Oh, who am I kidding?  I LOVE YOU, KIMCHI FRIED RICE.  Screw the rest of the world!  Let's run away together and shack up on a beach in Goa and spend our days together in  spicy-rice-y-onion-y-cabbage-y bliss!  Of course, this might not be as pleasant for you, since you're getting eaten and digested every day...  I didn't say this would be a perfect plan.

In case you can't tell, I went back to Super H Mart for lunch today and for another helping of their kimchi fried rice.  It's -- in my estimation, at least -- the perfect fast food.  You get rice, onions, chunks of thick bacon and cabbage all in a spicy sauce with a fried egg on top.  And it's served with a side of extra cabbage!  And pickled radish!  And a bowl of onion broth!  What more could you possiby want out of a meal?  NOTHING, I tell you.  NOTHING.

In addition to being the crack dealer to my addiction, Super H Mart also provides an almost endless amount of entertainment while you're there.  Exhibit 1: as I was pulling into the parking lot, I realized that my way was blocked by a shopping cart.  I put the car in park and got out to move the shopping cart out of the way.

As soon as I got back into my car, I was immediately blocked by another random object in the road: Exhibit 1A: a stroller.  Complete with baby.  A woman had pushed the stroller halfway into the street, then turned around to greet a friend.  The two of them were happily chatting away on the curb while the stroller (COMPLETE WITH BABY!!!) sat in the middle of the street, unattended.

Being the kind soul that I am, I did what any other thoughtful person would do in this situation.  I rolled down my window and yelled at the idiot woman to get her damn baby.  She shot me a surprised look and hustled into the street to remove her baby from the middle of the road.  Hey, at least I didn't honk.

Exhibit 2: as I eagerly awaited my lunch in the food court, I witnessed two little old Korean ladies getting yelled at by another little old Korean lady because they had left their used trays and dishes on the table.  The best part?  The one doing the yelling was an employee.  Gotta love stores where the employees clearly just don't have time for customers' BS and totally call them on it, loudly.

Later, after grabbing some cans of green tea for the road, I passed the Pocky display.  Poor choice of exit route.  I can't pass Pocky displays (or Pepero displays) without grabbing at least one box.  I stood in front of it, happily agog at the many kinds of Pocky for sale.  I couldn't choose which box to get.  But then...I found it.

Exhibit 3: Men's Pocky.  What?  Is this a marketing gimmick like the ones that Yorkie bars use?  Either way, I felt compelled to buy a box of Men's Pocky and condemn the sexist Japanese candy-making regime with my act of defiance.

It turns out that Men's Pocky is quite boring, and not at all the manly type of candy I expected (you know, tasting of, like, gunpowder and whiskey and Old Spice with bits of dead deer stuck to it).  It's just bitter chocolate.  I should have stuck to my original plan and gotten some delicious Marble Tea Pocky.  This feminism thing isn't getting me anywhere...

Regardless, I'll most likely be back at Super H Mart the first chance I get, babies in strollers blocking the road and sexist Pocky be damned!  I WILL HAVE MY KIMCHI FRIED RICE.

kim chi

mandoo

]]> http://abeautifulmosaic.wordpress.com/?p=77 Thu, 26 Jun 2008 22:26:21 +0000 onespicymama http://abeautifulmosaic.wordpress.com/?p=77

 My personal favorite:  Korean mung bean pancakes (bindae duk)

As with many other Korean special occasion foods that are made in large quantities or not at all, mung bean pancakes (bindae duk) are not something one decides to make on a whim.  Two ingredients require overnight soaking and the resulting quantities are usually sufficient to feed the entire Duggar brood(although something tells me Korean food isn't a fav in the Duggar house).  For me, however, it is one of those foods evocative of large festive gatherings, the smell delicious foods wafting through the house overheated by cooking and bodies, ending inevitably with the need to unbutton one's waistband. 

One can buy freshly made bindaeduk at Korean mega-marts like Assi and H-Mart, but they never look like this version.  Fernbrake, as known as bracken, is relatively expensive and often eschewed for cheaper ingredients like cabbage and carrots.  My mother always puts fernbrake (kosari ) in her bindae duk and this recipe is a variation of the kind I grew up with. 

In order to make this dish, you need to buy the smallest bags of dried mung beans and fernbrake you can can find at your Korean or Asian grocery store.  This recipe calls for 8 C. of soaked mung beans which was an entire bag (sorry, I didn't note the weight of the bag).  One bag of dried bracken makes a shockingly large amount.  You can soak the entire bag and use the remaining fernbrake for bibim bap, or just soak what you need.

This bag wasn't even labeled as "bracken" or "fernbrake."  "Wild Greens" and "Well-being Food" are the only words in English on the package.  Gotta love cryptic labeling.

That 100g bag of unpromising dark bracken expands to this soft, uniquely fragrant "meaty" vegetable.

Mung bean pancakes are a great source of protein, gluten-free, and if omitting the pork, can be vegan.  The beans give the pancake a heavier texture and you'll feel full after just a couple (although you will keep eating since they're so tasty!).

 Korean Mung Bean Pancakes (Bindae duk)

Yields 35-40 3-4" pancakes

8 C.  mung beans, soaked overnight with any green casing picked over and discarded

1½ C. hydrated fernbrake, cut 1-2" long

1 bunch sliced scallions, cut 1-2" long

1½ C. chopped kimchi

8 oz. thinly sliced pork

3 cloves garlic, minced

¼ C. sesame seed oil

salt and pepper to taste

oil to fry

(you can add up to 4 lightly beaten eggs to this recipe if you wish to make your pancakes less dense.)

Working in batches, liquefy mung beans 2 cups at a time in a blender, adding about 1/4 of water used to soak the beans each batch. 

Combine pureed mung bean, fernbrake, scallions, kimchi, pork, garlic, sesame seed oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl. 

Heat oil on griddle or large frying pan on medium to medium high.  Ladle about 1/4 or 1/3 C. on griddle, making sure not to make the pancakes too thick.  I like to keep them between 3 to 4 inches in diameter.  Turn over when golden brown (about 4-5 minutes) and add more oil as needed.  Serve hot with Korean dipping sauce.

Mung bean pancakes freeze very well, so go ahead and make that large batch.  Just defrost and refry when you have a hankering for these delicious pancakes.

Me:  Ow!  The dog scratched my nose and lip!  Bugger!

Richard:  Here, let's have a look.  Oh, yeah.  That looks pretty nasty.

Me:  *goes to look in mirror*  Hmm.  I don't see anything...

Richard:  Oh, right; that's just your face.

The other day as we were taking a short cut down Westview, I pointed to Super H Mart as we passed Blalock and we had another of our short but ridiculous exchanges.  "Look!  That's where I'm going for our Chowhound lunch tomorrow, Mac!" I exclaimed excitedly (quick note: I call my husband Mac, even though his name is Richard...that isn't confusing, right?).

"What is it?"  Richard asked.

"It's a Korean grocery store cum food court."

"Shouldn't it be called Super K Mart then?"

"Yeah.  I think that name was already taken, Mac."

Pulling up to Super H Mart the next day, I could barely wait to get inside and get at the much-ballyhooed food court and fish counter.  I had purposely not eaten anything for breakfast or lunch in anticipation of the gorging that was soon to commence.  And, boy, was I ever NOT disappointed.

Super H Mart is a chain of Korean/Asian grocery stores based in California, with locations throughout the United States.  They have a heavy presence in the Northeast and are finally opening stores in Texas with concurrent grand openings in Carrollton (a heavily-Asian suburb of Dallas) and good ol' Houston.  The location in Houston is in a refurbished Randall's and the Super H Mart folks have done such a fantastic job of it, that you'd think the place was brand-new.

Absolutely sparkling inside, Super H Mart is entirely devoid of the typical smell associated with Asian markets such as Hong Kong Market and Komart.  Fellow CHs and I debated whether or not that spicy-cabbagey-fishy smell would come with time.  But there's so much more to Super H Mart than just food: you feel as if you've been transported into a high-end mall in Seoul, complete with a perfume shop, bakery, home appliances and housewares section, jewelry store and accessories boutique.

As we waited for fellow CHs to show up, I roamed around to begin taking pictures.  This, apparently, is frowned upon by the employees at Super H Mart, as I found out when a large Korean lady with a ladle came out of the back of store to angrily chase me away when I took a picture of the kimchi bar.  During the rest of my visit, I took my pictures slightly more surreptitiously and ultimately escaped unscathed.

Let's let the rest of the visit be told in pictures, shall we?

This photo makes it look as if Super H Mart wasn't crowded.  Nothing could be further from the truth; the place was absolutely crammed with people.  I guess I just caught a lucky moment here in the produce section.  Their produce is fresh and seriously cheap.  My mother and I filled our basket with lots of goodies here, including jackfruit and arugula.

The bakery -- well-known Korean-owned chain Tous Les Jours -- is directly on your right as you come in.  If you don't want to spend the afternoon in a guilt-ridden carb-induced coma, move past as quickly as possible.  Otherwise, prepare to fight the crowds and get some freshly-baked bread with walnut creme in the center or a few savory red bean rolls.

Need a cake for a special event?  You won't find cakes like this anywhere else in Houston.

The famous ToreOre chicken stand.  Motto?  "Chicken & Joy"  What's not to love?  Their sweet and spicy chicken lives up to its name, with a delicately sweet and crispy exterior that gives way to a dark rumble of spiciness that doesn't fully hit you until around a minute after you've taken a bite.  Highly recommended.

The rest of the food court, which includes Korean Snack (with ramen and other little snacky bits), Fisher's Market (for sushi and udon), China Factory and Sobahn Express.  The latter offers a tempting array of bimbimbap and bulgogi, but isn't actually "express."  During our visit, orders were taking upwards of one hour to prepare.

Some of the many dishes we ordered, including a dragon roll (which was excellent, save for the imitation "krab" that was used in the center), ramen with dumplings, mayonnaise shrimp and a salmon roll.  The ramen in particular was wonderful, but the sushi was only average (as to be expected at a Korean fast food court, I suppose) and the drink selection was poor.  I hoped for cans or bottles of green tea or jasmine tea, at the very least.  Instead, there was only a limited selection of canned Coke products.

Cold noodles, similar to the Vietnamese dish I love so much -- bun.  Something else to note about the food court is that tables and chairs are pricey real estate.  People arrive early and stake them out for large groups, and are not very friendly when questioned about it.  You can always get your food to go, of course...

Everything else destroyed -- including my favorite dish of the day, the kimchi fried rice -- CHs turned to a bag of fresh lychees for dessert.

All your kimchi are belong to us.

Last but not least, my favorite: baby octopus.  One day, I shall return for you, my darlings!

I wish that I'd gotten more pictures of the store itself, but -- as I said -- I didn't want to leave with ladle marks across my back.  Want to see more?  You'll just have to check out Super H Mart for yourself!

Hmm. I am beginning to think I fall into the latter category, sometimes not having the motivation or inspiration to wax lyrical about all things halal (mostly food and not other halal-related issues), or ruminate over the issues facing the Malay community. 

But there are the rare moments when I do feel inspired, especially when I have a relatively good or exceedingly bad experience while eating.

Before I start my review of Fresh Bulggogi, I must add a disclaimer that my sensitive senses cannot stomach anything remotely connected to table barbeque food (like Seoul Garden, Hans River etc). This revelation could not have come at a more inopportune time when I nearly projectile vomitted on the lawyer I was working for before I matriculated, in the middle of a table barbeque meal (I shan't say where!). This has nothing to the with the food being served at the restaurant itself, but due to the fact that the food I was cooking and eating were either undercooked or burnt. Although I ordered something that was already cooked in Fresh Bulggogi, the smell of the table barbeque was nauseating in itself causing me to make a premature exit, even before Ayah had paid for the meal.

The first thing when I asked myself when I read about the restaurant in Berita Harian was What in the world is a Bulggogi? So when I saw that there was a Chicken Bulggogi Rice dish on the menu, which was cooked and ready to eat, I immediately told the rest of my family that this is what I was ordering. 

And if you are wondering why I would have agreed to torment myself to such misery knowing the probability of me projectile vomitting in the middle of the meal, this restaurant was chosen by Kakak and Mak who were both celebrating their birthdays! And the meal was being fully sponsored by Ayah, since we both had a consensus that he would settle the food while Abang and I would settle the gifts for Kakak and Mak.

Although I am a soup kind of guy, I thought the dryness of the rice were compensated by the different tastes in the dish itself - from the spiciness of the Kimchi, to the sweetness of the Chicken Bulggogi (which I am assuming that it is the sauce that is used to cook the chicken) and the natural tastes of the tauge and vegetables. To all those who cannot stomach table barbeque food but have to accompany friends, family or loved ones to this place, this is a definite must try, and would appease your sensitive senses, as it did mine.

This was another cooked meal that I dared to eat - Fried Mushrooms. I must say that this was better than the ones I had in ZingDo, simply because they offer a wide variety of mushrooms, not only one type. I wish I could list you the names of the mushrooms that are available on the menu, but between eating my food and trying to prevent the nausea from causing me to projectile vomit on my brother sitting across me, I did not had the chance. The mushrooms were crispy, yet chewy on the inside, just the way I like it. YUM!

The only unique thing about this restaurant is that you must specifically order what you want to cook and eat. This is different from Seoul Garden or Hans RIver where you pay a certain amount for the buffet that allows you to take as much as you want (which does not mean that you have to finish them). And another cool thing about this place is that you don't have to call a waiter to order your food. You simply order it through the computer located at your table as you can see on the top right hand corner of the above photograph. Which would explain the rather unresponsive service staff who seemed to forget that my mother wanted a glass of plain water, or that we wanted to refill the soup in the middle of our table barbeque. 

All I can say is, if you would like to experience the novelty of ordering through a computer, please go right ahead.

Fresh Bulggogi

Changi International Airport

Terminal 2 No 2 Airport Boulevard

Viewing Mall South

Unit No 036-059 at Level 3

The most notorious of course is Soju -there are a few cheap brands which Koreans seem to drink everywhere in bulk. The price range is often between 1 and 2 us dollars a bottle -although admittedly soju isn't that strong -what, 11%, 14%?  Every time I go to the supermarket more often than not I see the person in front of me with cartons or boxes of either soju or beer.  Soju is the required drink for having with a barbecue, although I prefer beer myself.

However, there are other local drinks, and one I've come to like is called 'baekseju'. If you can read Chinese characters you may figure out that it means "100 years alcohol" or "age 100". It's not referring to how long it took to make, but rather it is so 'healthy' it'll help you live to 100. Apparently it's brewed from several Korean herbs and stuff, so it's like the 'natural' alternative.

One might think that because of that it'll be expensive, but a bottle costs only $3us in the local 7/11. That doesn't bother me considering in Australia to get a decent bottle usually costs three times more than that.  (I might add though, these bottle are about 500 litres).

I especially like it chilled on a hot summer's day.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Korean_cuisine#Alcoholic_beverages

The hectic, vibrant streets of Seoul are teeming with spectacular delicacies and intense intoxicants such as Soju, a tapioca, sweet potatoes and rice based alcohol; the average Korean puts away nearly two bottles of it a day. This strong, clear libation is best served up with the grilled meats and assorted side dishes that comprise the massive Korean barbeque feast. Downtown Seoul welcomes the Soju enthusiast with its strip of outdoor watering holes, where drinking, drinking games and drinking songs are the order of the evening. Seoul dwellers cleanse away the night's excess with a steaming bowl of spicy soup, and you're wise to follow their lead. (Three Sheets)

MojoHD WEBSITE.

Watch the embedded version here:  Ktown213 Blog

 

(It was impossible to get good photos in Do Hwa because it was way too dark so I just took one of all the food on our table)

After a failed attempt at eating at the new Mexican restaurant Cabrito on Carmine street last week (there was a minimum of a 45 minute wait) we decided to go to Korean favorite Do Hwa across the street.

Quentin Tarantino is a co-owner of this hot spot that features tables with BBQ on top so that you can cook your own food. I insisted on eating at one of these tables and I realize now that they might have been a mistake and we would probably have been better off just ordering off their regular menu.

We started off with a bottle of Shoju (kind of an Asian vodka made from rice) and ordered the Bulgogi dinner for 2. Bulgogi is thin slices of marinated beef that you cook on the tabletops yourself there (though a server helps get you started, in our case a very talkative one) the dinner also includes all the little bowls of Korean vegetables that you get at Korean restaurants (perhaps a few less than the norm here) as well as salad, rice, some different greens to make wraps in and miso sauce.

The food was okay, the bottom line is that you're going to get better and cheaper food in more authentic Korean restaurants but it does have a fun atmosphere and is a cool date place, I think I would probably return if I was in the area to try some of their other fare and see how that stacks up against more authentic places but the novelty of the do it yourself bbq has certainly worn off for me.

375 ml bottle of shoju - $25.00

Bulgogi BBQ dinner for 2 - $52.00

Do Hwa - 55 Carmine Street (Between Bedford and 7th Avenues) NY, NY, 10011, 212-414-1224

0700 hrs - Caught up in a jam in DLE (DreamLand Expressway)
0815 hrs - Amos wailed in hunger as Eve (carrying him) creeps beside me to feed him
0815hrs  - I finally got up.
0900 hrs - Picked Aunt G and Darren up and moved off for service
1030 hrs - Service ends. Moved to canteen to catch up with my relatives
1040 hrs - Still talking
1050 hrs - Still talking
1120 hrs - Still talking
1140 hrs - Walked to Bishan interchange with Aunts G and R, Cel, Al, Ang and Che (Note: Still bonding)
1210 hrs - Had pepperlunch.
1230 hrs - Left to meet Fai @ Plaza Sing
1250 hrs - Waiting for him to arrive (anticipating the rest will arrive before him)
1310 hrs - Waiting for him to arrive (gave up on the idea that the rest will arrive before him)
1325 hrs - Finally saw the man in green.
1357 hrs - Had tics in hand, walking aimlessly @ Spotlight when Sam called)
1358 hrs - FL announced his arrival
1520 hrs - Movie begins
1705 hrs - Was wondering how Po manage to defeat that Tai Lung with a movement of the last finger
1710 hrs - Mind was cramming on the idea of Po farting that defeated him
1846 hrs - Arrived at Clementi (Note: from Plaza Sing, was alone too!)
1847 hrs - Waited for arrival of transport to Father's Day dinner
1850 hrs - Still waiting so decided to hunt for Botak Jones for fun
1900 hrs - Still waiting, realised that there are 5 kopitiams in that area but no BOTAK JONES! It's a scam!
1915 hrs - Dad finally came by with the whole family.
1917 hrs  - Bro-in-law pointed the opposite side. "Botak Jones is that side eh"
1918 hrs - Hands still on forehead after slapping it. Twice.
1930 hrs - Arrived opposite Haw Par Villa for the Korean BBQ!! Yosh!

Yeah... But i still prefer the one at Esplanade though. (=

Stumbling out heh~*

(picture added late due to Wordpress image loader acting up)

I read today that regular black ice (iced?) tea is high in oxalates, which have been linked to kidney stones. I knew someone in college who had kidney stones and it seemed pretty painful, so I'm glad that I've been drinking mostly iced green tea and cold 보리차 (boricha, or barley tea). I have some more, uh, substantial posts coming, but until then here are some other random musings about boricha:

• On my first trip back to Korea, we went out to dinner with some people from our traveling group. There was a pitcher of pale-brown-colored water on the table, and one of the people we were traveling with looked at it and said in a loud stage whisper, "I don't know about you, but I don't think we should drink that water!" I stifled a laugh and immediately explained that it was cold barley tea and that it was supposed to be that color.

• In Korea I was thrilled to find boricha in single-serve plastic bottles, right next to the bottled sodas, juices, and waters in the convenience stores. There was also a bottled corn tea that I know is very popular as well, but I didn't like that as much as the barley tea. The corn tea tasted too much like... corn.

• There is a Korean restaurant near my house that serves boricha, but it is always so hot (and I am always so eager to drink it) that I try and slip a few ice cubes from my water glass into it to cool it down faster. I'm not sure how "Korean" this is, but I am nothing if not impatient.

• When I make boricha at home, the brand of boricha teabag that I use is called "어머니가 끓여주시던 보리차," which I think translates to something like "Mother's Boiled Barley Tea". (어머니 or omoni means "mother".) Unfortunately my mother doesn't know what boricha is and so she certainly didn't make it for me while I was growing up, but it's a nice idea. I guess I'm a sucker for that "just-like-mom-used-to-make" kind of advertising after all.

• Recently I've been making the barley tea in my coffee maker. (I put the giant-sized teabag right in the carafe, turn off the automatic grinder, and the coffee maker just makes hot water.) It has a built-in timer and automatically turns off when it's done, so I can start it brewing and then go somewhere else without having to come back and turn off the stove. Also, the carafe is easier to clean than my tea kettle, and easier to pour from than the stock pot that I was using previously. I usually have a glass of it hot right away, and then stick the rest in the fridge so that I can drink it cold later on.

Anyway, if you've never tried boricha, I encourage you to give it a try this summer!

I've purchased a lot of short ribs. Obsessive Compulsive Meat Purchase. It's summertime (well it will be come June 21st) so I will share a version of Kalbi (Korean BBQ) shared by my sister-in-law's mom. She got it from a friend at her Korean Church. I've been eating Korean a lot lately.

2 lbs of beef short ribs cut "flanken style" (across the bone)
3 parts water
1 part sugar
1 part soy sauce (Kikkoman is good)
Liquid of 1 onion (blend/chop onion in a mixer then strain through a piece of thin cloth or cheesecloth)
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBS honey (or to taste)
2 TBS sesame oil (or to taste)
1/2 c cooking wine
Black pepper

Rinse each piece of meat and let drain.
Pound each piece of meat on both sides.
Marinate meat in liquid overnight. Make sure each piece of meat is thoroughly covered in the marinade.

Experiment with the amounts of ingredients until you like the final product.

Grill High Direct Heat on a charcoal or gas grill or indoor grill.

Serve with rice or lettuce wraps

My favorite part of going to the Korean restaurant.  The side dishes served with the meal.  It's different every time.

D! No, not D! D is for delete!

I kid you not. That is the very thought that went through my mind. If I shifted the car to D, I would disappear. The thought only lasted for a second, then I got the giggles. It was just confirmation that it is very good this was my last day. As some of you know, I haven't much enjoyed this job. Maybe someday I will tell you why.

~ : ~

Today was the last offical day of the 2007-2008 school year in Hawaii. I went in this morning, helped move some furniture, did a room inventory, turned in my confidential files and my keys, and said good-bye.

After the good-byes I got in my car and drove to Ma'ili Beach. I sat in the shade and dug my toes in the sand. I wasn't feeling blue, but the day sure was ...

I could have sat there as long as the shade allowed, but I was hungry and my hair had a date with a pair of scissors. I dusted the sand from my feet and went on my way.

My next stop was a Korean restaurant in Kapolei where I ordered gyoza and a large soda. I noticed the blue calligraphy on the plate and decided a picture was in order. Then I reached for the soy sauce ...

The condiments and spices were in this nice little Hello Kitty basket. The toothpick holder had a blue lid. The back wall is also a very light blue because of the tinting on the front windows. They spoke to me of Project Blue.

When I left the Korean restaurant I went and got my hair cut. (That is a post for another day.) Then I headed for home, but first I needed to pay for the privilege of driving to the mall.

At the Aloha gas station on Farrington Highway and Makaha Valley Road (the cheapest gas in town), I paid $4.05.09 per gallon, which translates to a $51.00 fill-up for my mid-sized vehicle. After that I decided the most sensible thing to do was head home and park the beast.

Once at home I headed for the relaxation of the lanai and an absolutely refreshing view.

Those of you who are very observant found a bit of blue in every photo.

7th entry
Project Blue
brought to you by Anna

• Cucumber kimchi - Refreshing and delicious!  A great fresh kimchi for summer.  I didn't stuff them but cut them up into big chunks.
• Napa Kimchi - I kept whole cabbage halves and stuffed them with the kimchi paste.  They turned out perfectly, the fish sauce really makes a huge difference, it's much better than any kimchi I've made before.  The only thing that lets it down was that the cabbage wasn't great.
• Bulgogi - The marinade is wonderful, very fruity tasting, and I get to use quite a cheap cut of beef for this.  When I run out of it I'll probably use the blender to make my own batch and see if it's any better.
• Pa Jeon - I had everything I needed for these, including the bochu chives.  So much better than just having loads of green onions in there.  The consistency was just right too.
• Mandu - I just bought frozen mandu, but they taste just like how I remember.  I'm crossing my fingers that one of us gets a cold one of these days so I have a good excuse to make duk mandu guk.
• Doenjang Chigae - I can't remember liking this when I was young but it's probably because there's loads of vegetables in it.  It turned out perfectly, very delicious and savoury, and definitely good for me.  It's so easy to make I can imagine this will turn into a staple meal for us.
• Korean salad (Gut Geo Rie) - I had loads of salad leaves leftover and decided to dress it with soy, garlic, sesame seeds and oil.  Much tastier than your usual dressing, and I served it with rice topped with chigae and then topped with this salad all mixed together.
• Rice - this seems so obvious but there is really no rice like Korean rice.  I've only had long grain Indian rice since I've lived here and I feel stupid for taking so long to get a rice cooker.  Even making 4 cups of rice doesn't seem to last long between the two of us, so I'm glad we got the big one.

I meant to take photos of everything, but I tend to get so hungry that I don't want to dawdle with the camera when there's hot food around.  I love having the leftovers too, and thankfully David's still not sick of Korean food and keeps asking to me to make dukboki and japchae.  There are still so many dishes that I want to make.  My friend Karen might be coming over this weekend and I'd love for her to try some Korean food.  I was thinking japchae might be a good introduction to it, as well as the bits of kimchi I have around.  I don't ever remember anyone not liking Korean food, but it's so different from anything else here that it's hard to tell what she'll think.

Tanggal 28 Mei 2008 saya ditraktir seorang teman di Iga Bakar. "Thanks bro, kalo bukan diajak kamu, mungkin sampe sekarang aku belum pernah ke situ". Komentar saya atas menu yang kami pesan:

1. Iga Bakar Madu Cut Size Rp23.500 - enaknya karena sudah dipotong-potong. Rasanya ENAK! Porsinya pas. Walaupun jadi kebanyakan karena sehari-hari saya biasa makan nasi cuma setara 3-4 sdm. Hehehe. Oya, harga iga belum termasuk nasinya lho. (Nasi Rp2.500)
2. Iga Bakar BBQ Rp27.500 - yang rasa BBQ ini juga enaak... lebih wangi :) Mantap
3. Teh Tarik Rp8.500 - teh tariknya walo harganya segitu, rasanya nggak beda sama teh tarik instant. Mending bikin sendiri di rumah kaleee....

Saya pengen kembali. Dalam kurun waktu >2bulan yang akan datang. Nggak enak tauk, makan enak tiap hari. Enaknya sesekali aja :)

Mengenai suasana, oke. Pelayan, oke. Wastafel & sabun cuci tangan, oke juga. Cuma kursinya agak nyusahin. :) Harus dilangkah-langkahin. :P

10. Arirang Buffet Steamboat Restaurant - Korean Food [Jl. Palagan Tentara Pelajar KM 8.5]

Saya ke sini tanggal 31 Mei 2008 yll

All you can eat di sini Rp60.000

Yang enak apa aja?

1. Sate - tanpa bumbu kacang tapi enak
2. Mie - empuk banget
3. Daging merah yang dicampur Bulgogi... mantap!
4. Jus jeruk

Yang nggak enak?

1. Kerang (nggak fresh)
2. Udang (nggak fresh juga)
3. Minuman teh jagung (aneh rasanya)

Tempatnya bagus. Tamannya juga bagus. Ada burun elangnya di sana. Kamar mandinya oke. Mantap lah..... Senang di sana :)

Yang disayangkan hanya pilihan minumannya yang terbatas...

Beef marinade: 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1 tsp minced garlic,
1/4 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp sesame seeds

Shiitake marinade: 1/2 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp sesame oil

Noodle seasoning: 1 and 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 4 tbsp vegetable oil

In a non stick pan, add oil and saute vegetables.
All ingredients have to be cooked separately.
To use the same pan, start with light color vegetable.
An ideal order will be onion - green onions - carrot - shiitake mushrooms - beef.
The vegetables don't have to get any color, just need to be softened.
Saute and move to a big bowl to cool a little bit.
Put a non-stick wok or large pan on a medium heat.
Add dang myon seasoning, pour in dang myon.
Bring to a boil, stir occasionally for a few minutes until dang myon absorbs water.

In about 10-15 minutes they start to stick together.
From this point, stir constantly until the noodle gets soft and translucent.
Take off from the heat, let cool for a while.
If needed cut the length.
Mix with vegetables, sesame seeds, salt and pepper to taste.

Ingredients: 1 bunch green onion - cut in a bias,
1/2 onion - thin slice
1/2 carrot - thin julienne
1/4 lb shrimp* - chopped
1/4 lb bay scallops* - chopped
1/4 lb clams* - chopped
1/8 lb squid* -chopped
(*You can substitute to any seafood.)

For batter: 1 cup water (3-4 tbsp more)
1 cup flour
1 egg
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp dwen jang (Korean bean paste)

Soy dipping sauce: 3 parts soy sauce, 1 part rice vinegar, some chopped green onion

In a big bowl, combine all ingredients for batter with a whisk. Or you can purchase “Korean pancake mix” from Korean market, and combine 1cup water with 3/4 cup (to 1 cup) mixture.
Combine all vegetables and seafood into a batter and mix well.
In a non-stick pan, put 3-4 tbsp vegetable oil.
Make a pancake about 4-5 inches in diameter.
Serve with soy dipping sauce.

Tips: Make a pancake as thin as possible. It tastes much better!
They make large size “pa jeon” generally in Korea.
At home, you cut green onions in half, alternate root part and green part in a hot non-stick pan.
Pour the batter evenly on top, cook for 2-3 minutes until you can flip it.
Spoon over beaten egg, flip and finish cooking.
Cover the plate over the pan, turn it over, and serve.

yes, we killed it.

afterwards, we went back to shindi's and decided to bike over to the mission for some dessert at luna park. i have this thing for their make-your-own-smores. maybe it's their homemade graham crackers-fucking phenomenal! makes me think i should have a smores partay soon...

unfortunately, there are no smores pictures. it was too dark in the joint. but i do have flicks from the bike ride out to the embarcadero afterwards.

the next day i went back to the mission and met up with sarah for some thrifting. a few good finds here and there, but didn't look too hard since we were pretty hungry. we decided to hit up monk's kettle on 16th for some late lunch since neither of us had been.  here are the highlights - giant pretzel driiiiiipping with butter and one badass charcuterie plate. i can't wait to come back to this place - namely for the potpie which looked like a big ramekin full of food porn. mmmmm. and it was only $12.

and then we went outside and some dude handed out these rad specs:

since there wasn't too much going on that night, sarah and i decided to cook breakfast-for-dinner and watch quicksilver, an 80's kevin bacon movie where he plays a bike messenger on a fixie. both dinner and the movie were awesome. the soundtrack for this flick is so cool, as is the romantic ballet/bike dance-off between kevin bacon and his materialistic girlfriend. two thumbs up! oh yeah, and we also made chocolate chip oatmeal walnut cookies. i'll put up a recipe for those eventually.

on sunday, i went swimming at the hotel nikko pool. then went over to iris' in the evening. she had made a shitload of tamales (goat, vegan, chicken mole) and threw this ridiculously impressive feast. my absolute favorites were the goat tamales and the molotes (oaxacan, deep-fried, chorizo-stuffed...). i totally gorged and was painfully full, but couldn't stop grazing because everything was so good. thank you, iris, for taking that oaxacan cooking class. my belly is very appreciative.

afterwards i went home and did tae bo.

oh, and here's my only bad eating experience of the weekend: don't fucking EVER go to rain tree cafe on 8th (?) and irving. this place blows. jesse and i went for brunch on sunday since park chow had some crazy wait. the food was awful and our server was this mealy-faced cunt who brought me a blueberry muffin with mold on the bottom. stupid slut.

but i'm not bitter or anything...

Kimchi is a traditional Korean fermented dish made of vegetables with varied seasonings, most commonly referring to the spicy baechu variety. Kimchi is the most common Korean banchan, or side dish, eaten with rice along with other banchan dishes. Kimchi is also a common ingredient and cooked with other ingredients to make dishes such as kimchi stew (kimchi jjigae) and kimchi fried rice (kimchi bokkeumbap). (from wikipedia)

Aside from Kimchi, I also adore ramyeon (Korean version of Japanese ramen) because of its spice of course!, jajangmyeon (wheat noodles in thick black bean paste with diced meat and veggies, boiled eggs and spring onion), kimchi jjigae (kimchi soup with pork and vegetables) and kimbap (like the Japanese sushi).

Yesterday, I was craving for ramyeon so I went to Garden Maru Korean Restaurant in Holy Spirit, Quezon City (in front of Ever Commonwealth). Your marker would be the multicolored flags and their banner of course. I ordered ramyeon (100 pesos) and kimpap (100 pesos). Kimchi comes free with the meal.

Here's the kimbap (the rice was a little bit dry)

and here's the spicy hot ramyeon with egg topped with leek and carrot strips:

After the meal, apple slice and a glass of cinnamon drink, was free to wash away the spice and the smell of kimchi!

One of my favorite restaurants was called 본죽 (which I think in English might be something like "Bon Juk"). It was a chain with a location right next to our subway station, and only serves 죽, or rice porridge. I liked the chonbok juk (전복죽), or abalone porridge, the best. Here's a picture of what it looked like:

Another time we got the shrimp juk (새우죽), shown below with side dishes (반찬):

As you may have noticed, it comes served in one large bowl and then you ladle it out into smaller bowls. On our first visit we didn't realize that each order served two people, and ended up with twice enough food as we could eat. (The person working there tried to explain it to us, but this was just one example of how my Korean language skills were not nearly as adequate as I was hoping they would be.) Anyway, we learned our lesson and on subsequent visits we shared a single order.

We also ate lots of noodle dishes, including kalguksu (갈국수), which has noodles in a chicken-like broth with lots of shredded 김 (dried seaweed) on top:

I don't have pictures, but we also had soba noodles (메밀), cellophane noodles (잡채), and naeng myun (냉면) several times. My personal favorite was jajangmyun (자짱면), which is noodles in black bean sauce:

For those of you who have seen the K-drama Fantasy Couple, I definitely felt like the character with whom I share my blogging name!

On several occasions I ordered another one of my favorite Korean foods, soft tofu stew with seafood (순두부찌개). In Korea this dish usually included fully-headed shrimp, which were never in the versions that I ordered back home. I'm not a fan of eyes looking back at me as I eat, but it tasted delicious (the white things on top that look like bean sprouts are actually mushrooms):

And to drink, of course, there was soju (소주)!

When we weren't eating at a meal, we were eating between meals. There was inexpensive kimbap (김밥) everywhere, although finding it without ham/Spam wasn't always easy. I could eat the stuff in this picture all day:

For dessert, my favorite things were Red Mango and the spongey rice cakes with 앵두차, which I already posted pictures of. But occasionally I could also be found eating green tea ice cream -- this picture was taken at a Cold Stone and had Oreo cookies mixed in:

If folks were hoping for stories of live octopus, silkworms, or anything even more... adventurous, well, I'm sorry to disappoint. On this trip I realized that I actually wasn't as adventurous an eater as I like to think I am sometimes. But that didn't stop me from eating large amounts of food -- it's a good thing that we were doing an incredible amount of walking along with all that eating!

**************************************************

This may just be because I love to eat, but I think that food is an incredibly important way of connecting to Korea and Korean culture. When I sit down in front of a bubbling bowl of 순두부찌개 I feel not only happier, but also "more Korean" somehow. As I've written about before, my family really didn't eat Korean food growing up, and I wonder if that's one of the reasons that I can't get enough of it now. I'm not exaggerating when I say that the food was one of the best parts of my trip, and is certainly one of the things that I miss the most now that I'm back in the U.S.

All photographs (c) Sang-Shil Kim

korean market in madrid, originally uploaded by suddenly.

as much as i adore spanish food, i got the kimchi craving. kind of ironic because the whole time i was living in korea, i'd have cravings for the good cured meats and stinky cheeses of europe which were in short supply or often beyond my means in seoul.

luckily, madrid has a fair number of koreans who keep the kimchi trade in business. han gang restaurante coreana is supposedly popular among the local koreans. while not great, the kimchi chigae and dolsot bibimbap were passable but the yook gejang was severely underspiced. my favorite dish there was the bibim naengmyun. they charge extra for a side of kimchi but if they think you're korean they'll feel guilty enough to give it to you for free. but i'm warning you now, the kimchi isn't great. it tastes like it's pre-packaged and not made by the loving hands of an ajumma. the only other banchan you get is a little plate of pickled peppers. the prices start at around 9 euros for most dishes.

the filipino waiter at han gang is friendly and speaks english. he told us about a korean market in town called "hans alimentación." it's a small shop on a tiny little street that sells korean basics like ramyun, various jangs and dried noodles. the kimchi was 10 euros a kilo -- kind of steep but it's homemade and much tastier than the stuff at han gang. we went through 2 kilos of it.

han gang restaurante coreana

calle atocha, 94

(near the reina sofia museum)

click for map

hans alimentación

calle maestro del guerrera

(near plaze de españa)

click for map

Saturday was a cool day. Sifu and I ate at Well Being Porridge, located on Keeaumoku. The menu featured many different porridge dishes (or 'Juk'). They had vegetable, kimchee with seafood, abalone, red bean, mung bean, pumpkin, and more I can't remember. Each dish came with sides of pickled peppers, kimchee, greens, and a cold kimchee soup. I paid $9.99 for my vegetable with chlorella meal. Sifu liked his Kimchee and seafood porridge very much.

After porridge, I visited the 50th State Fair in the day for a change. I almost always would go in the night once I hit high school age, but this year I had a desire to go in the daytime to get some pics and maybe because it reminds me of my small-kid time days when we went before dark. The fair has a totally different vibe depending on the time of day or night one attends. I had fun though I didn't play any games (prizes didn't look too good) and didn't ride any rides. I did watch Hendrick's Pig Racing show, which was cute. More than anything I was content to be walking around and looking at everything. I had a lot of fun. :D

Sunday, Rich and I headed to Punchbowl National Cemetary in the morning to take some pictures. My father is there, along with 2 uncles, and one aunty. We stopped by my father's niche in the older section of the columbarium. We didn't stay long. I can't really visit my dad with other people and stay too long by his niche. But he knows I was there... and it was good to see the flowers my sister and mother had dropped off earlier in the morning. Later in the day I ate Korean spicy squid, and walked around Waikiki for about 1.5 hours with Sifu. I can't run for a bit since my right shin has been sore, so at least I got some walking time in. We stopped at Don Quijote for Hornsby's and I bought wheat cakes and reduced-price strawberry robin eggs-- Not bad! Furious guitar hero session followed later in the night

Today, the last day of the 3-day Memorial Day weekend, I woke up feeling that slightest nagging feeling in the back of my head, telling me I have to go back to work the next morning. I was able to ignore it at times, though it made it hard for me later in the evening to call it a day... I had sushi for lunch, and Leftover spicy squid for dinner. In the afternoon I walked around UH campus with Sifu, and got in about 36 minutes of walk-time. It took a while, but I sure do feel nostalgic about college this year. When I graduated in 2005 I didn't miss it at all!

I watched some TV with Sifu, and chilled until I had to go home cause I knew I'd have to sleep kinda early so I could get to work early and load up the Alaska data we received on one of the test servers in the office. But it's one of those weird things where I didn't want the day to end, so in my mind, the sooner I went to bed, the sooner I'd have to go to work... but then the rational side said, at least I can leave work early if I go in early.. so I left for home. As a kid I always felt the same way at the end of the weekend. Funny how some things don't change.

I didn't study at all this weekend, and didn't get much work done, but I had a great time just walking around, and cruising. Not thinking about work... and not worrying about anything. This weekend I felt like I actually did a great job of "living in the moment" up until about 4 or 5 PM on Monday, when the back-to-work anxiety started moving in.

I decided not to go to the Lantern Festival. I didn't feel like it, I guess. I'd seen banners all around Waikiki and I appreciate that they hold stuff like that. I hope the spirits out there are happy and free.

The decor looks nice and the prices seems pretty reasonable so we decided to give it a try.

The restaurant was quite empty except for 8 Korean men having their lunch there.

After looking at their menu, Hyacinthus ordered a beef Bibimbak and Seafood Tofu Hotpot while I ordered a pork Bibimbak.

We were served some nice Korean Roasted Barley Tea and 8 dishes of appetistiers. These are complimentary.

I think they are very generous with their appetistiers. Some of which we had never tasted before.

This is the Fried Sliced Fish Omelette. It's a cold dish. Taste quite nice and there is no fishy taste at all. 

Fried Ikan Bilis and Peanuts with Sugar. I like this dish. Savoury and sweet at the same time. Yummy :)

Kimchi was ok. Hyacinthus said that the one she ate in Korean is nicer as it's fresher and crunchier. But this one is not bad either.

Fried Bean Sprouts. Nothing special.

Preserved Kelp. Very refreshing in taste. Sourish with a tinge of saltiness. Not bad.

Boiled Spinach. Also we found this dish pretty ordinary too.

Pickled korean cucumbers. This dish is very refreshing too. The cucumber slices were crunchy and it tasted a little sourish.

Hyacinthus and I love this appetitiser dish the best. I think it's marinated and cooked in sweet sauce. It tasted sweet and a little bit salty. Very very nice. Pretty unique appetitiser cos we never had this before at other Korean Restaurants.

Here comes my Pork Bibimbak. Comes with a bowl of soybean sprouts soup. We liked the soybean sprouts but the soup is only average in taste. 

The pork slices were very tender and soft. Overall the taste was not bad

Here's Hyacinthus's Beef Bibimbak

After mixing up all the ingredients and the accompanying paste, the Bibimbak looks like this:

The utensils are so nicely wrapped in paper.

Seafood Tofu Soup. Tasted a little spicy. Eat it hot cos the taste would be better. Comes with mussels and some other seafood.

We were served complementary dessert too. Both of us really loved the dessert alot. Cool and refreshing with a tinge of lime taste. Really refreshing to have such a dessert esp on a hot day.

Total Cost of everything we ordered is:

Pretty reasonable. I think I would return to the O Dae Yang again. The other Korean restaurant (Sampo) that's next to it don't taste as nice and it's more expensive. See my other review on Sampo

O Dae Yang Korean Seafood Restaurant
76 Peck Seah Street 
Singapore 079331
Tel: 6396 5356

It's located very near to the Tanjong Pagar MRT Station 

2nd.. 518 for jyan.. my good frens since duno when. best fren since form 4 i think...

share almost all secret with her.. i wonder y when come to kl, we seldom tok secret.. em... i very scare everytime she said: 'liteng, i got smtg wan tell u..' ha! i noe wat she gonna tell.. haha.. n i nvr miss once also.. haha... hope ur happiness-true love will come to u soon. dun trust the person who hurt u more than three times... anyway.. forever 18 girl..

next... 521.. happy birthday cheng shing hui.. (y full name? ha.. i also duno...)

tinqiao wrote '翻滚吧，郑馨慧' at her bday card.. lol.. y ask her to 翻滚? (p.s: tin duno how to write 滚)

secret in process... shinghui, we plan all since LAST YEAR.. haha.. so no need ask me when we plan this all la. but for sure all is not last min work, ok?

we sang bday song for her on the road.. apple plan to use car's light as candlelight somemore as we cant find lighter etc. haha... click here to see

den is korean food at sunway pyramid..

we ordered this all...

long long table... the quiet restaurant become noisy because of us..

kimchi... yunshan's love...

looks nice de steamboat.. i ate 1 mouth only=.=

pro is doing something..

food included: 'egg pie', ginseng chicken, seaweed soup, loohshin's love rice, 石锅拌饭, beef roll(y i cant eat beef@@), nice chicken which shinghui din get to eat=P, goreng nian gao...

if u can see the total...... Wow!!!

all of us.. 1st time appear in my blog=shaou waing i think. haha.. the girl beside me.. genius! in case u duno..

start from right=gaolao,, chinhan,pui,tin,alvin,yanghuey,apple,yunshan, shinghui=bday girl,me,shaou waing.. below=weekiat(masterX), loohshin, zaclan, beetheng.

we success ask a Myanmar guy to take photo with us. he so cute. keep smile in front of us when the other staff was taking photo for us. so... for the bday girl's request.. he stand beside her but not tin. haha..

me and bday girl.. thanks for love my haircut.. haha..

discuss where to buy beers?

play game in gaolao's small room.. from baskinrobin31->timestable->true or dare->dare only-.-..

i suppose to be the winner in all game ok? but y every1 need to kena at last.. =.=

i drank beer coz i duno how to do times table for 4=.= chinhan, the 1 who get 4.oo in math drank the most i think.. haha.. shinghui, the only survivor...

put every1's smelly legs in front and turn the beer bottle...

for the true or dare.. alvin asked a stranger girl name, some1 kiss a guy, some1 kiss a girl, some1 titanic with some1, some1 hot dance with some1, some1 manja with some1, some1 look into some1 eyes with love, some1 sit on some1's leg..... i m the last 2 for the game again.. n i lost to chinhan.. but chinhan kena oso.. haha.. every1 jus kena for duno wat reason. ok guys.. i didnt say who is some1 ok? so pls keep all as secret... shhhhh~~~ well.. i guess only 1 person very happy that he kena ba.. most of us wan to keep as secret right? RIGHT! shhh~~~~

lastly..

bday girl who too happy...

erm.. is there any 29th for May? no right.. enen.. and we are going to pasar malam on wednesday right? so we can ignore 29th-wednesday... hahahahahaha...