Domestic Goddess

Discipline is very ... how shall I say it - cotroversial here in Korea. Corporal punishment is still practiced all over, even in Jai's school and my hubby's hagwon. I always talk to the teachers whenever the school starts to tell them we don't approve of corporal punishment and if Jai misbehaves, we will deal the punishments ourselves. I have see teachers beat kids with 5-feet long thin sticks/branches. I was replying to the vegetarian aspect of the question. The options of vegetarians have with regards to kimchee - I suggested getting the ones made with sea salt not with fish sauce. The apples (left, second) (are they apples?) are 385 won per what? 10g? (Couldn't read it). I am wondering why they wouldn't make that per 1kg to make calculation easier. ← Ah Leung, would you believe that the apples cost almost 2 dollars each? They're THAT expensive.

Alanamoana - oh the black market stores are still here. There's one where we go to in Itaewon in Seoul. We call it the Red Front store (no sign on the store front, just a painted red windowframe and door). We get our pepperoni, lipton rice, brown gravy mix, spices, cheerios, etc. there. Lunch today was light, tasty and very chinese. Wonton soup with bok choy. The addition of shitake mushrooms was my idea.

Here is my small stonepot. I usually make single servings of dwenjjang jjige and kimchee jjige in this pot (I'm the only one who eats it in this household).

Part 2 of the Hanaro shopping experience. Adjummas restocking the gochujang (chili pepper paste) and dwenjjang (fermented soybean paste) aisle. Soy sauces, cooking wines, vinegars, etc... The ban chan display... The day's selection of fish and sea food. Shellfish and chicken occupy the same section. The meat case, I don't really buy meat here. It is fairly expensive. I buy our meat from the butcher in the street market. Packs of dumplings (veggie, meat, kimchee, etc.). Different tea brews. Aaaah, the crunchy snack aisle... Candies and sweets aisle... Dried squid and nuts snacks for the beer and soju drinkers. Of course, there should be a Pocky shot. Only this time, it is the korean-version - the Peppero sticks. Ramyeon noodles ranging from mild spicy to mindblowing hot! Potato starch noodles for japchae... Premade mixes for donuts, pancakes, pa jeaon (savoury pancakes), etc. Pasta, imported stuff and japanese food products... Soju drinks, beer, maekkoli (rice liquor), wine... Checking out my groceries... The neat thing about Hanaro is that if you pack your groceries in a box. And fill out the address sticker label with your name and addy. And fill out the registration folder... They will load it in their van and deliver it to your doorstep for free. No matter how much you buy. Isn't that neat? That ends our grocery trip today. Hope you had fun shopping with me.

Sheena - I haven't seen the tiny crab soy sauce version. IN the Philippines, we would spice up these tiny crabs and deep fry them until crispy. Then you dip the the cruchy crittters in garlic vinegar and eat them like potato chips. lovebenton - thank you.

Now we're going shopping! We will head to Hanaro Mart grocery store where I buy the bulk of my groceries. It is a fairly medium-sized grocery, built over a year ago. When I run in the mornings I run up to this store and then turn head back home. Boxes of apples and oranges for gifts line the entrance of the store. These would set you back $35 to $45 each. The dollar-section of the store... Here are the veggie wall fridges... Red and green chili peppers on top while mountain herbs and veggies are stacked underneath. Bell peppers, cukes, zucchinis, eggplants, etc. Chestnuts, dried and fresh persimmons, korean melons, etc. Cutting garlic (minced garlic actually), tofu blocks, sauces for the tofu, etc. Dehydrated zucchinis, eggplant, mugwort, etc... These veggies seemed to be pre-blanched. Now we go to the fruit selection... Bear in mind that 1,000 korean won is almost 1 US dollar. Mushrooms galore! Friendly store staff bag my bell peppers, they usually put some more produce in the bag after they weigh it and tell you "Service" (korean english for FREE) with an impish grin. More chili peppers and garlic. Koreans count as one of the world's biggest consumers of garlic. Okay, this is Part 1. Coming up is more of Hanaro store in Part 2.

Shaya - thank you for you kind words. I do try to capture the beauty of the place and culture where we live in now. Bavila - those red things in post 32 in the street market pics are not crawfish, they're spicy-seasoned chicken legs! The tiny crabs are cooked and also seasoned with ever present gochujang (chili pepper paste) and other seasonings. You can actually see them being mixed by the ban chan vendor in the same post (32) it's the 4th picture from the top. Carrot Top - I'll show your quote to the kids and let them read it themselves/ Rebecca - I can't wait to see pics of your afritada! Tell your daughter I am so proud of her. She gets an honorary Filipina title from me. Dejah - I use the Ichon rice variety, it is one of the best that is found here in Korea (we live 30 minutes away from Ichon city). It is soft, fluffy and fragrant, yet it is quite okay to use in friedrice which require non-sticky rice. In the olden times, Ichon rice was reserved solely for the king's and his family consumption. Now it is readily available everywhere, especially here in Janghowon. When my parents visited me two years ago, my mother wanted to bring a huge sack home. LOL Sun - now you can see why Jai bugs me for garlic fried rice for brekkies.

Rona aka prasantrin - I haven't tried making ensaymada yet but I did make pan de sal a couple of times. They were busts (hubby said it didn't taste like the ones in the small bakeries in Manila). Empanada, now that I can do for you. I think I have all the ingredients in my fridge. I'll make chicken empanada later and post the pictorial for you.

Guess for 100 - Jaws?

Today, I need to go to the grocery. I made a list and I checked it twice. Okay it's a short list.

Yesterday Jai told me he wanted potato omelet again. I wanted to fix something different this morning and I remember somebody fixing sausage hash in the breakfast section. I took out one of hubby's frozen sausage, crumbled it in the pan, added cubes of potatoes & a dollop of bacon grease and let everything get nice and brown and toasty. Towards the end, I added beaten eggs and a sprinkling of pepper. Of course, Jai had garlic fried rice on the side.

Miladyinsanity - I bought half a container of these fabulous strawberries. I'm thinking about making strawberry shortcake with them later tonight. Littlemissfoodie - Sheena's right! Ban chan is the korean word for side dishes. Speaking of side dishes, I remembered MizDucky wistfully wishing she could taste all those covered ban chan trays. I thought that I wouldn't since 70% os those side dishes are sooo salty and the rest are very sweet. Rebecca - I am so happy that your daughter fixed Chicken Afritada! You're welcome and one question - how do you like it? Ann - am not a fan of breakfast either. Most of the times, I just have decaf coffee and have an early lunch. Brekkie pics coming up.

Milagai - here are answers to your questions. 1. I can't classify that all Filipino food is not spicy because we have a province that is known for its spicy dishes - Bicol province. Bicol dishes are usually coconut milk-based and super spicy. They even have a dish that consist 7 kinds of chili peppers simmered in coconut milk. Tongue searing hot! I guess it would depend on different provinces. I come from a province that borders the sea hence the Spanish influence (galleon trade and such). Our food is milder and not spicy at all. 2. Traditional kimchee would call for fish sauce. Older generation koreans would insist on using it. Newer generation koreans would substitute sea salt for the fish sauce component or leave it out entirely (for health reasons). I have heard that Chinese-made kimchee does not use fish sauce but I don't know what brand. 3. My moniker? LOL In other message boards I am known as Riverdancer, in a Terry Pratchett board I am known as an orangutan. When I was invited to join here I was trying to figure out a name that would describe my dominance in the kitchen. I intially wanted Domestic Diva first but found it too snotty for my taste. I settled for Domestic Goddess instead because my husband always mention how he worships the food I fixed him and me.

Cooking time! I'll be making Chicken Afritada. It is a spanish tomato-based stew that has bell pepper, carrots and potatoes in it. Here are the ingredients: (chicken cut up in pieces, diced carrots, diced potatoes, chopped onions and minced garlic. Not in the picture are the sliced bell peppers and chopped tomatoes. The recipe is very simple. First, brown the chicken in a little oil in a wok. Take out the chicken and reserve for later. Add the garlic and onion and saute until golden brown. Add the tomatoes and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and let the mixture simmer for about 7-10 minutes or until the tomatoes have exude oil. NOTE: This is very important. Cooking the tomatoes and tomato sauce for a long time until it gives out oil is one of the scret cooking techniques passed on from one cook to another in my family. It helps brings out the flavor of the dish and helps keep the dish longer (prevent early spoiling) in a hot and humid environment such as my country. Ok, back to the recipe, when you see oil on top of the simmering sauce add the bell pepper. Then add the carrots and the chicken. Stir everything up until the thick sauce covers everything. Add enough water up to the level of the meat in the pot. Bring to a boil and let simmer. When the chicken and carrots are half-done, add the potatoes. It would look something like this. Season with salt, pepper and about 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. Let the sauce simmer until it becomes thick. Serve hot over rice.

I am cooking a spanish-inspired dish called Chicken Afritada. I'll post pics and recipe later. The Filipino soup with the tamarind you are talking about is called Sinigang. I'll be featuring that tomorrow. It's Billy's favorite. Ice cream in a hamburger bun is available from any sidewalk ice cream vendor cart. My sisters and brother love it but I don't eat ice cream. I don't like sweets at all but I do bake a lot of cakes, muffins, cookies, etc. for my men. LOL My own family, a family of sweet tooth, calls me the black sheep of the family. When my dad buys a gallon of ice cream, he gets a small pizza for me.

For Sheena and Nakji Today I didn't feel like cooking so Billy and I went to Yongudong Restaurant. It's one of the many hole in the wall gimbap snack restaurants. I ordered Dolsot Kimchee Albap (Fish Roe with Kimchee over Rice in a Stonepot). The hot stonepot bowl cooks the roe when you mix it up. I add several tablespoons of veggie broth to get the bits of crusty rice that sticks on the bottom. I had them take the chopped kimchee out and substituted several squeezes of guchujang sauce (red pepper sauce) instead). Here is my bowl after mixing everything up. Billyboy wanted Donggas (or Tonkatsu in Japanese or Fried Pork Cutlet in English). Impish boy wouldn't let me take a picture of his food without him in it.

Sheena - my kdis prefer American food or what my son Jai would call MEAT food (steak, fried chicken, ribs, etc.). Oh you said it about the poking and the squeezing of the cheeks. Jai would tolerate it but would later ask for the nth time why do koreans do it? Billy would always try to hide behind my coat as he is in the shy stage now. Filipino is the correct way of spelling it (it can stand for a Philippine native man or woman too). A Philippine woman can be called Filipina. Filipino can also be spelled Pilipino. Are you more confused now?

Michael aka Pan - alkali salt is just a brand name. It's plain table salt or iodized salt. Re:Stinky cheese - I remember one time we went to a nearby city which had a Pizza Hut and I decided to bring home a Family Size Super Supreme pizza for supper. We took the cab home (cost us about 25 dollars for the dare) and all the way the taxi driver kept saying that the pizza stinked. All the time, my kids were clamoring for a piece because they said the aroma was driving them nuts and hungry. What a difference in culture. LOL Today's breakfast was done in the wee hours of the morning, well 6:30 am to be exact. Jai wanted to catch the 7:30 village shuttle bus into town to have more free time in the morning with his classmates. I obligingly woke up for him. I decided to make a classic Filipino breakfast - Potato omelet. Like what I said before, a lot of our cuisine is inspired and influenced by the Spanish culture. The Potato Omelet is one of them. I actually found similar dishes served in the Spanish tapas restaurants. Frying the potatoes first. Then adding the beaten egg. Let everything cook and set over low heat. Cut a wedge and serve with smoke pork loin & garlic fried rice. A well-fed kid goes to school while his mom blearily stumbles back to bed.

Here's my collection... My stirring/tasting spoon, rice ladle and frying spatula.

Insomniac - yes, I actually do cook kilawin but unfortunately I am the only one who eats it. Neither the boys nor hubby likes the vinegary raw fish. ECR aka Robyn visited the Philippines a month ago and was toured by my parents around Manila and the neighboring cities. She featured my mother's kinilaw in her blog HERE. Here's a better pic of Domestic Hubby (he'll kill me if he finds out that I call him that in here ) MizDucky - I'll do a special posts on banchan. I think the first lunar new moon is coming up and koreans celebrate it by eating ogokbap (rice boiled with 5-grains) and cracking nuts with their teeth for luck. Eating the 5-grain rice also entails having dwenjjang jjige with spring mountain herbs and lots of ban chan.

I am stilla wake. For some reason I can't get to sleep. Nakji, our stove is regular-height. Billy, who is 6 by the way, is standing on a kitchen chair. LOL He also uses it when he helps wash the dishes. I love eating at gimbap places (sushi roll plus dozens of cheap meals resto)! I usually have the gimbap while kids decide on noodles or fried pork cutlets. Dolsot bibimbap now costs $5.0. The kids love going into those convenience stores too (not convenient for my wallet though). I'll promise to take pics of them and their goodies.

Susan - I already got hubby well-trained after a couple of meals. He now fixes his plate prettily and patiently waits for me to take a picture before wolfing it down. He actually complained I took 3 pics of the grilled chicken platter before I let him have it. LOL Jai eats in school. He usually has the korean lunch fare - seaweed soup, fried pork cutlets, kimchee and rice. He doesn't eat kimchee but likes smelling it. Ok, naptime now and when I wake up, a new round of meals and pics.

Wow, I never knew blogging could be so addictive ... and I am only on my second day. LOL Yesterday was warm enough to cook some barbeque. I asked darling hubby to cut-up a couple of chickens (which he did in under 4 minutes) so I can make Chicken Inasal. Chicken Inasal is a traditional Ilonggo barbeque dish where the chicken is marinated with a lot of lemongrass, wild yellow ginger, kalamansi juice, annato seeds (achuete in my language) and white sugarcane vinegar. The chicken pieces are also skewered on long bamboo sticks. Since I don't have almost all of those ingredients, here's my substitute: lemon zest for lemon grass, plain ginger for the wild yellow ones, lemon juice for kalamansi and annato powder. Chickie pieces marinating for an hour. Korean charcoal shaped in circle-block and is very easy to light. We grill right out of our veranda porch. I'm not gonna show you that because I haven't cleaned up yet! Here's our grill though and me basting the chicken with oil to make the skin crackle and crispy. Yeah, we're cooking! Hubby's plate with garlic fried rice on the side. Y'all may be asking why grill 2 chickens for a family of 4? For cold chicken leftovers of course!

Ah Leung, most of the restaurants (samgyeopsal resto and others) are sit-down-on-the-floor-til-your-legs-feel-dead types. It's been trying to find places that actually have tables and chairs since hubby can't sit on the floor on account of his knees and discomfort. The kids and I grin and bear it. They do provide thin cushions that do nothing to dull the pain of sitting down for a long time. Here's a pic of some other diners in the restaurant who wanted to say hello to Billy and shake his hand. Jai was too busy eating. LOL

Homemade brekkie sausage is Hubby's forte. Too expensive and too much of a hassle to go to Seoul to get Jimmy Dean's sausage. A package of 6 pcs. costs about 6 to 7 dollars! Pochero is the name of the stew. I can make that later this week since this is how it looks like outside our window today. The mashed eggplant sidedish that is served with pochero has some pieces of squash, minced garlic and vinegar with it. It makes for a delightful tongue cleanser after you slurp the oily broth. And especially for you.... Billy just waking up.