91 replies to this topic

[tissue]

I read somewhere that it's really a good moisturizer to put on your face, and that Liz Taylor uses it exclusively.

I tried it.  What a mess.  And worse, I kept having an irresistable urge for Korean.

Really? I heard that olive oil is a really good moisturizer.

Of course I get a feeling if I tried it, I would totally break out...

Some korean meats are dipped into sesame oil and sea salt as a condiment. Yum.

[ivan]

I don't know where the stress goes in words like "dolsot", "banchan" and "gomasio", so I guessed. I play a bit loose with "kimchee", stressing it on the first syllable in one case, and on the last in another. Also, I have no idea whether Dalton Trumbo ever had panache. Let's say he did.

Bibimbap!

A fortnight ago, at a bistro I frequent,
I set out to order myself something piquant.
With all the panache of a young Dalton Trumbo
I hailed a waiter and ordered the gumbo.
The gumbo arrived. It was cold and translucent.
And much as I hate to be seen as a nuisance,
I yelled, "Please remove this gelatinous slop,
And bring me a bowl of your best Bibimbap!

"Bibimbap, sir?" the waiter inquired,
"And what, may I ask, did this craving inspire?
We have on our menu eclectic selections
So trendy they'd give Paul Bocouse an erection.
Our chef uses all of the latest ingredients,
Assembled on platters with utmost expedience.
The dish is just rice cooked with meat, is it not?
Is that what you mean when you say 'Bibimbap'?"

I cradled my head and silently wept.
Why was I cursed with this grossly inept
Little twerp of a waiter who calls himself "Reed",
Is all of nineteen, listens only to Creed,
And hasn't yet tasted life's bitterest dregs.
"You might as well say that an omelette's 'just eggs',"
I exclaimed in a voice that rang out like a shot:
"There's much more than that to a good Bibimbap!"

"'Bibim' means 'stir things together', and 'bap'
Is Korean for 'rice'. But it's what goes on top
Of the rice once it's boiled that makes it a dish:
Vegetables, tofu, some meat, even fish!
But first, take your dolsot (a bowl made of stone)
And get it real hot on the top of the stove.
Throw in a test grain of rice. If it pops,
You're ready to start making your Bibimbap!

Fill the hot dolsot two-thirds full of rice
Add kimchee, chopped scallion, fried tofu is nice,
Some steamed greens, perhaps microgreens, if you care,
Some red chile powder, or threads, if you dare.
Or you can use banchan, which, like DNA,
Can be combined in such wonderful ways.
At last, lay a raw or fried egg on the top,
Gomasio sprinkles -- voila! Bibimbap!

The waiter, impressed by my bold exposition
Retreated, post haste, to the restaurant's kitchen,
From whence, in a heartbeat, some figures emerged,
And seventeen men at my table converged.
They lifted me up like a speck of kimchee
And bodily threw me right out on the street.
I picked myself up. Like a hero, I rallied,
And marched right back in, and ordered a salad.

[Jason Perlow]

You don't do children's books, do you?

[ivan]

If I did, I'd have to find another rhyme for "selection".

[Jinmyo]

Bravo.

[ronnie_suburban]

*applause*

=R=

[cakewalk]

YAY IVAN!!

Encore!

[Adam Balic]

Worked late last night, got home after riding bike through crappy Scottish cold rain for half an hour, wife sick in bed. Made bibimbapoid meal with chinese sausage, yellow beans, dried shrimp, greens, holy basil. Cracked egg on top. Question: I steamed rice with all ingredients mixed through (cracked egg on top for last five minutes) is this bibimbap or just a pilaw? Egg was excellent, white had texture of silken tofu and had taken up a lot of the aromatics.

[torakris]

Worked late last night, got home after riding bike through crappy Scottish cold rain for half an hour, wife sick in bed. Made bibimbapoid meal with chinese sausage, yellow beans, dried shrimp, greens, holy basil. Cracked egg on top. Question: I steamed rice with all ingredients mixed through (cracked egg on top for last five minutes) is this bibimbap or just a pilaw? Egg was excellent, white had texture of silken tofu and had taken up a lot of the aromatics.

You steamed all of the ingredients together? Interesting!
Not exactly bibimbap in the traditional sense, but sounds good.

I had bibimbap for lunch this week at my Korean friend's house, complete with a side of homemade kimchi. Wonderful!

[mamster]

I had dolsot bibimbap for lunch yesterday. The place near my work has new ownership and has gone a bit downhill, but middling bibimbap is better than none. I really, really need to get my own dolsot.

Also, that poem is the best thing ever, I failed to mention earlier.

[NeroW]

I need to have this bibimbap.

I read with interest the Chicago-area spots where you can get bibimbap . . . don't care to go all the way to Evanston, and don't want vegetarian bibimbap my first time.

Meat!

Am in Chicago again this weekend, not doing any work, just going with a friend of mine to enjoy my new (soon-to-be) apartment and eat, eat, eat.

Where in Chicago proper can one get a good bibimbap?

[jhlurie]

If I did, I'd have to find another rhyme for "selection".

Bibimbap deserves its due, tis' true
but don't forget the galbi.
Ribs, the short kind, flamed so nicely
are what we need to see.

[Jason Perlow]

groan.

[jhlurie]

Hey I never claimed to be an Ivan. I just think that other things deserve poetry besides the 'bap.

Maybe an ode to Yum Nuer? An epic about Tonkatsu? We need more, obviously.

[Jason Perlow]

we need a larb song.

(to the tune of the Ren and Stimpy "Log" song / the Slinky song)


All kids love Larb!
What's made from ground meat,
and tossed in a wok,
with enough chili to flatten a mob?
What's great for a snack,
and easy as heck,
It's Larb..Larb..Larb!!
It's La-rb, La-rb
It's spicy, its Thai,
It's wet!
It's La-rb, La-rb
It's better than bad
It's good!!!
Everyone want's a Larb
You're gonna love it Larb
Come on and get your Larb
Everyone needs a Larb

[torakris]

isn't this a thread about bibimbap?

[Andrew Fenton]

I first had bibimbap in grad school at the University of Michigan. There are-- or were at the time a few years ago-- three or so Korean diners in town (which always struck me as a little weird, for a town the size of Ann Arbor). Anyway, you could get a nice big bowl of bibimbap for like four or five bucks. I lived off the stuff for two years, and could probably eat it every day and be completely happy.

[torakris]

I first had bibimbap in grad school at the University of Michigan.  There are-- or were at the time a few years ago-- three or so Korean diners in town (which always struck me as a little weird, for a town the size of Ann Arbor).  Anyway, you could get a nice big bowl of bibimbap for like four or five bucks.  I lived off the stuff for two years, and could probably eat it every day and be completely happy.

Great stuff isn't it?

nice to be talking about bibimbap again!

[skybluewater]

Great stuff isn't it?

nice to be talking about bibimbap again!

I like Korean food, but I've never had bibimbop. Next time I eat Korean I'm going to have to try it.

BTW, anyone read the article in the NY Times dining section about Korean home cooking?

[torakris]

Great stuff isn't it?

nice to be talking about bibimbap again!

I like Korean food, but I've never had bibimbop. Next time I eat Korean I'm going to have to try it.

Don't forget to have some yuke with your bibimbap!

[tissue]

Try the stone pot bibimbap!

[mamster]

I have made up a batch of torakris's bulgogi marinade and put it on some thin-sliced beef from Uwajimaya. Tonight: my first attempt at homemade dolsot bibimbap, topped with the beef, kimchi, spinach, bean sprouts, and of course an egg. Delicious or disaster, you'll hear about it.

Anyone know how to make the bean sprout panchan? I'll probably just blanch them if I can't figure it out.

[mamster]

Okay, the bibimbap came out okay for a first try, but not great.

1. I cooked the rice with too much water. Oops. I can fix this one myself.

2. The bowls weren't hot enough to crisp the rice. They were cool by the time I was done eating, which is definitely a problem. I heated them for about half an hour in a 450 degree oven. I can crank the oven up higher and heat them longer, but will that take me into crispy range? On this awesome dolsot bibimbap site the guy heats his dolsots on the stove. Unfortunately, I have neither gas burner nor flame tamer. Should I get a flame tamer and try the stovetop method?

Torakris's bulgogi marinade was superb. Absolutely no complaints about the beef.

[torakris]

Torakris's bulgogi marinade was superb.  Absolutely no complaints about the beef.

I have only eaten them witht the dolsots warmed on the stove (gas flame), they don't sound like they were hot enough, no suggestions however...

[Jinmyo]

mamster, that is a great dolsot site. Very nice, large pictures.

[Lyle]

Unfortunately, I have neither gas burner nor flame tamer.  Should I get a flame tamer and try the stovetop method?

Why would you need a flame tamer? What would happen if you put the bowl directly on the element?

[Akiko]

I tried to make dolsot bibimbap on my electric stove (no gas burners in my building), and my bowls developed huge cracks... no longer usable as they leak water.. So maybe that is why you need the flame tamer...

[Lyle]

I didn't purchase them intently for home cooking, but I have two small Coleman portable burners that I have found useful not only for hiking, but for certain in-home kitchen tasks such as roasting peppers (it takes forever on my electric coils) and certain cookware. I got mine from a surplus store several years ago for about $10 a pop. I find it useful to get at least a moderate gas flame in my ultra-modern electric kitchen.

[mamster]

Today I'm going to experiment by cranking the oven (I think mine can go to 550) and leaving the dolsots in for an hour or so. If that's not hot enough, it's flame tamer time. Nothing must come between me and my dolsot bibimbap, except a flame tamer.

[slkinsey]

Why would a flame-tamer be needed when using a gas stove? I would think that the heat would be pretty much even. I wonder if this is mostly a need for electric stoves...

Also, I find it interesting that the site recommends not preheating the dolsots, which seems to go against other instructions I have seen. According to the writer preheating can cause spalling (the breaking off of chips, scales, or slabs). I've preheated mine in the past, but perhaps will try doing it this way instead. Thoughts/experiences?