Sae-woo Chae Juk (새우채죽) Rice porridge

This thick porridge is perfect for those cold winter nights when you need something hearty to warm you up from the inside out.

Ingredients:
1.5 cups soaked rice*
100g minced shrimp
1/2 onion diced small
1/5 carrot, diced small
1/3 pumpkin, diced small (호박)
2 shiitake mushrooms, diced small
2 spoons sesame oil
1.5 spoons cheong ju (청주)
8 cups sardine broth**
Pinch of salt

For frying with rice:
1 spoon sesame oil
1/2 spoon minced garlic.

Steps:

1. In a big pot, fry sesame oil and garlic.  Add rice, fry until rice grains become transparent.
2. Add onion, carrot, pumpkin, mushrooms, and fry until onions are clear.  Add shrimp and cheongju.
3. pour in broth.  Heat to boiling, reduce to low, simmer 20-30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
4. When the rice has absorbed most of the liquid, add salt, sesame oil to taste.

Notes:

* To make soaked rice, soak rice in water for 3-4 hours.  That's it!

** To make sardine broth, throw 7 small, headless dried sardines and a 10cm square sheet of dried kelp into 5 cups of boiling water for about 10 minutes then add 1 spoon cheong-ju (청주).  Strain.

- You can substitute ground or small chunks of meat for the shrimp, or use a different broth if you want.  Also, feel free to add whatever veggies you want or have in the back of your fridge.

Ddeok guk (떡국) Rice-cake soup

This simple, yet delicious soup is traditionally served at the Lunar New Year.  It is said that the thin, flat rice cakes resemble coins, and so by eating it, you ensure a prosperous new year (or so I heard).

Ingredients: (2-3 people)
100g beef
Pounded rice cakes for soup - ddeok (떡국 떡)
1 egg
1 big leek
1/2 spoon miced garlic
1/2 sheet seaweed (김), sliced thin.
1 spoon soy sauce
5 cups kelp broth
salt, pepper to taste

Steps:

1. Separate the egg into white and yolk.  Poach both.  Slice thin.
2. Soak beef in cold water to remove blood.  Cut into bite-sized pieces.  Brown in a soup pot.  Add broth, boil.
3. When beef is cooked, add rice cakes.
4. When the ddeok is cooked (it should be soft, but a little chewy), add leeks, soy sauce, garlic, and salt/pepper to taste.  Serve garnished with seaweed and egg slices.

Notes:

- I know, I know, it says to separate the egg, poach it, slice it thin, and then use the slices to garnish the soup.  Or you could just crack an egg into the soup and stir it up in step 4.

Kimchi Jjigae (김치찌개) Kimchi Stew

Who doesn't have some old kimchi sitting in the back of your fridge taking up space?  Give it a new lease on life with one of my all-time favorite dishes.  When it's good, there's nothing better in Korea.  When it's bad, it's still pretty good.  Fiery-spicy, infernally bubbling, and a little bit sour.  There's almost nothing better.  It's also absurdly easy to make.

Nothing better

Ingredients: (4 servings)
1/4 head of kimchi (~600g)
300g pork
1/2 onion, sliced
1 big leek, sliced
1 green chili, sliced thin
1/2 block tofu, cubed
5 cups sardine broth*
1/2 cup kimchi juice**
1 spoon soybean oil

The good stuff

Meat Spices:
2 spoons crushed chilies
2 spoons cheong-ju (청주)
1 spoon minced garlic
pinch of pepper

Kitchen Scissors: a chef's best friend

Kimchi Spices:
1 spoon sesame oil
1 small spoon sugar


**Cut kimchi and pork into bite-sized slices.**

Steps:

1. Mix pork with Meat Spices.  In another bowl, mix kimchi with Kimchi Spices.  Let sit 20-30 mins.
2. Add oil to a pan.  Fry pork and spices.  When the meat starts to brown, add kimchi.  Fry.  Add onions, fry.
3. When onions have started cooking, add broth and kimchi juice.  Simmer 20 mins over medium heat.
4. When the kimchi is ready (it will start to look a little translucent), add tofu, leeks, green chilis.  Heat to a boil.  Serve with rice.

Throw it in at the end

Notes:

- I've heard it's best to use 3 week old kimchi.  You want the kimchi to be nice and sour - it gives the soup a great flavor.  If you don't have old kimchi, you can use newer kimchi, but throw in a small spoon of vinegar.

- I've heard that beef broth works well instead of sardine broth, though I've never tried it.

- You can also throw in other things.  I've seen the thinly sliced ddeok used in ddeok guk, eoh mook (sea span) and enoki mushrooms all added to the pot.

* To make sardine broth, throw 7 small, headless dried sardines and a 10cm square sheet of dried kelp into 5 cups of boiling water for about 10 minutes then add 1 spoon cheong-ju (청주).  Strain the broth and you're ready to go! 

** Kimchi juice is, so far as I can tell, what's left in the bag/pot when you take out the head of cabbage.  

Ddeok Bokki (떡볶이) Spicy Chewy Rice Cakes

This is a very popular snack with Korean teenagers and 20-somethings.  The best places to get it are street-side snack counters and late-night snack trucks, when women old enough to be your aunt slop the molten, spicy goodness onto a plate and hand you a long wooden skewer to spike the logs with.  The rice cakes should be chewy, the sauce should be spicy and a little sweet.

Ingredients: (2 servings)
30 pieces (about 200g) Ddeok bboki ddeok (떡볶이 떡)
1.5 sheets sea spam (어묵), cut into strips
1/2 pack ramen
1 hard boiled egg
1/4 onion, sliced
1/2 big leek, sliced
1/5 carrot, sliced
100g cabbage, sliced (optional)
2.5 cups sardine broth

Spices:
4 spoons red pepper paste (고추장)
1/2 spoon black soybean paste (춘장)
2 spoons corn syrup
soup packet from the ramen
1 spoon rice liquor (맛술)
1 spoon minced garlic
pinch of pepper

Steps:

1. Mix all the sauce ingredients together.
2. Boil a pot of water.  Briefly blanch rice cakes until a little soft.  Add the ramen, and boil a little longer. Remove with a sieve and steam dry.
3. Put the rice cakes, ramen, sea spam, egg, onion, carrot, leek, and cabbage in a heated frying pan.  Pour the sauce on the top.  Pour the broth over the top and simmer until everything is cooked.  If it gets too dry, you can add more water.

Notes:
- You can make the sardine broth yourself by throwing a couple of dried sardines (headless) into boiling water and adding a 10cm square sheet of kelp for about 10 minutes, or you can buy powder packet from the store.  If you're in the States, I'd guess that watered-down chicken broth would work just as well.

Beosot Bokkeum (버섯 볶음) Stir-fried mushrooms

This is a delicious side, and one that's very popular in restaurants all over Korea.  The recipe calls for oyster mushrooms, but you could probably use almost any kind, or even a mix.

Ingredients:
120g oyster mushrooms
1/4 green bell pepper
1/4 yellow bell pepper
1/4 red bell pepper
1/2 spoon sesame oil
1 small spoon sesame salt
pinch of salt, pepper
dash of cooking oil

Seasonings:
1 small spoon each: sesame oil, minced garlic
1/2 small spoon salt

Steps:

1. Slice the peppers thinly lengthwise.  Do not wash the mushrooms, but tear (not cut) them apart.
2. Add a pinch of salt to a little bit of boiling water.  Stir in mushrooms with wooden chopsticks a few times.  When finished, gently rinse mushrooms in cold water and squeeze out extra water by hand (gently!).
3. Mix mushrooms with seasonings.
4. Add cooking oil to a pre-warmed pan.  Slightly stir-fry the mushrooms with wooden chopsticks.
5. Add the peppers, briefly stir-fry.
6. Finally, add the sesame oil, sesame salt, and a pinch of pepper.  Scramble briefly.

Notes:

- You can eat these warm or cold, though I've usually had them cold or at room-temperature.

- For best results with the mushrooms, cook them for a very short time, and use only a little bit of water.  This will help preserve their flavor.

- If you use different mushrooms, slice them in step one.

Shi-geum-chi namul (시금치 나물) - Spinach and herbs

This is one of my favorite sides, and I never hesitate to eat a fistful when it's served at school.  It's also really easy to make.  Besides, it'll make you strong like Popeye!

Ingredients:
350g baby spinach
1/4 carrot
1 spoon salt

Spices:
1 spoon each: soy sauce, minced garlic, sesame salt
2 spoons each: sliced scallions, sesame oil
1/3 spoon salt
pinch of pepper

Steps:

1. Julienne the carrot.  Cut the roots off the spinach and discard.  Break up bunches, wash.  Boil water with a pinch of salt and briefly cook the spinach.  Remove and rinse a couple of times in cold water to stop cooking.
2. Gently squeeze the moisture from the spinach.
3. Mix soy sauce, garlic, leeks, salt, and carrots in with the spinach.  At the end, add sesame oil, sesame salt, and pepper to taste.

Jae-yuk Bok-eum (제육 볶음) - Spicy Stir-fried Pork

This is one of our favorite meals that we've discovered here, and I was super excited to find a recipe.  You can make the marinade ahead, and chill the meat in the fridge for up to a day or so.  Enjoy!

Ingredients (Serves 4-5)
500g pork neck (or other pork)
1 onion, sliced thin
1 red chili (홍고추), sliced thin
2 green chilies (청양고추), sliced thin
1/2 big leek, sliced thin
1/2 spoon sesame oil
1/2 spoon sesame seeds
dash of vegetable oil for cooking

Sauce
4 spoons red pepper paste (고추장)
3 spoons apple or orange juice
2 spoons each: crushed red pepper, chopped garlic
1 spoon each: soy sauce, sugar, corn syrup, cheong ju (청주), du ban jang (두반장)
1 small spoon ginger powder
pinch of black pepper

Steps

1. Cut pork into strips 5cm wide.  Slice veggies.
2. Mix all sauce ingredients together.  Mix with meat and onions.  Chill ~2 hours.
3. Coat pan with vegetable oil.  Fry meat/sauce mixture.  When the meat is almost finished, add leeks, sesame oil, chilies and sesame seeds.  Cook a little bit longer.
4. Serve over rice

Notes:

- You can also add in whatever other veggies you want while the meat and onions are marinating.  I've made it with cabbage and mushrooms, but feel free to experiment.

- I also leave out the chilies sometimes, so don't feel bad if you can't or don't want to use them.

Yoo-boo cho-bap (유부초밥) - Bean curd dumplings

This makes for a nice snack or side dish.  Inside is a mixture of rice and meat.  Outside is a tangy bean-curd skin.  Yum!

Ingredients: (1 serving)
8 pieces seasoned, fried bean curd for cho bap (조미유부)
1 bowl warm rice
1 handful shredded carrot
50g ground beef
dash of sesame leaves
1 handful seasoned burdock (우엉), shredded

For the rice:
1 spoon vinegar
1/2 spoon sugar
1/3 small spoon salt

Beef Spices:
1/2 spoon soy sauce
1 small spoon each: sugar, cheong ju (청주)
1 clove minced garlic
splash of sesame oil
dash of pepper

Steps:

1. Soak shredded burdock in water 10-15 mins.  Drain.
2. Mix beef, spices in a hot pan.  Stir with wooden chopsticks until cooked.
3. Mix vinegar, sugar, and salt with the rice.  Add beef, carrot, burdock.  Stir with chopsticks until mixed.
4. Carefully, fill bean curd triangles with a spoon.

Pickled onions (양파장아찌)

Another delicious side.  This one goes great with grilled meats in the lettuce wraps.  I've also heard you can drink the juice as you eat the onions up.

Ingredients:
8 onions, sliced
6 green chilies, sliced
3 red chilies, sliced

Sauce:
2.5 cups soy sauce
3 cups water
1.5 cups each: vinegar, sugar

Steps:

1. Put the sliced onions and chilies in a clean, dry, airtight glass container.
2. Slowly boil sauce ingredients in a pot.  When it starts to boil, remove from heat immediately.  Skim off any scum that has gathered at the top.
3. Pour the still-hot sauce over the onions.  Do not cool.
4. Let cool to room temperature with the lid open, then seal and keep in the fridge.

Notes:

- You can eat the onions immediately, or they'll keep for a while in the fridge.

Gamja Jolim (감자조림) - Boiled Potatoes

One of our favorite dishes at school: boiled potatoes in a sweet soy sauce.  I think technically it's a main course, but it seems to go best as a side.

Ingredients:
4 big potatoes, cut into big pieces (~800g)
1/2 onion, quartered
2 green chilies, sliced thin
1 red chili, sliced thin
1 cup kelp broth
1 spoon each: sesame oil, sesame seeds
pinch pepper
dash of cooking oil

Jolim Sauce:
4 spoons soy sauce
2 spoons cheong ju (청주)
1 spoon each: crushed dried chilies, red pepper paste (고추장), minced garlic, sugar, corn syrup/honey

Steps:

1. Soak potatoes in cold water for 30 mins to remove starch.  Prepare Jolim sauce.
2. Put cooking oil in a heated pan.  Fry potatoes until half done.  Add onions.  Fry until transparent.
3. Pour in kelp broth and jolim sauce.  Mix until evenly covered.  Boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat and simmer.
4. When broth has reduced to 1/3 of the original volume, add chilis.  Cook lightly.  Add sesame oil, sesame seeds, black pepper.  Stir.

Notes:

- To make kelp broth, boil 1 10cm square dried kelp in 5 cups of water for 10 minutes.  Remove kelp sheet and add 1 spoon cheong ju (청주).  Or you can probably cheat and use whatever broth you have on hand.

Bo Ssam (보쌈) - Boiled Pork

This is without a doubt one of my favorite meals in Korea.  Cooked correctly, the meat is moist, tender, and full of flavor.  It's also an excellent introduction to Korean cooking for the Western palate, since it's not spicy at all.  Delicious!

Ingredients (4 servings)
1 kg pork belly*

To boil with meat:
1 big leek
1/2 onion
8 cloves garlic (whole)
2 spoons doenjang (된장)
2 spoons sugar
7 spoons soju
1 small spoon whole black peppercorns
1 spoon coarse-grain salt

Steps:

1. Soak pork in cold water for 1 hour to remove blood.  Change water after 30 mins.
2. Put meat, boiling stuff into a big pot of cold water.  Heat on high until it starts to boil.  Turn to medium for 5 minutes.  Reduce to low, simmer for 50 minutes.
3. Meat is finished when you can poke it with a chopstick and no blood runs out.  Remove meat from the broth, let it cool, then slice it 0.4cm thick.
4. Serve by making wraps with lettuce, ssamjang, sliced garlic, and Bossam Kimchi.

Notes:
* If you want something a little less fatty, try the pork shoulder, or even the tenderloin.  Whatever you use, you want a whole slab of meat to boil.
- We also have made sandwiches with the sliced meat.  To be sure, when served this way, the dish is in no way Korean.

Ma Pa Dubu (마파두부) - Ma Pa Tofu

This is a great dish that we first ate at the local Chinese restaurant.  It's spicy, savory, and surprisingly good as leftovers.

Ingredients (4-5 servings)
200g firm tofu, cubed
150g ground pork
1/2 onion, diced

1 red chili (홍고추), sliced thin
2 green chilies (청양고추), sliced thin

2 small leeks, diced
3 spoons chili oil (고추 기름)
1 spoon minced garlic
a pinch each of salt and pepper
Thickener: mix 1 1/2 spoons of flour with 2 spoons of water

Meat Marinade
1/2 spoon soy sauce
1 spoon cheong ju (청주)
pinch of pepper

Sauce
Mix together:
2 spoons du ban jang (두반장)
2 spoons red pepper paste (고추장)
1 spoon sugar
1 spoon soy sauce
1 small spoon sesame oil
1 1/2 cups sardine broth

Steps

1. Boil salt, water.  Add tofu.  Cook slightly.  Drain and pat dry.
2. In a bowl, mix pork, meat marinade.  Let sit 30 mins.
3. Heat chili oil in a hot pan.  Fry garlic and onion.
4. When onions are transparent, add meat and chilis.  Fry.
5. When meat is cooked, add sauce, tofu, leeks.  Simmer
6. When simmering, slowly stir in the thickener, a little at a time until it has reached the desired consistency.
7. Serve over rice.

Notes:

- I use a powder packet for the sardine broth, but you can make your own by boiling a handful of dried sardines (멸치) and a 10cm square sheet of dried kelp (다시마) in 5 cups of water for 10-15 mins. Obviously, you'll remove the sardines and kelp before you use it.  I suppose one could also use a meat-based broth, though I haven't tried that yet.

- I also leave out the chilies sometimes, so don't feel bad if you can't or don't want to use them.