack or plate for frying.

Double-frying

  • Take out a frying pot or work and fill with cooking oil. Bring the oil up to 150 degrees Celsius (~300F). Gently place each chicken piece into oil and let it cook until light brown (10-15 min). Take the chicken out and let them rest. Technically, you can finish here!
  • If you would like to double-fry for an extra crispy texture, raise the oil to 180 degrees (~350) and double-fry until golden brown.

Assembly

  • Place fried chicken on plate. Place spring onion strips on top. Place spoonfuls of sauce over spring onion and chicken! Enjoy!

Notes

  • I am a using a whole chicken (with bone-in). But feel free to use any chicken cut - thighs, drumsticks, breasts
  • Make sure to use potato starch - this is what makes it extra crispy
  • See video below for more details

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Kimbap – Korea’s answer to sushi

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Kimbap is one of Korea’s most iconic snacks. It can be described as cooked rice, vegetables and meat rolled in gim (seaweed) sheets. Simply put, it is Korea’s version of sushi.

KimbapSkip to Recipe

There are differences between the two. First, Kimbap does not include raw fish. Instead, it is typically filled with Danmuji (pickled daikon), crab sticks (imitation crab meat) or other meats, cucumbers, carrots and rice. Second, Kimbap rice is not seasoned with vinegar. There is enough flavor from the mix of other ingredients.

Nowadays, there are endless variations of Kimbap in Korea. Many people mix and match ingredients to their preferences. Here are some of the most popular variations of Kimbap in Seoul.

Kimbap is also a very affordable meal – it usually costs 2,000 Won ($1.90) per roll. It is Korea’s version of ‘fast-food’ without the food-coma and the calorie bomb. In fact, you will see many street carts selling rolls for breakfast.

As a side-note, I think Kimbap would be a good idea for a ‘fast-causal’ eatery chain in the US or Europe. Similar to eating at Subway or Chipotle, customers could pick their ingredients and have the roll made in front of you. Hmm – what do you think?

Kimbap
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Kimbap - Korea's rice roll

Kimbap is one of Korea's most iconic snacks. Cooked rice and a variety of vegetables are rolled in toasted seaweed sheets. It is Korea's version of sushi minus the raw fish.
Course: Medium
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • Gim - 4 sheets
  • Rice - 2 cups
  • Cucumber - 1 whole
  • Carrot - 1/2 a whole
  • Danmuji - 4 strips
  • Eggs - 4
  • Crab stick - 4 optional
  • Ground beef - 150 grams

Seasoning

  • Sesame oil - 2 Tablespoon used for coating gimbap
  • Salt - 2.5 teaspoon
  • Black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
  • Vinegar - ~2 Tablespoon
  • Water - 1 teaspoon

Instructions

Make the Rice

  • Pour two cups of rice into the rice-cooker bowl. Throughly rinse and wash the rice. Let it sit in cold water for 30 minutes.
  • Then drain the residual water from the rice again.
  • Use the same cup and pour two cups of water into the rice-cooker bowl. Place bowl into rice-cooker and turn it on .
  • Note: If you do not have a rice-cooker, cook rice on in a pot (read post)

Prep Ingredients

  • Let's start with the veggies: Cut off the ends from the cucumber. Cut cucumber into long strips (~1cm in width). Pour salt (1/2 teaspoon) and vinegar (1 teaspoon) over cucumber strips. Give a mix with your hands and let it rest for 10 minutes.
  • Cut carrots into thin strips (0.5cm in width). Repeat the same salting (1/2 teaspoon) and vinegar process (1 teaspoon) for carrot strips.
  • Then let's move over to the meats: Split the crab sticks in half with your hands.
  • Take out a bowl and crack four eggs into it. Season the eggs with salt (1/2 teaspoon). Pour 1 teaspoon of water into the eggs. Mix eggs throughly and set aside for frying.
  • Season minced beef with salt (1/2 teaspoon) and pepper. Take out the frying pan and cook the meat fully through.

Flavor rice and finish veggie prep

  • Pour out rice from the rice cooker into a large mixing bowl. Pour (1 teaspoon) of salt and (1 Tablespoon) vinegar over rice. Gently mix it into rice and let the rice cool down.
  • Use a paper towel to squeeze out the extra moisture from cucumber.
  • Place frying pan on medium heat. Put cucumber strips onto frying pan and cook briefly to remove moisture (roughly 10 seconds).
  • Repeat the process above (step #2-3) for the carrot strips.

Cook Egg Omelette

  • Turn frying pan on a medium heat. Pour vegetable oil into frying pan. Pour egg mixture in and give the pan a swirl so it is evenly coated.
  • Wait until the egg omelette is half-way cooked, then begin to roll the egg.
  • Finish the first roll and move the egg omelette to the bottom of the pan. Pour more egg mixture into the other-side, tilt the pan and connect the two pieces. Roll again and repeat until you finish the egg mixture. (reference video below)
  • Cut the finished egg roll into long strips. Halve the strips until you get roughly 1cm in width.

Toast Gim

  • Put a frying pan on medium heat. Wait until frying pan is hot. Place the gim (seaweed) sheet on the hot frying pan on each side for roughly 10 seconds. Repeat until sheets turn crispy and slightly green. Be careful not to burn them.

Roll Gimbap

  • Place gim on sushi mat. Check that the gim is close to the bottom of the sushi mat. Then pat down rice up to 3/4 of the gim sheet (or up to 1 inch from the top).
  • Add the egg, carrot, cucumber, crab stick, beef and danmuji strips to the middle of the rice.
  • Fold the kimbap (watch video for details).
  • Use a brush to coat the gimbap with sesame oil. Cut the gimbap into circles.
  • Take a picture and enjoy the fruits of your labor 🙂

Notes

  • Making it at home will requires some time, especially for prep. I would recommend reserving a weekend and invite your children or significant other.
  • Kimbap should be eaten in the same day as it was made. It will go bad if you keep it overnight.

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