October 2022 Newsletter
Some news!
On Saturday October 8th I will be at The New York Times Food Festival here in New York, talking about Korean winter kimchi (gimjang) and making kimchi with NYT cooking writer Eric Kim. If you come to the festival, be sure to say hello to me there. I'll also be signing cookbooks in the afternoon in their book tent, so if I don't see you at the kimchi making demo I will see you at the signing!
Kimchi Demo Time: 2:45-3:25 PM
Cookbook Signing Time: 4:00-4:30 PM
Also, I want you to be the first to know that a giveaway contest will be announced in my next video. aT New York (run by the Korean government) and I are working together and send a gift box to 50 people in the USA. Be ready to enter! It will be announced next week.
New recipe: Spicy soft tofu stew with seafood
I posted a new seafood version of sundubu-jjigae (Korean spicy soft tofu stew). Now my website has 3 kinds of sundubu-jjigae recipes: Meat, kimchi, and seafood. Served bubbling hot at the table in its traditional earthenware bowl, it’s impossible to resist! Check out the recipe and video here!
New recipe: Squash & beef over rice
I also posted a recipe for a one bowl meal using a Korean round squash called doong-geun-hobak (둥근 호박). You could use zucchini if you can't find this squash, called an avocado squash, round squash, or globe squash in English.
Whenever I see this round squash it reminds me of the backyard of my grandmother's house in the Korean countryside, where she used to grow it! Check out more stories and the recipe and video here!
1 minute video recipe: Eomuk-bokkeum
I made this short video on how to make a Korean fish cake side dish called eomuk-bokkeum! Some of you say: "Oh, I can make it now, too easy!" That's right!
Grilled pork skewers with rice
Katiecakie made her own 1 plate Korean meal with rice, a spinach side dish, and pork skewers. As a rice lover, I'm impressed by the white and shiny rice in the photo! The pork skewers look so juicy and savory, then the blanched and seasoned spinach and a few leaves of lettuce, all these make this simple meal perfect.
Hot dog & french fries on a stick
What do you think? It feels like it would make a loud noise when you bite into it, doesn't it? My reader on my website ilovepastry made gamja-hotdog (Korean style hot dog & french fries on a stick) for her guests and said, "Maangchi! They were a crowd pleaser with my pastry students and colleagues."
Bibim-guksu (Spicy noodles)
What a great looking bibim-guksu photo! Ethaninthekitchen posted this photo on my website. Check out the recipe here!
Jeyuk deopbap
I'm always happy to hear that your Korean cooking makes your family and friends happy. GillUK in the UK made spicy pork and vegetables over rice and said, "Another winner with my family. I can’t find the big chilli peppers in the UK so I used a small ones and a bell pepper." Sure I will forgive you for not using large chili peppers. Just a joke! : ) Anyone who wants to make this dish, check this out, please.
Messages from my readers & viewers
My readers and viewers always make me smile, inspire me, amaze me, and make me think. Here are some of their messages that I chose to share with you!
Bre Kae's comment made me so happy! That's right, if you have kimchi at home, you can make tons of different dishes.
You taught me so much about Korean food. I make my kids lunches, and they gotta have kimchi with everything lol! Thank you!
Probably you have your own story like this. Rose shared a story about her grandfather on my squash and beef over rice video. She left the comment in Korean, so I will translate it into English for you:
This dish reminds me of my grandfather! He used to make this for me when I visited him in the countryside during my summer vacation. He used pork instead of beef, but it was very delicious. Now I can't taste his dish anymore.
My traditional gimbap recipe (seaweed rice rolls) uses beef but Nova asked for a vegetarian alternative:
What would be a good extra to swap with beef (preferably vegetarian)? I want to make this for my mum but she is beef intolerant.
In the YouTube comments I recommended she use fried tofu. Slice the fried tofu and stir-fry with some soy sauce, garlic, sugar (or syrup), and sesame oil. It will turn out so tasty. I hope this tip is helpful for some of you, too.
If you cook Korean food you know how important Korean grocery stores are in your life. When you bring lots of good ingredients home, you feel so excited, thinking about making delicious dishes soon!
Jon Howell shared his own story. While reading his comment about how happy he was when he found a big H-Mart, I was also happy for him. I'm sure Korean cooking adds to his family's happiness!
I discovered that here in the CA Bay Area, we have a lot of Asian stores. I found H-Mart recently. It's a Korean grocery. A lot bigger than I expected! So many foods that I don't know how to use yet. My wife is cooking dinner right now, so I'll make mandu tomorrow morning. I'll use shiitake instead of pork because my son's girlfriend is vegan. Thank you, Maangchi, for encouraging me to cook Korean style! 🥟🥟🥟 🙂
A touching story shared by Jesss, living in Koreatown, Los Angeles. She and her Korean boyfriend cooked Korean food together ever since they found me online. Then her boyfriend went back to Korea to fulfill his obligation to the Korean military for a couple of years. Jesss stopped cooking since he left but she is still watching my videos. She said: "it feels like we're still together." and "You're always a part of our relationship." When I read this last line, my heart melted. My reply in the YouTube comments:
Don't stop cooking delicious food for yourself though. Surprise your loved one with your great cooking skill when he comes back! Update me, please.
️Her response:
This means a lot to me. I'll try to get back to the kitchen again soon. But I'm so heart broken now. I used to have him around and be like my family more than 4 years, I cook & he clean, deciding what to eat & going to K-market together, eating & enjoy your recipes together. Now there's nothing we can do D all we can do is talking through the phone. Hopefully we'll get through this together. But I'll stay positive and healthy till the day we meet again. Will update you accordingly, I promise. Keep your fingers crossed for me. Thank you for your hard work and especially your good vibes.️
Emma's fashion model is her kimchi!
I love this lovely photo Emma took of her kkakdugi relaxing in the garden. So stylish! lol
I will see you next month on November 1st! Keep being happy with your delicious Korean cooking and take care!