Dduk Gook (Rice Cake Soup)

This soup was delicious and super filling with the chewy rice cakes in there. We omitted the bulgogi when we made this (I don't remember why - we might have just plumb forgot), and it still tasted great. This is perfect on a cold winter's night - pure comfort and warmth!

Ingredients:

2 lbs Korean rice cake ovalettes

water

4 eggs, beaten

16 cups chicken broth

8 cloves garlic, finely minced

4-6 tbsps soy sauce (to taste)

4-6 scallion greens (cut into 2" long pieces)

1/4 lb bulgogi, cooked (we omitted this)

2-3 green onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal

2-3 sheets of seaweed (gim), cut into small, thin strips

sesame oil

sesame seeds

Method:

1. Soak rice cakes in cold water for approximately 1 hour.

2. Fry the eggs into a thick omelet. Fold or roll the omelet about an inch wide. Slice into thin strips.

3. In a large pot, heat the chicken broth. Then add garlic, soy sauce, scallions, and salt/pepper to taste. Let simmer for about 10 minutes.

4. Add rice cakes. Boil until ovalettes have softened, approximately 10 minutes.

5. Serve hot in large bowls garnished with egg strips, bulgogi, green onions, seaweed, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Add salt and pepper as needed.

Jap Chae

This was delicious! If only we hadn't gotten greedy and tried to sauce 2lbs. of noodles with the sauce intended for 12 oz. of noodles... Yeah, maybe try following the recipe to the letter on this one, and you'll have better luck. Ours tasted pretty good, just that we had to keep adding soy sauce and sugar at the end when we were running out of the regular sauce that we'd mixed beforehand. :-P

Ingredients:

12 oz dan myun (sweet potato starch noodles)

3/4 cup tamari (wheat-free sauce from refined soy)

4 tbsps Asian sesame oil

6 tbsps sugar

2 tbsps finely chopped garlic (4 cloves)

2 tbsps olive oil

1 large onion, sliced lengthwise 1/8-inch thick (3 cups)

5 medium carrots, grated into 1/8-inch thick matchsticks (2 in. long)

2 tsps toasted sesame seeds

1/2 lb fresh shitake mushrooms, trimmed and sliced 1/8-inch thick (3 cups)

6 cups baby spinach

Method:

1. Cook the sweet potato noodles in a large pot of boiling water for 4 to 5 minutes. Immediately drain and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Be sure not to overcook the noodles, or they will lose their chewy texture.

2. Whisk together tamari, sesame oil, sugar, and garlic.

3. Heat olive oil in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until it just begins to smoke, then stir-fry onion and carrots until onion is softened, about 3 minutes. Add sesame seeds and mushrooms and stir-fry until softened, about 3 minutes. Add spinach and stir-fry 30 seconds, then add noodles and tamari mixture and toss to coat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of liquid is absorbed, 3 to 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning to taste. Transfer to a shallow serving dish and sprinkle with more toasted sesame seeds. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Bulgogi

This was a wonderfully delicious recipe for bulgogi, though most of us agreed that we might use a lighter touch with the sugar if we tried this again. Also, we eyeballed the marinade measurements: when we followed the recipe to the letter, Alice (our wonderful Head Chef for the evening) decided that it still looked too dry, so additional soy, sesame oil, and wine were used.

Ingredients:

2.5 lbs rib eye beef, thinly sliced (1/8-inch thick)

2 tbsps brown sugar

2 tbsps soy sauce

2 tsps Asian sesame oil

1/2 bunch scallions, chopped (1/2 cup)

2 tsps garlic, grated

2 tsps fresh ginger, peeled and grated

1 tbsp rice wine (sake)

1/2 piece of fresh kiwi, juiced in a blender

Pinch of black pepper

Hot pepper paste

Method:

1. Trim the fat off the beef with a knife. Distribute the sugar evenly on the beef by sprinkling it on each piece. Allow beef to sit for 10 minutes.

2. In a separate bowl, mix together the soy sauce, sesame oil, scallions, garlic, ginger, sake, and black pepper. Put aside.

3. Massage the beef with the kiwi juice using your hands. The kiwi works as a tenderizer. Add the soy sauce mixture and mix. Allow the beef to marinate for 10 minutes. Because the beef is thin, it doesn't require a long marinating time.

4. Cook beef in a frying pan until browned, being careful not to overcook.

5. Eat with rice and pepper paste in a lettuce-leaf package.