Last week, I hopped over to my old stomping ground, Hong Kong, for a whirlwind visit. Although the trip was short, I made sure to pack in loads of my favorite pastime – eating and drinking at some of my old spots. These gems have managed to withstand the city’s rollercoaster ride of changes over the past few years, and I’m convinced they deserve more attention than a few-second video clips in my Instagram story. Continue reading Rediscovering Hong Kong’s Timeless Gems
Happy Year of the Dragon! I am currently in Bangkok, where the official celebration of Lunar New Year is not as massive as in Korea or Hong Kong. Nevertheless, I decided to infuse the festive spirit into my surroundings by exploring the world of traditional Korean New Year food, specifically the creation of pan-fried meat and vegetable patties known as “dong-geu-rang-ttaeng” – a delectable dish with a name more complex than its taste. This snack, challenging to pronounce, is often prepared by a few women, one of whom takes charge and directs the others. In my household, that assertive woman is usually my mom, as my late grandma is no longer with us. Continue reading Pan-fried Korean meat and vegetable patties “dong-geu-rang-ttaeng”
There’s something undeniably magical about the process of slow-roasting, where time and patience work their alchemical wonders on seemingly humble ingredients. Lamb shank truly is the cut of meat that emerges from this transformation. I’ve cooked different cuts of lamb many times in the past, but never the shank; I was always intimidated by its tough reputation I guess. But having made incredibly succulent, fork-tender, and mouth-watering lamb shanks for the first time, I now know that all this cut with immense potential needs is to be treated with the respect it deserves.
Continue reading Slow roasted lamb shank
Happy Lunar New Year everyone! I’m still having a hard time believing that it’s 2021. I’m sure you’ll agree with me, last year just feels like a bad dream that I’m struggling to wake up from. I still haven’t seen my family in Korea, it’s been a year and four months since I last saw them. And spending yet another big holiday missing my family was the last thing I wanted. Maybe that’s why I tried to keep myself even busier in the kitchen preparing for the New Year holiday this year, cooking up a storm to feed just two people; me and my husband, haha (we just finished leftovers). I am sharing recipes for quintessential Korean celebration dishes “Japchae” – Sweet potato noodles and vegetables, “Aehobak Jeon” – Korean Zucchini fritters and a simple spring onion salad today. I have also made Kimchi pancakes for the New Year, click here for recipe.
Continue reading Korean New Year foods – “Japchae” sweet potato noodles and “Jeon” fritters
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. My husband and I would normally be in California with his family for Christmas, but like most people around the world we had to stay home and quietly celebrate this year. But still, we were grateful for the fact that our loved ones are safe and sound. We switched our usual roll for this Christmas; he made savory main course and I made dessert. For the first time, I decorated my baked goods with a piping/pastry bag. I was so clueless that I didn’t even know how to fix the tip and coupler into a bag (I don’t know where I got the idea of doing Christmas cookies in the first place). But all and all they came out alright. And most importantly, I had so much fun doing it 🙂 Continue reading My very first Christmas ginger cookies
If I was asked to pick one dish that will make anyone fall in love with Korean food, I’d without a doubt pick “Galbijjim”, soy sauce braised beef short ribs. This melt-in-your mouth beef dish is sweet, savory, luxurious, festive and comforting all at the same time and often eaten at Chuseok (Mid Autumn festival) and Lunar New Year in Korea. When my husband met my family for the first time before we got married, my mom made this dish, which was his favorite Korean food at that time. My mom is a great cook and she also got a little help from her auntie who was running a successful Korean restaurant back then. Needless to say mom’s galbijjim was out of this world. I don’t know whether my husband was too nervous or too stuffed or both but he ended up spending quite a long time in the bathroom after dinner… Continue reading “Galbijjim” Braised Korean beef short ribs
Life never goes as planned. A phrase that I always loved and believed. And this year so far has once again proved what I believe…well, not in a good way. My husband had a big birthday at the end of April (not saying any number here, but it was one of those big ones ;-)). So from early this year I started planning/plotting a surprise party and a trip. His family in the US was supposed to fly to Hong Kong and show up at his birthday party unannounced. And we would all take a trip to Bali together a couple days later. Obviously something like that is not going to happen for a while. And since we had a ban on gathering of more than 4 people (now it’s changed to 8), I couldn’t even organize a party with friends that we normally have every year.
Continue reading Dairy free, gluten free dark chocolate almond marshmallow cookies
Can you name one person who does not like dumplings? I certainly can’t. I can’t even think of anyone who wouldn’t shout out “I love dumplings!” with a big smile in their face. I think anywhere in the world has its own version of dumplings. And they are often associated with warm fuzzy memories of home, family and holidays. Like every Korean kid who grew up with their grandma, homemade dumplings (Mandu in Korean) were staples that we had to have during the festive seasons. Continue reading Kimchi, pork and Asian chives dumplings “Mandu” with spicy dipping sauce
If you read my previous post, you would know how much I loved Turkish breakfast. Every single breakfast I had in Turkey was incredible, but there is one dish that I had to make my own version of. I am not a huge fan of having sweet things in the morning, so my choice usually involves eggs. My favorite is always a fried egg (with crispy edge if I make it myself at home), but in Turkey I had been cheating on my sunny side up with a traditional egg dish called “Menemen”. This dish has everything I love; tomatoes, eggs, peppers, and warm spices. It is delicious, satisfying and comforting, kinda perfect breakfast I must say :-).
Without a doubt “Tofu kimchi” is a Korean soul food. And it is also a perfect example of a dish that was born out of necessity. Just until a few decades ago Korea was extremely poor, which means most people had to make the best of whatever they had. And so many of those dishes that came from the hardship in the past have in fact become the backbone of Korean cuisine. They might have been the only options for those who were in my grand parents and parents generation back then, but now they are kind of dishes that we all love and cannot imagine living without. And for that I feel quite lucky and grateful.
Continue reading 20 minute meal – Tofu kimchi scramble with chilis and chives
