Stewed Korean Short Ribs, Kalbi Jjim (갈비찜)

Succulent Stewed Ribs Reminiscent of French Bourguignon

Whenever recent inductees to Korean cuisine describe fond memories of Korean food, the frequently mentioned universally palette-pleasing dish is kalbi, Korean barbeque short ribs. Typically marinated overnight and then fired over a tabletop or backyard grill, kalbi is the Korean equivalent of American barbeque. What people are less familiar with, however, is the kalbi jim*. Kalbi jim essentially uses the same cut of rib meat and similar seasonings as barbeque short ribs, only the bone is longer and meat scored or butterflied. But, the similarities end there. This tasty dish has more in common with the flavorful French bourguignon than its brother barbeque.

Bourguignon is beef braised in red wine and seasoned with garlic, onions, carrots and bouquet of assorted herbs like thyme, sage, tarragon and parsley. Like the French bourguignon, kalbi jim is also slow-cooked with liquor and spices, simmered till it reaches a fall-off-the-bone, melt-in-your-mouth tenderness. The reduction, when cooled, congeals and resembles aspic, a savory meat gelatin. The richness of kalbi jim derives from the bone marrow of the ribs, which steadily seeps into the sauce, thickening it as it simmers.

Although many traditional Korean recipes call for par-boiling the ribs, soaking the meat, or adding chicken broth, I have found that the simplest and most efficient way to cook kalbi jim is to just group the ingredients together according to cooking time and throw each of them in at the right time in a heavy-bottomed, copper-coated pot. What is most important in this dish is the cooking time and quality of ingredients. I love simmering raw chestnuts in kalbi jim, but since chestnuts are out of season, I used small Korean sweet potatoes with similar success.

^* Kalbi is also spelt galbi, kalbee or galbee. Jim is also spelt jjim or chim.

Kalbi Jim, Korean Stewed Short Ribs Recipe

~ Serves 3-4 people

Preparing the beef short ribs
3 lbs short beef ribs (English, thick-cut 3”-5” pieces)

1. Rinse the ribs in cold water to clean away any remaining bone bits.
2. Trim and discard excess fat.
3. Score or butterfly the meat (I will post separately for how to properly butterfly short ribs).

Cooking the beef short ribs
The alcohol and fruit juices in this kalbi jim tenderize and naturally sweeten the meat. With enough meat tenderizers, overnight marinating and sugar or honey rendered unnecessary.

6 cloves garlic, sliced
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
6 tbs soy sauce
1 ½ cups pineapple juice
1 cup vermouth or rice wine
¼ cup maesil ju, green plum wine, or Grand Marnier
½ cup water
1 tbs fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 tbs roasted sesame seeds
8 raw chestnuts, peeled or 2 Korean sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
10 ginkgo nuts, shelled
2 tbs red pepper threads (sil kochu), cut into 1” pieces
1 tsp black pepper, ground

1. Throw all ingredients, including meat but except the chestnuts and ginkgo nuts into heavy-bottomed or thick clay pot and cover with a tight-fitting lid.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer.
3. Simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to ensure the bottom does not burn.
4. Add in chestnuts and simmer for another 20 minutes.
5. Add in ginkgo nuts and simmer for another 20 minutes.
6. Remove the lid and turn up heat to medium high.
7. Stirring frequently and scraping the bottom with a wooden paddle, cook for another 20-30 minutes, until the meat becomes shiny and liquids reduce.
8. Optional step: Wait till the whole pot cools, then put it in the freezer for 20 minutes. Scrape away the fat, then reheat and serve with ogokbap, mixed rice.

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Mixed Rice2, Dolsot Bibimbap (돌솥 비빔밥)

Sizzling Stone Pot Rice, A Multi-Grain Mix of Rice Mixed with Seasoned Vegetables & Meat

This Sizzling Stone Pot Mixed Rice, Dolsot Bibimbap*, should be called Dolsot Bibim Ogokbap (돌솥 비빔 오곡밥) because not only is the rice physically mixed with all the vegetables, meat, and rice as in traditional bibimbap, but the grains themselves are composed of a mix, hence Mixed Rice².

My blend of grains diverges from the traditional ogokbap^† five-grains^± of sweet rice, foxtail millet, red beans, black beans, and sorghum. And, unlike ogokbap, which is traditionally served on the day of Jeongwol Daeboreum, the first full moon of the new lunar year, my grain mix has been modified for daily consumption. While health-conscious Koreans are increasingly consuming multi-grain rice nowadays, I find pre-packaged blends of mixed grains to not be quite to my liking. I don’t like the taste of beans in rice that I plan to eat with kimchi, unless they are buttery Peruvian lima beans or quick-to-cook lentils. Nor do I like wild black rice mixed with sticky rice. Wild black rice tastes better, in my opinion, with fragrant, long grain rice, like jasmine rice. Some varieties of black rice not only poke at your throat but also bleed into the rice, coloring the rice a dark purple. Grains and beans also have different soaking times, and the pre-packaged multi-grain rice does not allow you to adjust for the different soaking times.

In my everyday version of ogokbap, I blend short grain brown rice, sweet brown rice, foxtail millet, wheat berry, oat groats, green lentils, and peas to create a golden brown rice mix with flecks of yellow and green. Combine this rice with a medley of delicately seasoned summer vegetables, earthy shitake mushrooms and burdock, and well-marbled bulgogi-style flank meat and you have a well-balanced meal all in one bowl! Crack in an egg, drop a dollop of kochujang or samjang^‡, mix the mix up, and your dolsot bibimbap will be ready to eat!

Cooked in a granite stone pot, even the leftover roasted rice stuck to the bottom of the pot, nurungi, is delicious and is, in fact, a favorite Korean snack now sold in grocery stores. After you scoop out the rice, pour water into the stone pot for a toasty, after-meal palette cleanser.
^* Also spelled tolsot pibimbap.
^† Ogokbap, also called chapgokbap, is served on the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar year.
^± The exact grain blend varies, depending on which region you examine. Sometimes, for instance, black soybeans are included. Generally, the grains used in ogokbap are those they plan to plant in the coming year.
^‡Samjang, also spelled ssamjang, is a combination of kochujang, fermented hot pepper paste, and doenjang, fermented soybean paste. Although kochujang is more commonly used in bibimbap, samjang may also be used.

Dolsot Bibimbap Recipe

~ Serves 2 people

Soaking and Cooking the Mixed Grains
Peruvian lima beans require a longer soaking time of 4-6 hours and at least three water changes (in hot weather, soaking time is less than in cold weather). Otherwise, most of the grains here are relatively quick-to-soak-and-cook.

1 cup short grain brown rice
½ cup sweet brown rice
2 tbs split peas
2 tbs wheat berry
2 tbs foxtail millet
1 tbs lentils
1 tbs oat groats
¼ tsp salt

1. Soak the short grain brown rice, sweet brown rice and wheat berry together for 1 ½ - 2 hours and separately, the lentils for the same time, rinsing the lentils thoroughly and changing the water at least once.
2. Soak the millet for one hour, rubbing the grains and changing the water at least once.
3. Drain the millet and set aside.
4. Mix together the short grain brown rice, sweet brown rice, split peas, wheat berry, lentils, and oat groats and rinse once more. Drain and set aside.
5. Make sure your stone pot has been properly cleaned. See below for Dolsot Cleaning Instructions.
6. Put all of the grains except the millet in the pot with three cups of water.

7. Bring the water to a boil with the lid off. Dissolve salt into the boiling water.
8. After boiling gently for 15 minutes, add the millet in, decrease the heat to low, and cover the pot, leaving a crack of an opening.
9. Cook for another 15 minutes and then seal the opening shut with the lid.
10. Cook for another 15 minutes on very low, and then turn off and let sit for 5 minutes.
11. Fluff the rice with a fork and immediately seal to preserve the heat.

Preparing the Vegetables
Some people feel that bibimbap has a very labor-intensive process for preparing and seasoning vegetables, but actually, you can use whatever seasonal vegetables you like, including fresh sprouts and purple cabbage, both of which involve no preparation other than washing and chopping! Alternatively, you can cheat and go to the Korean grocery store and pick up prepared banchans such as doraji saengchae (marinated bellflower root) and pre-packed bibimbap seasoned vegetables. In general, the best short cut is using the right equipment. A mandolin slicer, as featured in Ratatouille and my cucumber salad recipe, is indispensable in any recipe that calls for slicing vegetables into thin disks or matchsticks.

3 medium carrots, sliced into matchsticks
2 Italian squash, sliced into matchsticks, leaving out the seed middle
1 lb chrysanthemum, leaves separated from stalks, stalks chopped in 1” pieces
2 tbs distilled white vinegar
½ tsp salt
2 tsp soy sauce
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp sesame oil
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

1. Boil 6 cups of water with vinegar and salt.
2. Using a metal sieve, douse the carrots in the boiling water for 1 minute and then immerse in a bowl of icy water. Drain and set aside.
3. Douse the Italian squash for 45 seconds, immerse in icy water, drain and set aside.
4. Douse chrysanthemum leaves for 30 seconds, immerse in icy water, squeeze dry, and set aside.
5. Douse chrysanthemum stalks for 2 minutes, immerse in icy water, drain, and combine with wilted chrysanthemum leaves.
6. Coat the wilted chrysanthemum leaves and stalks with the soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, salt, and black pepper.

Soybean sprouts- Mung bean spouts may also be used as a substitute for soybean sprouts. Although they are not as wide available, I do think they have a better flavor than soybean sprouts. You can also sprout your own, but it takes a few days.

1 ½ cups soybean sprouts
1 cup water

7. Place soybean spouts and water in a covered pot.
8. Boil for three minutes and then drain and set aside.

Ginkgo nuts- These healthy nuts are a beautiful addition to bibimbap, adding a wonderful chewiness and nutty flavor.

1 cup gingko nuts
2 tsp of vegetable oil

9. In a non-stick pan with oil, roast shelled ginkgo nuts over medium heat.
10. Transfer to a brown paper bag and rub between hands to remove the shell. Set aside.

Burdock & Shitake Mushrooms- The burdock root, which resembles a parsnip once peeled, adds a deep, earthy flavor. Similarly, shitake mushrooms add earthy and rustic undertones to this bibimbap.

1 burdock root, approximately 2 ½ ft, cut into matchsticks
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tbs sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ tsp honey

4-5 shitake mushrooms, fresh or thoroughly soaked and sliced
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tbs sesame oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ tsp honey

11. Over medium heat, pour the oil in the pan, then add the crushed garlic, sliced burdock, and roast for five minutes.
12. Add the soy sauce and honey, stirring often to make sure the burdock is well-coated. Cook until the burdock is browned on the edges, approximately 10 minutes.
13. Repeat these steps for the sliced shitake mushrooms.

Bulgogi
Literally translated, fired-meat adds a punch of protein to this otherwise vegetable-intense dish.

10 ounces of well-marbled rib-eye or tenderloin, thinly sliced
1 tbs + 1 tsp soy sauce
2 tbs vermouth
2 tbs maesil ju, green plum wine
1 tsp sesame oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
¼ onion, sliced
¼ cup pineapple juice
½ tsp black pepper, ground
2 tsp red pepper threads, cut in 1” pieces

1. Put all the ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Reduce to a simmer and cook covered for 15 minutes.
3. Remove cover and on medium heat, cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and turned into a thicker sauce, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Set aside.

Dolsot Bibimbap
All of the prepared toppings won’t fit on the top of the rice in the dolsot, so arrange a bit of each for the purposes of presentation on top. You can then allow your guests to add more vegetables and meat to each of their dishes.

Ssamjang or kochujang
1 tbs toasted sesame seeds for garnish
1 sheet gim, seasoned, roasted pressed laver, shredded for garnish

1. First, crack the eggs on the piping hot rice.
2. Arrange the vegetables and meat on top of the rice in the pot.
3. Serve with more vegetables, meat, and a dollop of either kochujang or samjang.
4. Garnish with seaweed and sesame seeds.

Instructions on How To Clean Your New Dolsot, Chiseled Granite Stone Pot

You may notice that dolsots are traditionally a shiny jet black color, reminiscent more of cast iron than chiseled granite. Dolsots become this way over time after repeated seasonings with oil and salt. Chonju, a Korean city, is famous for serving delicious bibimbap in these striking jet black granite bowls. My dolsot has not gone through enough seasonings to get this color, but I am noticing it steadily getting darker with each serving of bibimbap.

There are two different ways to wash your new granite stone pot. Regardless of which method you choose, you must never wash your dolsot with soap. The granite surface of stone pots is very porous and will absorb the soap and emit a very-difficult-to-rid-of-soapy-flavor.

The First Method

1. Rinse your pot very well.
2. Wearing rubber gloves to prevent your hands from chafing and becoming dried from the salt, pour a generous amount of salt into bowl and rub the salt around the sides and bottom. You will notice the salt pick up the dirt and become grey in color.
3. Rinse the bowl well.
4. Fill the bowl with water and at least ¼ cup of salt and bring to a boil.

The Second Method

1. Rinse your pot very well.
2. Place your stone pot in a large pot filled with salted water.
3. Bring the large pot of water to a boil.
4. Boil for an hour.
5. Remove the pot once the water is cooled.
6. For good measure, rub salt in the inside of the bowl to remove any sanded stone residue.

Dolsot Maintenance
After each use, use only salt and water to clean your dolsot. If you wear rubber gloves, you can either rub the salt into the dolsot to clean it well or just boil the whole thing to remove large residual rice grains and etc. Once your dolsot has dried, rub a little oil all around it and inside it. Keep it away from dust.

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Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi (보쌈배추김치)

Baechu* Whole Cabbage Kimchi Bursting with Aristocratic Bossam** Flavor



Reconnecting With My Kimchi Korean Roots

When considering East Asian cuisine, there are many similarities and cross-over dishes between cultures, such as dumplings, but kimchi, spicy fermented napa cabbage, is distinctively Korean. There are over 100 varieties of kimchi with ingredients, seasonings, and fermenting techniques varying by region, province, and family. Kimchi tends to get spicier the more south you travel, and closer you get to the coast, the more oysters, squid, beltfish, and other sea creatures are added in kimchi.

There exists a kimchi for every season: clear mul kimchi quenches parched summer throats while spicy baechu kimchi warms winter bellies. The pervasive saying that, "A meal without kimchi is a sad meal" shows how elemental kimchi is to Koreans. Like Westerners who suffer from cabin fever when cooped up, Koreans purportedly suffer from kimchi fever when deprived of their kimchi. Worse yet, some marriages are said to fall apart if a wife's cooking and kimchi cannot match that of her mother-in-law!

Last fall, I visited South Korea for the first time with the intention of visiting my relatives and hope that I would glean some family recipes from my aunt and cousin. Since my grandmother died before passing on her recipes to my mother but not my mother’s sister-in-law, I thought, by virtue of being a member of the Lee family, I was entitled to share the family jewels. But upon arriving to my aunt and uncle’s home, I discovered myself shooed out of the kitchen and prevented from helping with the preparation of meals. By the time I woke up, the food was often already laid upon the table, and if I prodded my aunt and cousin enough, they begrudgingly discussed the main ingredients but not the methods. I understand that part of their treatment toward me was motivated by their perception of me as a guest. In Korean traditional culture, my helping is considered an insult because it insinuates that the hostess cannot handle the work alone. But my aunt and cousin also believe that an American born Korean will never be as familiar with or capable of mastering the art of Korean cuisine. They have not recently visited Los Angeles to realize that it is home to the largest Korean population outside of Korea.

Hence, when asking for my grandmother’s kimchi recipe, I was repeatedly denied a reply, mostly because my aunt and cousin did not believe that I could know anything about Korean food, let alone pull off making kimchi. My aunt was astounded that I was even familiar with doenjang jiggae, a fermented soy bean stew with tofu and scraps of fish, meat, and vegetable—something I ate often as a child.

My journey was drawing to a close and my disappointment mounting when my cousin, sensing my distress, tried to comfort me with an explanation for her refusal to share my grandmother’s kimchi recipe. First, my aunt’s kimchi recipe was not exactly the same as my grandmother’s because each generation tweaks the recipe a bit to improve upon it. Second, with the advent of technology, Koreans drastically reduced the amount of salt in kimchi because they had refrigerators now to prevent spoiling. Third, kimchi recipes change according to taste and what ingredients are on hand. If seafood is not available, it won’t be included in the recipe. And fourth, there really is no point in her explaining since kimchi making is a complex, all-day procedure, which she cannot fathom me following!

Of course, she could have just explained her recipe in the same breath she wasted on why she refused to tell me, but my heart lightened in a moment of epiphany: my grandmother’s kimchi recipe is interesting as a historic artifact but is just that—a relic of old times. I am luckier than my cousin because I, as an American, am free to be even more innovative with my kimchi recipe and fermentation techniques than her. With no preconceived notions of what is proper or not, I can experiment without fear that my Chinese boyfriend will leave me because my kimchi is not like his mother’s (which does not exist since kimchi is not a Chinese dish, although it is now a very hot and highly politicized export which China fights trade war over). And best yet, I can start the tradition of passing down my perfect kimchi recipe for the next generation to completely revamp. Perhaps they will decide to forgo the fresh shucked oysters?

Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi



After researching several kimchi recipes and the ingredients for each, I developed a hybrid kimchi recipe. My Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi recipe combines the best aspects of bossam kimchi, an elite kimchi from Gaeseong, what is now considered a North Korean province, and baechu kimchi, a classic whole cabbage favorite which appears at every meal. Bossam kimchi is renown for its aristocratic heritage: the expensive, rare ingredients combined with its labor-intensive preparation made it available only to the wealthy few. Baechu kimchi is popular for practical reasons: made from whole cabbage, it lasts the longest and is easy to prepare. Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi extracts the ingredients and seasonings of bossam kimchi and combines them with the relatively easy preparation techniques and longevity of baechu kimchi.

What makes this Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi truly unique is the addition of rare, raw, white aloe bee honey in lieu of the oft-called for over-processed sugar. Honey is an unconventional way of enhancing the kimchi fermentation process and reducing the risk of bad bacteria blooms without added salt. As an anti-bacterial agent and one of the only natural fermentable sugars, honey kills off the bad bacteria in the kimchi while encouraging fermentation and the flourishing of lactobacilli.

Two days pass when I detect a heady scent reminiscent of runny French cheeses. Take one bite into bossam-style baechu kimchi and your dormant taste buds will awaken and nasal passages clear. Crunchy like a half-sour pickle and refreshing as wine spritzer, bossam-style baechu kimchi complements any meal with its perfect balance of acidity and complex combination of flavors. Lightly roasted walnuts and pine nuts gently meld with the subtle sweetness of crisp Asian pear and fruity Fuji apple. Bits of brined shrimp, fresh shucked oysters and scallops fill the crevices of each cabbage leaf, leaving the taste of the ocean on the tip of your tongue. Like Willy Wonka’s Amazing Fabulous Sensational Three-Course Gum, Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi will reverberate through your mouth and leave no part of your palette unexplored.

* Baechu kimchi is also called Baechue Tong Kimchi, Baechu Tong Kimchi, Tongbaechu Kimchi, Bechu Kimchi, and Bechu Tong Kimchi.
** Bossam is also spelled Bosam, Possam, and Posam.

Bossam-Style Baechu Kimchi Recipe

~ Makes one gallon or 4-quart jar and one 1/2 gallon 2-quart jar

Salted whole napa cabbage
It is very important not to over-salt the napa cabbage and to be attentive to its changing chemistry during the salting process, in which it will lose over 90 percent of its water. Make sure you have enough sterilized, glass, screw-top jars. You can choose between one gallon jar and one half-gallon jar or three half-gallon jars.

7-8 lbs/2 heads Napa cabbage, cut into quarters or 2-inch wedges, depending on size of cabbage
1 3/4 cup coarse sea salt or kosher salt
Water

1. Rinse the cabbage well once and drain.
2. Trim off any residual root of cabbage, leaving only enough to hold the cabbage together.
3. Slice the cabbage into length-wise quarters.
4. Use water sparingly to rinse the cabbage. Reserve the collected cabbage water.
5. Sprinkle salt between each leaf of the quartered cabbage, and place each in a row in a large, non-reactive bowl or pot and layer them.
6. Pour the reserved cabbage water toward the side of the container so as to not wash off the salt from the cabbage. The salted cabbage should not be entirely submerged in cabbage water.
7. Pour the remaining salt on top of the quartered cabbages.
8. Let the cabbage salt for three hours, shifting the cabbage pieces every hour. After the second hour passes, make sure you tend to it every fifteen minutes and test to see whether it has a crunch to your liking.
9. Rinse the salted cabbage pieces very thoroughly.
10. Wring the liquid from each cabbage piece and set aside. Reserve the juice in a separate bowl, you may require this later.

Spicy Kimchi Paste
I used my very powerful Vita-Mix Blender to finely grind my own organic sweet brown rice flour, but you can use regular sweet rice flour. For oysters, I used Hama Hama, which are famous for their briny flavor, firm meat, mild finish and freshness even during summer months, but if you can get a hold of them, use Olympia oysters because they have a unique smoky flavor and copper finish.

Kimchi Paste Base
3 tbs sweet brown rice flour
3/4 bulb garlic, cloves separated and peeled
2 tsp ginger juice, fresh squeezed
1/4 cup Korean brined baby shrimp
1 cup Korean hot pepper powder
½ cup oysters, raw, freshly shucked
¼ cup scallops, raw
1 blood orange, juice + zest
1 shitake mushroom, fresh or rehydrated if previously dehydrated
1/3 cup honey
½ sweet white onion

Kimchi Paste Bits
1/3 cup walnuts, finely chopped
1 lb Korean radish or daikon, peeled and sliced into 2 x 1 x ¼ inch blocks
1 large Asian pear, peeled and sliced into 2 x 1 x ¼ inch blocks
1 Fuji apple, peeled and sliced into 2 x 1 x ¼ inch blocks
2 tbs pine nuts, brown tips removed
2 jujubes, pitted and thinly slivered
3 tbs goji berries

1. Boil 1 ½ cups of water in a small non-reactive pot, reduce to a simmer, and gently sift 3 tbs of sweet brown rice flour into the water, stirring frequently. Let cool.
2. Pour the cooled sweet rice paste and the rest of the ingredients listed under Kimchi Paste Base into a blender and blend on high.
3. Mix the Kimchi Paste Base together with the ingredients listed under Kimchi Paste Bits.

Preparing the Kimchi
Make sure you use a plastic drop cloth or newspapers when stuffing the kimchi because the red peppers stain surfaces and clothing easily. Also make sure you wear rubber or powder-free latex gloves in order to prevent chili pepper burns.

1. Smear the kimchi paste between each of the cabbage leaves, depositing some of the radish, apple, and pear in the outer-most layer of the cabbages as well as the inner.
2. Tightly compress the leaves and then start depositing each prepared cabbage quarter into a sterilized glass jar with screw-top lid.
3. Press down on the prepared bundles as you fill each jar to remove any air bubbles.
4. Make sure you leave at least two inches of space on top of each jar.
5. Sparingly pour the reserved cabbage juice from the wrung cabbages into each jar.
6. Pile any remaining kimchi paste and bits into each jar.
7. Double saran wrap over the mouth of the kimchi jars and stretch a rubber band over the necks. Screw the cap on tightly.
8. Bag the kimchi in a plastic bag and make sure the whole jar is covered the bag to prevent odors and the potential release of gases.
9. Set aside in a cool dark place overnight. In the morning, ladle out some of the juice if necessary.
10. Let mature in a cool, dark place for 2-3 days before placing the kimchi in the refrigerator to slow the fermentation process. The kimchi will last up to 3 weeks after which it will gradually increase in sourness.
11. To serve, transfer one whole piece onto the cutting board and slice crosswise into 2 inch sections.

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Bulgogi Buffalo Burger (불고기버거)

Bison burger meat fired with bulgogi flavor & nestled in a sticky brown rice bun

If there exists an edible that epitomizes the experience of being an American born Korean raised in Southern California, it is the Bulgogi Buffalo Burger. Imagine a 1/2 lb bulgogi-style seasoned slab of all-organic, grass-fed, free-range American buffalo meat topped with grilled onions, melted cheddar, crisp bean sprouts, crunchy purple cabbage, fragrant perilla leaves, pungent kimchi, and spicy jalapeños nestled between a roasted brown rice bun with a dollop of kochujang ketchup on the side. The bison burger meat is flavored with typical Asian seasonings of soy sauce and garlic but given an unconventional shot of Korean green plum wine, maesil ju. The Bulgogi Buffalo Burger also prominently features kochujang, fermented hot pepper paste and kimchi, spicy fermented napa cabbage- two national Korean foods, according to the Korean government. With your bulgogi, bap, and banchan in burger form, you can manhandle your meal and sink your teeth in the good old fashioned American way!

Buffalo (American Bison) meat is sweeter in flavor and leaner than beef. Bison meat is also healthier than skinless chicken, pork, lamb and even some fish, especially if you consider the mercury levels in fish nowadays. There is little shrinkage in bison meat, and because there is less fat to insulate the bison meat, it cooks faster than beef. Furthermore, in comparison to grain-fed beef, buffalo meat contains 69% more iron and higher levels of vitamins, minerals and omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids, which help promote a healthy metabolism. So, send this buffalo home on the range and then, straight in your tummy

Bulgogi Buffalo Burger Recipe

~ Serves 4 people

Bulgogi-Style Marinated Bison Meat
If you are not eager to march off to a hunting range with a bow and arrow, check whether your local farmer's market carries bison meat or make the purchase online.

2 lbs ground buffalo (American bison) meat
4 large cloves of garlic
6 tsp soy sauce
4 tbs pineapple juice
3 tbs Korean green plum wine, maesil ju
2 tsp ginger juice
1/2 tsp pepper

1. Crush and roast the garlic. Let cool.
2. Force the ginger through the garlic crusher to obtain ginger juice. Mix the ginger juice with roasted garlic and other marinade ingredients.
3. Marinate the ground bison 2-3 hours or overnight.

Kochujang Ketchup
In lieu of ketchup, you can dab some fermented hot pepper paste on your burger. I recommend either O'Foods or Pulmone kochujang for the best quality results. Don’t slather on the kochujang like ketchup, however, because kochujang is much saltier than ketchup. O’Foods is less salty and much tastier than Pulmone but also twice as much in cost.

1/4 cup kochujang
2 tbs rice vinegar
2 tbs green plum wine, maesil ju
2 tsp sesame oil
1 clove garlic, crushed

1. Mix all the ingredients together well. Let everyone help themselves.

Mixed Brown Rice (Bap) Buns
The stickiness of the sweet brown rice helps hold the grains together. Inspired by a favorite Korean snack, nurungi, which is the scorched rice at the bottom of the pot, down-home Korean melds with backyard American cooking.

2/3 cup short grain brown rice
1/3 cup sweet brown rice
2 cups of water
4 tsp sesame oil

1. Mix 2/3 cup short grain brown rice with 1/3 cup sweet brown rice, rinse and drain.
2. Pour 2 cups of water and pressure cook rice. Let cool to a warm temperature.
3. Cut about 1 square foot of saran wrap. Place a little over 1/4 cup of rice in the center of the saran wrap, and flatten and compress the rice into the shape of patty. Make sure you pack the patty tight.
4. Pour 1/2 tsp of sesame oil per patty on the pan. You will have 8 rice patties.
5. Cook each patty for 5-7 minutes over medium heat on each side. Do not flip the patty unnecessarily. 7 minutes will produce a more scorched bun than 5 minutes.

Preparing Toppings
Make sure you purchase perilla (kenip) leaves from the Korean market and not shiso leaves from the Japanese market. Korean perilla leaves are larger, heartier, less furry, and gentler in flavor than their Japanese counterparts. Kimchi can be purchased almost anywhere nowadays, including Costco, but I like to go to the Galleria market in K-town and get the kimchi with the raw oysters, croaker, and beltfish.

12 perilla leaves
2 cups young soybean sprouts
2 cups purple cabbage, shredded
2 green jalapeño peppers, sliced
1/2 onion, grilled
2 cups kimchi, sliced
4 slices cheddar cheese

1. Wash, dry, and prepare all the fresh vegetables. Set aside.
2. Grill the onions on the pan with touch of olive oil. Set aside.

Cooking & Assembling the Burger
Bison meat cooks 1/3 faster than regular beef, so if you like your burger medium rare, keep a close watch on the time. As with any lean meat, bison burger meat tastes better not over-cooked to well-done because the meat may become chewy and dry. The basic cooking strategy is: sear on high, then low and slow. Make sure you use a pancake spatula or tongs to flip the meat. Do not agitate or poke the meat more than necessary because the delicious juices are more likely to escape.

Ground bison meat, marinated
2 tsp vegetable oil

1. Heat the pan or grill up on high. Use 1/2 tsp of oil per burger patty.
2. Divide the meat into four patties.
3. Sear each side for about 1-2 minutes.
4. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook 3-4 minutes on each side.
5. Place the burger meat on top of the rice bun and pile on whatever toppings you desire.

Continue Reading "Bulgogi Buffalo Burger (불고기버거)" Recipe ...

ACORNucopia Noodles (도토리국수)

Acorn noodles with a cornucopia of protein and crunchy veggies



A Primer on the Delectable Edible Acorn

Way healthier than wheat and tastier too, acorns served as sustenance to us since prehistoric times. During times of destitution in Korea, the poor and forlorn would seek food derived from the acorn. Now, it is not necessity that drives us to squirrel away these oak nuts but its health benefits and delicious nutty flavor.

Google for acorn flour, and few people—save self-sufficient mountain Jacks, Wiccan chefs, and Native Americans—go through the trouble of processing acorn flour because the procedure is notoriously difficult. First, you must collect acorns, being wary of weevil larvae, then, leech out the tannins, and peel away tough husks before grinding the grain-like nuts into flour. Leeching out the tannins alone may take up to ten hours and several water changes.

But, dig a little deeper into the web, varying your search terms, and you will find dotori muk, acorn jelly, and dotori gooksoo, acorn noodles. In Korean cuisine, acorn flour and starches are frequently used in cooking, so much so that the starch and flour are manufactured and sold at many Korean grocery stores. Finished acorn-based products such as the dotori muk and dotori gooksoo are also available at many Korean stores. Be wary of products labeled as acorn noodles, however, because some contain as little as 4% acorn flour. The highest percentage of acorn flour I have seen contained in acorn noodles is 35%, and this was fact was proudly touted in a Well-Being store in Seoul.

The acorn noodles in my recipe are homemade and contain 70 percent fresh ground acorn meal. Due to the freshness and lack of preservatives of the acorn noodles, they should be stored in the freezer. I have decided to make these noodles available for purchase due to a complete absence of quality acorn noodles web and storewide.



All About Acorn Hut's Acorn Soba Noodles

Packed with essential amino acids and antioxidants, Acorn Hut's acorn noodles are a healthy and flavorful alternative to any pick of pasta. This dish teems with ten different vegetables and the parent-child proteins of chicken and egg. The juxtaposition of contrasting textures and tastes create a unique savory experience as the garlic, pan-roasted burdock seasons, and is in turned livened by, a bunch of crisp bean sprouts. Fragrant, fresh-snipped perilla and garland chrysanthemum, tossed in with sliced cabbage, green onions, carrots, cucumbers and two types of hot peppers, complete the spicy cornucopia with a satisfying crunch.

I developed this recipe after tasting Kobawoo restaurant’s version of dotori gooksoo. Their kochujang sauce left much to be desired as it varnished my tongue with a watery wasabi-like resin. Meanwhile, key Korean vegetables seemed M.I.A. while the red onions and bell peppers tasted misplaced.

In Acorn Hut's ACORNucopia Noodle Recipe, only the finest ingredients are used. No corn syrup is added to the organic kochujang sauce—the same cannot be confidently said for Kobawoo’s kochujang sauce. Acorn Hut’s noodles consist of a 70 percent acorn flour base. And the only two oils sparingly used are organic extra virgin olive oil and toasted sesame oil. The best part about making this dish at home is that you are the Q.C.M. (Quality Control Manager), and the ingredients are as organic and fresh as you desire.

ACORNucopia Acorn Noodle Recipe

~ Serves 3-4 people

The Chicken and the Egg
You can use either hard boiled eggs or egg ribbons. Using hard boiled eggs takes less time but otherwise, which you choose is a matter of personal taste. To save time, you may also opt for a pre-made rotisserie chicken.

Hard Boiled Eggs
Boiling an egg is not as straightforward as tossing it in boiling water. Here are a few tips for a fluffier egg.

2-3 eggs

1. Prick the top of the egg with a pin to allow the egg to expand into its whole shell as it cooks.
2. Boiling time may vary depending on the size of the egg, but I don’t think you should boil any sized egg for more than 15 minutes.
3. Rinse the eggs in cold water to make peeling easier.

Egg Ribbons
Use a small non-stick pan when making these egg ribbons. Always keep the heat medium to low to prevent to release of unwanted chemicals. This recipe is similar but less labor intensive than my egg omelet recipe in Kickin’ California Kimbap.

3 eggs
½ tsp olive oil
¼ tsp honey
1 tsp mirin
Pinch sea salt

1. Melt the honey into the mirin.
2. Beat the honeyed mirin and salt into the eggs.
3. Lubricate the heated pan with olive oil.
4. Pour the egg mixture into the pan and wait until the egg solidifies and edges brown a little.
5. Flip the egg, turn off the heat, and let sit.
6. Slice the egg into 1/6 inch strips. Set aside in small bowl.

Chicken
I have used pre-made rotisserie chickens from Costco and Zankou with great success. Be wary of pre-made chickens at grocery stores like Ralphs because they tend to be overly salted. But for a healthier alternative, cook your own chicken breasts.

One tablespoon sesame oil
2 large chicken breasts
2 two-inch pieces of ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp soy sauce
½ cup mirin
¼ cup pineapple juice
2 tbs water

1. Pan roast the chicken with sesame oil, ginger, and sliced garlic. When the chicken is browned, flip, turn off the heat and let the pan cool a bit.
2. Pour soy sauce, mirin, pineapple juice, and water into the pan and cover.
3. Cook on medium low heat for fifteen minutes.
4. Uncover and continue to cook for about 20 minutes until the liquid thickens into a sauce. Set aside to cool.
5. Slice the chicken using your knife or throw it into your food processor for a few pulses in a batch separate from the vegetables.

Kochujang Dressing/Fermented Hot Pepper Sauce
The best kochujang is homemade from scratch with organic ingredients, but if you don't have time, the best MSG-free store-bought brands for kochejang are O'Foods and Pulmone. Due to the nature of the fresh dressing ingredients, you require a powerful blender. One of my favorite kitchen tools is my Vita-Mix Blender because the motor is incredibly powerful, and it pulverizes my smoothies, spices, grains, and of course, dressings in mere seconds.

3 tbs kochujang, fermented hot pepper paste
2 tbs dry vermouth
2 tbs olive oil
2 large cloves fresh garlic
2 tbs freshly squeezed lemon or kalamanzi juice
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
½ Korean pear, peeled and seeded
1 tsp white peppercorns
1 tbs sesame oil

1. Place all the kochujang salad dressing ingredients in your blender.
2. Blend on low before increasing to high. The resulting salad dressing should be smooth and resemble cream of tomato soup, or a reddish Thousand Island’s dressing. Let people help themselves.

Vegetable cornucopia
Most of these fresh vegetables may be purchased at your local farmer’s market. Find garland chrysanthemum (ssukgat), perilla (kkenip), and hot peppers (gochu) at your local Korean or Japanese market. You can choose between 4 different types of cucumbers- Japanese, Korean, Persian, and English. Korean oi have a pastel green hue and tend to be a bit less crisp than their forest green Japanese kyuri counterparts. Both are shorter, thinner, and crisper than the English hot house cucumber. Persian cucumbers are shorter than both Korean and Japanese cucumbers and have a thicker seed middle but not as thick as English cucumbers. For your reference, 3 kyuri = 3 oi = 4 Persian = 1 English hot house cucumber

2 cups bean sprouts
¼ purple cabbage
1 bunch garland chrysanthemum
2 bunches perilla leaves, 10-14 leaves
1 stalk green onions
2 Korean green hot peppers
1 red jalapeño pepper
5-6 young carrots
3 Japanese cucumbers

1. Wash and then pat or spin dry all of the vegetables.
2. Place the bean sprouts in a small bowl covered bowl and fridge. As you finish chopping or slicing each vegetable, refrigerate each in a small bowl to preserve freshness.
3. Slice the purple cabbage into ¼ inch thick pieces.
4. Chop the garland chrysanthemum into 1 ½ - 2 inch pieces.
5. Fold the perilla leaves over one another in a deck and snip them into 1/3 inch thick pieces.
6. Slice the green onion into thin disks.
7. Slice the Korean green hot peppers into 1/6 inch thick disks.
8. Slice the red jalapeño pepper into thin disks.
9. Insert the coarse blade into your mandolin slicer and slice your carrots evenly into ¼ inch thick strips.
10. Repeat this procedure for your cucumbers.

Time Saver: If you value time over the aesthetics or if you plan to double this recipe, throw all the vegetables one batch at a time into your food processor and pulse a few times. My Kitche nAid food processor shreds the cabbage perfectly in less than ten seconds.

Pan-Roasted Garlic Burdock
Burdock (uuong/gobo) may be found at your local Korean or Japanese grocer. Some Chinese markets also carry burdock, known as Ngau Pong in Cantonese. To pick a fresh burdock, look for obvious shriveling and then carefully inspect the density of the root at its base. Ideally, the base should be solid and have no splinters of wind tunnels. If you whip the burdock a bit, it should also have a firm resilience and not be limp.

2 whole roots of burdock (uuong/gobo)
4 cloves of garlic
1 tbs sesame oil
Pinch of sea salt

1. Slice the burdock into thin matchsticks using your mandolin slicer, or chop the root into 2 inch pieces and toss into a food processor.
2. Throw the sesame oil and salt in a pan over medium low heat.
3. Add the sliced burdock and 4 crushed cloves of garlic in the pan.
4. Stir fry until the burdock edges and garlic bits are a golden brown. Set aside in a small bowl.

Acorn Hut's Acorn Noodles
Try substituting acorn noodles in any recipe that calls for pasta noodles. Acorn noodles are an especially excellent alternative to soba noodles. You can try purchasing acorn noodles either at your local Korean grocer or for higher quality acorn noodles, here at Acorn Hut.

1 lb Acorn Noodles (dotori gooksoo)

1. Immerse acorn noodles in boiling water and boil for 6 minutes.
2. Rinse noodles in icy cold water and drain well.

Arranging Acorn Noodles
Arrange all of the different prepared toppings on the table and let people choose which toppings they want, or prepare each bowl separately.

Acorn noodles
Vegetables
Chicken
Egg
Kochujang sauce

1. First, place the noodles in each bowl.
2. Pile on the toppings.
3. Allow each person to pour as much sauce as they please.

Continue Reading "ACORNucopia Noodles (도토리국수)" Recipe ...

Super G-Salad (인삼산채)

A Medley of Ginseng, Garland Chrysanthemum, Gingko Nuts, Goji Berries, Green Peppers & Garlic

This ambrosial assortment is a stimulating health elixir in salad form. The ginseng, garland chrysanthemum, gingko nuts, goji Berries, green Korean hot peppers, and garlic hot pepper dressing create a rare, delicious salad. Composed of numerous nutrition-packed ingredients beginning with the letter “G”, hence the name “Super G Salad”, this salad sings with a robust, distinctively nutty, spicy, slightly bitter, savory, yet subtly sweet, fresh deliciousness.

Dressing this herbaceous bouquet of quintessential Korean ingredients, such as ginseng and gingko, is a distinctly Korean condiment-kochujang, fermented red hot pepper paste. Despite a striking resemblance to cream of tomato soup, the kochujang dressing savors like a garlicky fire gently dancing on your tongue.

And the Super G Salad tastes as good as it is for you. In particular, the ginseng and gingko nuts act synergistically together to improve cognitive function. Ginseng also widens blood vessels by increasing production of nitric oxide, which is also how a certain Little Blue Pick-Me-Up Pill works. This salad is not only an aphrodisiac but also an alleviant for Type 2 diabetes. The ginseng, gingko nuts, garlic, and Korean hot peppers all actively lower blood sugar levels. And, if you believe 5000 years of East Asian medicine, the Super G Salad is essentially a panacea for all existing ills.

Super G Salad Recipe

~ Serves 3-4 people

Salad
Living in Los Angeles, I am blessed with numerous shopping options for Asian groceries. I found the best place to buy organic garland chrysanthemum, however, is at your local farmer’s market or a Japanese grocery store like Nijiya or Marukai. Garland Chrysanthemum is also known as Crown Daisies, Shungiku in Japanese, or Ssukat/Ssukgat in Korean. Fresh ginseng can generally be found at any Korean market. To create the ginseng shreds, I suggest using a vegetable peeler that resembles a personal razor.

1 bunch organic garland chrysanthemum
2 fresh ginseng roots, 5-6 inches long, 1 inch base
4 green Korean hot peppers

1. Wash, spin-dry, and then separate the garland chrysanthemum leaves.
2. Wash, pat dry, and shave the ginseng lengthwise with your vegetable peeler.
3. Slice the green Korean hot peppers into thin disks.
4. Mix the garland chrysanthemum, ginseng, and green Korean hot peppers together.
5. Divide the salad onto plates.

Toppings
I purchase my gingko nuts fresh in Korean markets, but I have also seen them sold shelled and vacuum-packed in plastic. Gingko nuts are small and have a thin, delicate shell, so regular nut crackers are not efficient for shelling them. The best nut cracker for gingko nuts is actually a lime squeezer, and you can usually crack about 5-6 gingko nuts in one go.

½ cup gingko nuts
2 tbs goji berries
2 tbs pine nuts
1 tsp olive oil
pinch salt

1. Lightly roast the shelled gingko nuts over a low fire with 1 tsp of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Set aside and let cool.
2. Lightly roast the pine nuts over a low fire. Combine with the cooled gingko nuts.
3. Sprinkle the gingko nuts, pine nuts, and goji berries over each salad.

Kochujang Dressing/Fermented Hot Pepper Sauce
The best kochujang is homemade from scratch with organic ingredients, but if you don't have time, the best MSG-free store-bought brands for kochujang are O'Foods and Pulmone. O'Foods is two-three times more expensive than Pulmone, but it also tastes better and is less salty. Due to the nature of the fresh dressing ingredients, you require a powerful blender. One of my favorite kitchen tools is my Vita-Mix Blender because the motor is incredibly powerful, and it pulverizes my smoothies, spices, grains, and of course, dressings in mere seconds.

3 tbs kochujang, fermented hot pepper paste
2 tbs dry vermouth
2 tbs olive oil
2 large cloves fresh garlic
2 tbs freshly squeezed lemon or kalamanzi juice
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
½ Korean pear, peeled and seeded
1 tsp white peppercorns
1 tbs sesame oil

1. Place all the kochujang salad dressing ingredients in your blender.
2. Blend on low before increasing to high. The resulting salad dressing should be smooth and resemble cream of tomato soup, or a reddish Thousand Island’s dressing. Let people help themselves.

Continue Reading "Super G-Salad (인삼산채)" Recipe ...

Winter Cool Cucumber Salad (오이무침)

A cool salad for keeping yourself HOT in the wintertime

Wintertime is harsh on your skin and body— your body burns more calories than usual trying to keep warm. Of course it doesn’t follow that you lose weight because you crave heartier foods. Meanwhile, your skin gets battered by the wind, cold, and sun. But you can keep that polar pudge off and skin smooth by harnessing the hydrating powers of cucumber in combination with the fat-burning fire of red Korean chili peppers.

What makes this seasoned cucumber or, in Korean, oi muchim work is the Japanese cucumber, kyuri, which are available year-round. You may also choose to use Persian cucumbers or English hothouse cucumbers. The cucumbers, in tandem with ginger, garlic, green onion, and hot chili peppers, produce a powerfully potent salad of Vitamin A, B6, and C, chromium, manganese, silica, selenium, and sulfur—all vital for aiding your skin in its natural repair. The red chili peppers also boost your metabolism as capsaicin continues to burn calories, long after you have already digested it! Omit the honey, and this recipe is a homeopathic alleviant for diabetics.

Winter Cool Cucumber Recipe

~ Serves 3-4 people

Garlicky Vinegar
This garlicky vinegar may be added to soy sauce for dipping dumplings, kochujang, or any other sauce or dish that calls for vinegar.

3 garlic cloves
6 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp maesil ju, Korean green plum wine

1. Crush or thinly slice the garlic cloves.
2. Soak the garlic in 6 tsp of rice vinegar for an hour, or preferably, overnight.

Cucumber Salad
What adds an extra special spicy kick to this salad is the shot of fresh ginger juice.

3 japanese cucumbers – kyuri
2 tsp scallions/green onions, finely chopped
½ tsp cracked black pepper
2 tbs Korean red chili pepper, cut in thin .5 x .1 inch strips
1 tbs seaweed, cut in thin .5 x .1 inch strips
2 tsp honey
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp ginger juice
¼ tsp salt

3. Stir in honey into the ginger juice, which you have obtained from crushing the bulb of ginger.
4. Use your Japanese Mandolin slicer to evenly slice your cucumbers into thin 1/16 inch disks.
5. Lightly sprinkle the salt over the cucumbers.
6. Mix the garlic vinegar, soy sauce, and honeyed ginger juice together and pour over the cucumbers.
7. Add scallions, cracked pepper, salt, red chili pepper, and if you so desire sesame seeds and oil, and lightly toss.
8. Add the seaweed and additional red pepper on top for garnish and serve.

Variations
For a softer sesame version, add:
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
3 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Continue Reading "Winter Cool Cucumber Salad (오이무침)" Recipe ...

Bebop for Kimbap... California Style (닭고기김밥)

The healthy, organic version of Korean fast food sushi

Lucky the leprechaun just might forgo his Lucky Charms if he knew about kimbap*, Korean sushi, which is composed of a mishmash of colorful ingredients, thus capturing the rainbow in a roll instead of a bowl.

As an all-inclusive-meal-in-a-bite you can pop in your mouth, kimbap produces some odd bedfellows. Combinations in kimbap can range from your typical marriage of tuna and mayonnaise to the eye-brow raising duo of kimchi and cheese. Basically, it’s a free-for-all, so let loose your creative juices when choosing your kimbap fillings. Roll themes can range from all-organic, vegan and macrobiotic-friendly to rib-eye richness.

Although short grain white rice is the most commonly used grain for kimbap, I opt for a 1:2 grain ratio of organic sweet brown rice and organic short grain brown rice. Sweet brown rice is a glutinous, high-protein variety of rice, whose refined counterpart is commonly used in desserts such as mochi or dduk/tok. This grain mixture produces rice strongly characterized by a sticky, chewy and hearty goodness. Each grain seemingly pops with a sweet, nutty flavor under the grind of your molar. Adding sweet rice also increases the overall gluten, making it easier to use less rice and tightly roll the smorgasbord of meat and vegetables into the blanket of rice and seaweed.

Spinach may add a bold kick of green color to kimbap and remain a frequently favored darling among vegetables for Koreans, but I am not a fan of its flavor or texture in kimbap, so I gave it the boot. I prefer a combination of crunch and velvety richness balanced by enough vinegary acidity to make kimbap the way I imagine it should be: a-balanced-meal-in-a-bite, where every ingredient has its place and the addition of soy sauce becomes a travesty.

Kickin' Californian Kimbap Recipe

~ Yields 12 rolls,serves 3-5 people

To save time, consider preparing some of the kimbap materials the night before, such as the chicken and any of the vegetables, except the avocado.

Yummy Brown Rice Mix
I can always differentiate a good variety of organic short grain brown rice from inorganic rice by whether the eye of grain is intact. When organic rice is cooked, the light yellow eye should be staring at you from the tip of the grain.

1. Mix 1 1/3 cup short grain brown rice with 2/3 cup sweet brown rice.
2. Soak for an hour, drain, and add 2 2/3 cups water to pressure cook.
3. Melt 1/2 tsp honey into 1 tsp hot water, mix with 3 tsp rice vinegar and ¼ tsp salt.
4. Sprinkle this vinegar seasoning over the cooked rice while fanning the rice to make the grains shiny.

Kickin' Chicken
I know the health benefits of white meat outweigh the dark, but I prefer dark-meat. To compromise, I mixed chicken parts and then shredded everything together with a fork, but if you pick only breast meat for this recipe, I would advise that you purchase meat with some skin and bones because otherwise, there’s no flavor to savor! The marinade for this chicken is a healthier, sugar-free version of the standard Korean barbeque marinade. In lieu of maesil ju, Korean green plum wine, feel free to add mirin, grand marnier, or marsala wine. Each liqour imparts a different subtle flavor on the chicken and which you choose is a matter of personal preference.

2 ½ lb chicken parts
6 garlic cloves
½ onion
¼ cup ginger
¼ cup soy sauce
½ cup pineapple juice
¼ cup maesil ju, Korean green plum wine

1. Slice the garlic cloves into 1/8 inch thick disks and set aside.
2. Slice the ginger into thick strips and set aside.
3. Soak and rinse the chicken in water to get rid of any debris or blood.
4. Place the chicken and other ingredients in a pot with a thick-bottom or copper coating.
5. Cover and cook on medium heat until it starts to boil, then quickly reduce to a simmer and cook for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Remove the cover and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes or until much of the liquid has evaporated and meat becomes shiny, falling off bone.
7. Wait until the meat cools a bit and then remove all the bones, ginger, and onion bits.
8. You can leave the meat in chunks or shred the meat slightly and pour the remaining
liquid back into the meat for extra seasoning. Set aside.

Crunchy Vegetables
Young carrots- the carrots should not be cooked too long or they will lack the firm, dense crunch.

1. Douse the carrots in boiling water for about five minutes to blanch.
2. Rinse carrots in cold water.
3. Slice each carrot length-wise into fourths and scatter ¼ tsp salt over carrots.
4. Pour just enough rice vinegar over to steep the carrots. I used shallow oval bowls, but you may also place them on a plate with high rim. Set aside.

Japanese cucumbers/kyuri- These cucumbers are similar to Persian cucumbers with a thinner middle and crunchier outside than English hot house cucumbers. Kyuri contribute a fresh, crisp crunch to the kimbap roll.

5. Slice each cucumber length-wise into sixths, trimming the seed middle a bit. Set aside.

Pickled radish/Daikon- I believe in making things from scratch for quality control, but pickling vegetables to crunchy perfection is an art of its own. The perfect daikon is wrinkly as the trunk of an elephant, about 1 ½ inches thick, and marked by a deep, edgy crunch.

6. Slice the daikon length-wise in halves. Slice that half into sixths. Set aside.

Pickled red radish/Fukujin zuke- this vibrant red pickled radish adds a subtle sweetness to the kimbap.

7. Drain the fukujin zuke and set aside in a small bowl.

Pickled eggplant & cucumber/shiba zuke- This pickled eggplant paints the kimbap with a beautiful purple, imbuing the roll with aromatic perilla flavor while adding a cushy crunch.

8. Drain the shiba zuke and set aside in a small bowl.

Avocado- Some people slather mayonnaise as a quick flavor fix or to offset the way their kimbap sticks in your throat, which is often caused by too much white rice and not enough filling. Slicing fresh avocados into your rolls, however, is a great, tasty alternative to mayonnaise. In this Kickin’ California Kimbap, avocados add a bit of creamy decadence and complement the nutty, chewy brown rice.

9. Peel and seed the avocado, then slice it length-wise in half.
10. Cut each halve into sixths and set aside.

Egg omelet/Gehran/Tamagoyaki
Usually, a little bit of sugar is added in the egg omelet, but I try to cut my use of refined, processed sugar wherever I can and instead, substituted a little bit of honey. The secret to making a good tamagoyaki is pouring just enough egg to cover the bottom of the pan and having the right pan. You need a heavy-bottomed, non-stick square pan.

1. Melt ½ tsp honey in 1 tbs of hot water, stirring in 1tsp mirin and ¼ tsp salt.
2. Beat this mixture into 8 eggs. You will cook omelette in two
batches. Heat up a square non-stick pan, lightly coated with olive oil on a low
fire.
3. Pour enough of the egg mixture to cover the pan.
4. Wait until the egg turns opaque and firm but not browned, then use a flexible pancake spatula to loosen the edges. Fold each end onto the middle in thirds, so 1/3of the egg remains as a bar in the middle of the pan.
5. Pour a little more of the egg mixture onto each empty 1/3 section of the pan. Wait until the egg turns opaque and solid, and then flip each end onto the third in the middle.
6. Repeat until half the egg mixture is gone. Set the egg aside to cool before cutting it into sixths. Repeat process so the next batch is cooked and cut. Set aside.

Easy Rolling Instructions
Select a roasted, unseasoned, thick, sushi-grade laver, and you will not encounter rolls that splinter before you can roll them.

1. Carefully spread ½ cup of rice onto 2/3 the laver sheet.
2. Position the chicken on the 1/3 line of the rice section.
3. Pile the egg and other ingredients on top of the chicken.
4. Tightly roll the fillings into the blanket of seaweed and rice, tucking them in if they fall out. Set each roll aside and pile them on a plate.
5. When you are finished rolling the kimbaps, slice each roll horizontally, about ¼-1/3 an inch thick. Wash your knife blade clean in a mixture of 1/3 vinegar and 2/3 water when too much rice accumulates on the blade.

Variations
For smoked fish lovers out there, I also tried replacing the chicken with cold smoked white fish from my local Russian grocer and with great success. Cold smoked white fish is rich with natural oils, however, so watch how much avocado you put in your roll. Cold-smoked mackerel, although an acquired taste, also works beautifully.

Vegetarians should feel free to use smoked tofu. Smoked tofu, especially when combined with all the other ingredients in this roll, tastes delicious and has a texture a bit similar to some fish cakes. Vegans should also feel free to cut the egg out as well, although I really think the egg enhances the flavors of the roll.

*Kimbap is also sometimes spelled Kimbop, Gimbap, Gimbop, Kimbob, and Gimbob. The most common spelling, however, is kimbap.

Continue Reading "Bebop for Kimbap... California Style (닭고기김밥)" Recipe ...

Super Natural Samgyetang (삼계탕)

A souped up Korean ginseng chicken soup dressed with the finest organic ingredients

Here is the Super Natural twist on an old Korean dish – Samgyetang, ginseng chicken soup. This bright coffee-colored consommé stands in stark contrast to the oatmeal opaque of standard ginseng chicken broths. Generous portions of jujubes, goji berries, and ginseng saturate this soup with the deep reddish gold and brown hues you see.

I encountered my first bowl of samgyetang a few years ago. Although Los Angeles is home to many different samgyetangs, each one fell short of the first one I dreamt of, as I waited, sick and eager, fingers tightly gripping my spoon. I imagined samgyetang fusing the crock pot of aromatics in my childhood memories to chicken matza ball soup—deliciously potent Korean penicillin. But, where ingredients were right, quantities and proportions were wrong, and vice versa, a milky broth bursting with rich flavor would only be spoiled by a bite into a bitter, gritty date. One restaurant boiled their tiny bird under such a fast, furious fire that I would have swore they served me the wrong order, Chicken with Water, were it not for my spoon stirring up a sliver of ginseng from the cast iron bottom. Leaving my bowl of Chicken with Water untouched, I vowed to create a Super Natural Samgyetang, a souped-up samgyetang dressed with the finest organic ingredients.

After several different attempts and learning through trial-by-fire, two of which included a crunchy rice filling, the following recipe is a richer, healthier, and more flavorful version of the traditional Korean chicken ginseng soup. The cooking method for this samgyetang differs dramatically from others in that a crock pot is used. The crockpot allows the herbs to soak and cook at a lower temperature, which preserves the goodness of the ginseng, gingko, and jujubes, rather than a quick, furious boil, which destroys the nutrients and scarcely provides time for the herbs to permeate the broth. The crockpot also allows for long cooking time without long watching time, hence it is often dubbed the Prep-It-and-Forget-It (PIFI) cooking method.

Super Natural Samgyetang Recipe

~ Serves 3-4 people

Starting Herbal Broth
Worry not if you exceed the cooking time on this herbal broth, or if the herbal broth simply sits around for a few hours longer because this will allow the herbs to thoroughly saturate the soup.

3 quarts of water
3 cups/15 large jujube dates
½ cup goji berries 3 large fresh ginseng roots/2 dried ginseng roots>5 years

1. Place all the ingredients in a 6-quart Rival crock pot and cook on low for ten hours.
2. Strain the herbal broth through a sieve.
3. Pour the herbal broth back into the crock pot and discard the scraps.

Sweet Rice Stuffing
When picking your chicken or hen, make sure the poultry's skin is pale, spot-free and resilient. What you stuff inside your bird may vary. Some recipes stuff ginseng directly into the chicken. If you are using fresh ginseng, you may add a bit of fresh ginseng in the stuffing mix; however, I believe the ginseng is most efficacious steeping in the broth. If you are using two birds, divide the stuffing materials accordingly.

1 organic young chicken (3-4 lbs), or 2 organic cornish hens
6 medium garlic cloves
3/4 cup organic sweet brown rice
¼ cup goji berries
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
1 tsp cracked black pepper
½ tsp rock sea salt

1. Soak the sweet brown rice for 1-2 hours, drain, and set aside.
2. Wash and clean the inside of the chicken.
3. Sew-up the neck end of the chicken.
4. Stuff a clove of garlic into the neck end from the tail end.
5. Lightly salt the inside of chicken, reserving a tiny pinch of salt for the rice stuffing mix.
6. Line the rest of the garlic cloves against the ribs of the chicken.
7. Mix the sweet brown rice with goji berries, toasted sesame seeds, cracked black pepper, and pinch of salt. Stuff the rice mixture into the chicken.
8. Sew-up the chicken.

Ginseng Chicken Soup
Be very careful when peeling the chestnuts. I use a tool specially designed for peeling chestnuts, which can be found in the kitchen tool section of your local Korean grocery store.

Herbal Broth, prepared
1 organic chicken, stuffed
2 cups/10 raw chestnuts
2/3 cup gingko nuts
2 cups of jujube dates
2 tsp of rock sea salt

1. Peel the chestnuts.
2. Shell the gingko nuts.
3. Place the stuffed organic chicken, chestnuts, gingko nuts, dates, and salt into the prepared herbal broth.
4. Set the crock pot to cook on high for six hours. Your Supernatural Samgyetang is cooked and ready to serve!

Equipment for Super Natural Samgyetang

Cooking is always easier and more fun when you have the right tools. Starting from clockwise: Trussing Needle & Twine~ absolutely necessary for sewing poultry Chestnut peeler~ prevents fingers from getting cut Lime Squeezer~ can crush 5 gingko nuts at a time, in addition to squeezing limes Kitchen Shears~ A phat way of trimming poultry fat 6-quart Rival Crockpot or Luminarc glass casserole pot

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