Domestic Goddess

A bit of a trivia lesson now - King Sejong is known for the invention of the korean alphabet called Hangeul. It is considered one of the most scientific phonetic alphabet in the world. Not only was he a monarch but he was an astronomer, a scientist, mathematician, musician and composer and a writer. He was the Renaissance man of that period. His tomb and monument park is one of the most beautiful and peaceful that I have ever seen. Now we go back to our daily program ... EATING!

Part 2 of the Tofu Restaurant Feast Here is our feast for today. I am glad this blog is only for a week. If I keep eating like this, I would need to run to Seoul and back to lose all the pounds that I have gained. Now for the close-ups of the different goodies on our table. I remember somebody asking me about black rice, well the rice served in this restaurant is mixed with black rice variety, ending with a purplish rice with black specks on it. The side dish beside is is really spicy leeks. Blocks of freshly steamed tofu, kimchee and braised toh-dok (wild mountain herb). Mushroom stir-fry with leeks and carrots. Bok ssam dish or wrap-up-yer-goodies-and-eat dish. We have again fresh tofu blocks, sliced boiled pork pieces, steamed napa cabbage for wrapping and in the middle, spicy radish salad with oysters. Condiments for spicing up the bo ssam - salty shrimp sauce and gochujang. Here we have spinach, soy sauce with chopped leeks and chili peppers and slices of peppers and RAW garlic to add more heat to your bo ssam packages. In these 3 pots we have, Soon Du Bu (pure tofu soup, made blinding by my camera's flash), Bijit Tang (scrap tofu dish) and Dwenjjang Jjige. Salty-sweet anchovies on the right and crunchy salty-spicy cuke slices on the left. In the next part, I'm going to teach you how to wrap ssam.

Let's go back to food shall we? Today's lunch was at the Kong-Guel Restaurant. "Kong-guel" means bean village in korean, meaning that a lot of beans and legumes are grown here. Kong-Guel restaurant's specialty is tofu and almost all of the listed dishes in the menu are tofu-based or is made with some kind of tofu. Here is the street sign saying Kong-Guel. Huge pots of kimchi and fermented seasonings sit outside by the restaurant's entrance. This huge pot is a traditional steaming pot for tteok (rice cake). The holes are for the steam to rise up and cook the tteok in the bamboo containers. Antiques decorate the foyer of the restaurant. Billy checks out the rotary dial phone, fascinated that you don't have buttons to push to call a number. Sorry for the glare. I wanted to show the selection of drinks that can be ordered. When we sit down (again on the floor), we were offered steaming hot "sung-yung" - boiled rice drink. Cooked rice is boiled with a lot of water to create a soothing, soul-warming drink. Catherine told me, in the olden days, people would drink this as an everyday beverage. Let's break here and go to Part 2 for the food.

Insomniac - stoic, yes, that's the word I was looking for. That's what my kids have become, too. They would tolerate the cheek pinching and the numerous questions (how old are you? what is your name? where are you from? etc.) With regards to the sights and tourists attractions, there is actually one quite near me - the Burial Grounds and Monument to King Sejong (Korea's greatest monarch). We usually gor for a 2-3 night vacation in Ilsan city (a satellite city of Seoul 2 hours away from us) during the holidays. Here are my men zipping around in bumper cars in Lake Park (named so because it has one of the largest manmade lakes in Asia). Another favorite for my family to visit is the COEX mall aquarium (listed in the Guiness Book of World Records as the largest aquarium with the most number of species).

Before we go to lunch today, let's see the other sights in my town. A samgyeopsal and galbi restaurant in Gamgok. The dolsot bibimbap is really good here. One of numerous korean fried chicken delivery places here - Nene Fried Chicken. In Janghowon, this is the only inexpensive Japanese sushi restaurant. The owner is a friend of ours who love it when we visit with the kids. Billy gets to see the huge fishes get carved behind the counter. A koreanized-chinese restaurant that specializes in Jajang myeon noodles. I took this in the middle of the street while crossing the light (aah the things you do for eGullet). This is one of our favorite korean restaurants - Bawoo Galbi Restaurant. Hubby teaches the owner's kids in his institute/hagwon. The restaurant's Kalbi Tang soup and samgyeopsal are really tasty. Remember when I told you that ordering food here in Korea comes complete with actual plates, utensils, trays, etc.? Well, here's an example. What's great is that there are no dishes to wash or disposables to dispose of after. Finally, a picture of one of the many peach statues all over Janghowon. This statue stands on the intersection of Highway 45.

Sorry for not posting anything yet... I have been wielding my magic mop, broom and vac to battle with legions of dust bunnies that have invaded my home. Now I am set to don my magic gauntlet gloves and tackle the overflowing sink of dirty dishes and pot. Ahh, the work of a domestic goddess is never done.

Charlotte - it's the same recipe that I use for my chicken pot pie with a slight tweaking (I add more butter). This morning's breakfast was fixed by DDH (Darling Domestic Hubby). He fixed hash browns, hotel scrambled eggs (I know, I'll fix a pictorial tutorial later) and bacon. His splendid platter.

This looks amazing Blether! Can you generously share/PM the recipe? I got a pork slab waiting to be roasted in my freezer now.

Kouign Aman - the turbo oven is great for roasting chicken (all the fat comes out and drains on the bottom). You get chicken with a nice crispy skin and tender, juicy meat. That's on our dinner menu tonight. I'm glad I gave you a new idea in cutting/decorating your um, hot dogs.

It last about a week in my household. I use a lot of garlic in my stews and fried rice. Yes, I do. I usually have leftovers for him and I prepare fresh food for me and the kids. Or it's the other way around. Sometimes, I prepare two different meals all together, esp. when I'm craving for seafood (hubby doesn't eat any kind of seafood at all). Now you know why my freezer is stuffed to the gills. Susy - I can read korean a little bit and know enough korean to get around (meaning shop, ask how much, etc). Most of the times, Jai helps out by translating the signs and names for me. LOL Jai was in school that time. Jai is usually in school from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm. Billy is always with me hence more pics of him. LOL. Here's Jai with his best friend Kim Young-Guen during one of his sleepovers at our house. Littlemissfoodie, Racheld, Rebecca263 - Thank you for your wonderful thoughts and kind words. It makes this blog so worthwhile.

Doddie, how do you eat it, though? Are you supposed to crack it open like you normally do crabs? And did Billy try it? ← You're suppose to hold the crab with it's legs and squeeze the body until all the flesh comes out. Then, you suck it all in and then take a bite of rice. I sw them do this on Home TV shopping (they were advertising the soy sauce crabs and the red spicy ones). The legs you break off and suck too. Billy doesn't eat it either. He does like steamed crabs and king crab legs.

This is for Prasantrin. Empanada Empanadas are stuffed pastry or pocket pies. Empanada comes from the spanish word "empanar" which means "to cover". Filipino empanadas usually contain a filling flavored with soy sauce and containing ground beef or chicken meat, chopped onion, slices of hard boiled eggs and raisins in a wheat flour dough. I don't like raisins in my empanadas and hubby & Billy don't like boiled eggs. My version is flavored with cream of asparagus soup. Here are the ingredients for my empanada. Cream of asparagus mix, chopped bell pepper, chopped onion, diced carrots & potatoes, minced garlic and cooked shredded chicken. First, you saute the garlic and onion until they are golden brown. Add the carrots first to caramelize and soften them. When the carrots are cooked, add the potatoes and bell pepper. Dissolve the cream of asparagus mix in a cup of water. If you have in a can, just use it as is (without mixing with water). Add this and the chicken to the veggies in the pan. Let simmer until nice and thick. Let the contents of the pan cool down. Don't make the mistake of using hot filling to stuff the pastry - this will result in soggy empanadas. So while the filling is cooling, let's make the empanada dough. Dough ingredients: 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp butter, 2 tbsps lard, 2 cups flour and ice water. Add the butter, lard and salt to the flour. Cut the butter/lard into the flour using whatever instrument you fancy (knife, pastry cutter, etc). I like using my fingers. When the butter and lard are thoroughly mixed into the flour (they resemble rice pellets), add a little bit of water at a time and mix. When you have added enough water to bring the whole mixture together, knead until smooth and shape into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. Now we get to assemble the empanada. Cut a golf-size ball from the dough and roll it into a ball. Flatten and roll out into a thin circular shape between two sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper. Add two tbsp of filling on one side of the circle and close. Flute or pinch the edges together. To avoid these babies from exploding in your oven, prick all over with a fork to make steam vents. Brush with eggwash (beaten egg mixed with a little milk) to make them nice and golden when cooked. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. You get to see my versatile and trusty turbo oven in this pic. See the pies baking away? Bake them from 25 to 35 minutes or until they are nicely browned. Presenting - TA DA!!! Empanadas for Prasantrin. Of course we need to do some quality control testing. Hmmmm... Before dishing it out on the kids plates (with a serving of Mac & Cheese). Rona - hubby actually requested me to make this again tomorrow. He really, REALLY LIKED IT. LOL

Charlotte - um, how do I say this? I haven't eaten one. Or will ever eat one. I can handle raw fish, sushi, raw beef but its the raw crab that gets me. I just can't handle it. Ask Sheena - she's gaga over it. LOL

Thanks Ah Leung! Supper tonight was a two-way affair. Hubby got his way and I got mine. Hubby's supper - Beef Stew Assemble the ingredients... Brown the meat and then set aside... In the same pan, cook your aromatics (garlic, onion) Add carrots and celery. Let carrots and celery cook. Then add the meat and potatoes. Cover with beef broth and let simmer until everything gets nice and tender. Ladle in a bowl and serve with crusty bread or freshly cooked rice. The kids and I went simple - CHINESE!. I fixed Ah Leung's crispy shrimp.

Part 2 Now we go to the Rice part of the meal. The boiled Ichon rice is served in a stone pot with watermelon seeds and ginko nuts on top. The idea is to take it out of the stone pot and put the rice in a shallow bowl. Then boiled rice water is poured into the still hot pot and set aside for another part of the meal. We ate hearty and we ate good. When the end of the meal drew near, we had Billy press the button to summon the waitress. Dessert is the sweet traditional korean drink called Shikhae. You can see some rice grains at the bottom of the Shikhae cup. Of course at the end of the meal, you get the bill. Here in Korea, the bill is left by your tableside and the server just keeps adding to it, if you order more. I am so full from that wonderful meal. I really wanna thank Catherine for treating me and Billy to our first Ichon traditional rice meal. Tomorrow's lunch date is at a tofu restaurant.

My best friend Catherine offered to take me and Billy to a traditional korean restaurant. So, we hopped in her car and rode down to... Ichon Sal Bap Songhap Restaurant The restuarant is delightfully rustic in its decor and ambiance. Here's a couple of traditional turn of the century hen house by the side of the restaurant. Look at the charming welcoming counter and cashier desk. There are places to sit down and eat at a table and places to sit on the floor. The famous Ichon rice that I have been talking about. See the king on the logo on the package? This harkens to the time this rice was reserved for royalty. Now restaurants like this serve it daily with at least 20 side dishes. Catherine explained to me that this bamboo screen was used all the time in the olden days for women to talk to men discreetly and even royalty to talk to commoners. Now you get to see me and Catherine. Billy took this picture. Appetizers served first were kimchi pajeon and acorn jelly with nori strips and soy sauce & greens. Tripod burners sit on the side of the room that we are in. Our feast has arrived. I think it has stunned Billy, too. Close-ups of the food ... soy sauce marinated raw crabs (for Sheena) Fried fish, called kongchi in korean. I'll be posting its English name in here later. From top: greens with tofu bits, two spicy sauce side dish (I forgot what these were) and braised taro leaves. Catherine ordered this special seasonal dish - Jejudo Sea Bream. It was so tasty! Billy ate most of it. Ok, the red sauce side dish has fish in it but it was not spicy at all. It was mildy spicy with sweet undertones. There's kimchee on the side and jap chae noodles on the bottom. Now we see the tripod burner at work, a small pot of bulgogi rests on it to keep it warm. Beside the burner is a pot of red sauce (to flavor and spice up the rice) and another pot containing dwenjjang jjige. Now we have the eternal potato/macaroni salad, another view of the pajeon and spicy sauce, a saucer of SPICY beef with a quail egg and steamed savory egg custard. Various leaves for wrapping the bulgogi and fish into ssam. Have to break here... we'll go to part two in the next post.

MizDucky - just mix a portion of the tamarind block with a little water to make some sort of a paste. Use that to flavor the sinigang. Make sure that the tamarind block is made out of unripe tamarinds and not the ripe ones - 'coz you'll end up with sweetly sour sinigang. LOL The most common combination for a sinigang soup would be onions, tomatoes, eggplants, radish, yard long beans and bok choy. That's the very basic for pork sinigang. Coming up is my lunch out in a traditional korean restaurant (lots of banchan for you MizDucky - 20 at least!).

Before I post my fabulous lunch, here is what I am having now for an afternoon snack. Earl Grey tea... Korean sweet rice balls filled with paste. Is this mochi?

Hi Sandy! I am glad you can join me in my blog. I stand corrected with Janghowon's population - it's 10,000 people strong, not 7,000. It is really a tiny village. Tofu is made fresh right there and then in the market with pre-soaked soy beans. The beans are ground up and then the curds are separated from the soy liquid, steamed and then pressed into blocks. Eating fresh tofu is so different from the ones you get in the supermarket. The flavor is fresh, light and so creamy, even the firm kind.

Today's brekkies: Tiny Korean vienna sausages, potato-sausage hash and the eternal garlic fried garlic. I tried to cut the vienna sausages into octopi (Nakji!) and a couple of ears of corn. I doubt if you guys can see it.

Nakji, unfortunately your namesake does not agree with my tummy. Everytime I ate octopus here in Korea, it gave me indigestion and a very upset tummy. The funny thing is that the dried shredded squid does not bother me at all. With regards to fish sauce, my answer would be a resounding YES! The Philippines have a longtime love affair with fish sauce. My late grandfather was once reprimanded by my grandmother (his 3rd wife), that he was not suppose to have fish sauce as ordered by his doctor. My granfather replied, "Hell, if I'm gonna die, I'd die happy.." (grabs the fish sace container and pours liberally over his sinigang soup).

Nakji, I haven't forgotten this question. Here is my answer: While we are on the subject of snacks, here's a better look on what me and my men are snacking on these days (and nights)...

Carrot - I can mail one to you, if you want. Just PM me your addy and I'll send it later this month.

Tonight's dinner was requested by Billy - our Sinigang boy. Yes, we're having Sinigang tonight. Sinigang is a sour soup so Filipino, it is comparable to borscht being so Russian. Almost any meat can be made into sinigang - pork (has to be fatty with skin on), beef, chicken, fish, shrimp, etc. The accompanying ingredients can be as complex and myriad: eggplant wedges, 2-inch long yard beans, peeled horseradish fruit, blocks of radish, bok choy leaves (or pechay in Filipino), etc. Or the ingredients can be as simple as an onion, a tomato and some bok choy leaves. The key ingredient to Sinigang is the souring agent which is mashed tamarind. Traditional Filipinas (meaning grandmas and older aunts) would boil unripe tamarind fruit in palayoks (traditional Filipino clay pots) and mash the puree into the boiling soup to flavor it. Nowadays, the tedious process has been replaced by just snipping open a packet of Sinigang flavor granules mix. There are some instances when Sinigang can be flavored by kalamansi juice (great for shrimp and fish), unripe guavas (great for milkfish or bangus), and even kamias fruit (Averrhoa bilimbi) . Tonight's Sinigang is a simple one with shrimps and bok choy. I will show you how my mother would make this comforting Filipino dish. The ingredients: In a small pot, pour rice washings into it (about 2/3's full). See my rice pot beside it? I would fix rice at the same time I cook sinigang. Add onion wedges and whole tomatoes into the pot and bring to a boil. When the soup is boiling add the shrimp and the Sinigang flavor mix together. Fpr tougher meats like pork and beef, the meats are first boiled until they are tender. Then the sinigang mix is added. When the shrimp is almost cooked, add the bok choy leaves. Deconstructed sinigang on Billy's plate. I usually fish out the shrimp for him so that it is easy for him to eat. Sinigang is best eaten with a tiny bowl of fish sauce for dipping the meat. You can see it on the lower right hand of the plate.

An addition to my grocery shopping spree. In case yo're wondering what happens to the boxes that come with my grocery - they get recycled into tanks and comfy places to sit and watch TV with.