Jok Bal

It is like our own Pata tim without the sauce. A new way of eating pata tim for me...wrap it in Ssangchu (cabbage) Everything in Korea is wrapped! With a little red chili paste before wrapping the meat,it fill your mouth with pleasure and satisfaction! Yummy!

Happiness

do i look like i'm not?

Sundubu Chiggae

Sun Dubu Chiggae


1 lbs of beef cut shabu-shabu style
1 lb of live clams
8-12 cloves of garlic
1 cup on kimchi (Korean fermented cabbage), drained
2 blocks of silken tofu

1/4 cup of kochukaru (Korean chili flake)
2 tbsp sea salt
1 tbsp of vegetable oil (preferably Canola)
2 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp of sesame oil
6 cups of water

If you did not buy the clams from a market, or if you have doubts as to whether the market purged them of sand, place the clams in a solution of 1 cup salt, 3 cups cold water, and 3 tbsp of cornmeal overnight. Most fresh and frozen clams purchased from a fishmonger or supermarkets have already had this step performed on them, so you're fairly safe skipping it.

Rinse the clams in cold running water. Brush thoroughly to remove any sand or loose bits of shell. Discard any cracked ones or ones whose shells fail to close. Drain, cover with a damp kitchen towel, and place in the refrigerator until ready to cook.

Peel and clean the garlic. Smash with the flat of your knife, then finely chop. Set aside.
Squeeze any remaining liquid out of the kimchi. Finely chop and set aside.

Cut your tofu up into cubes. Use whatever dimensions you prefer, as long as they're uniform. I like 1-in x 1-in x 1/2-in measurements for mine, since it makes them easier to pick up with chopsticks.

Remove your meat from its package and separate out into individual slices. This will make it easier to sauté and prevent clumping. Return to the refrigerator until ready to cook.

Add the vegetable oil to your pan and heat to medium high. Once the oil becomes very loose and starts to smoke slightly, add the garlic. Sautee until the garlic is light brown and the oil becomes fragrant. Should take less than a minute.

Add the kimchi to the pan and sauté until the mixture is dry and the kimchi stops releasing liquid. Most of the sizzling sounds should stop. Takes 5-10 minutes.

Add each slice of beef individually in folds to help prevent clumping. Let the beef brown on the bottom for a few minutes before you stir. Give the meat a few minutes to brown between each stir.

Once the meat has separated into individual slices and is in no danger of sticking together, sauté until any fat has rendered away. Should take around 10 minutes.

Add the kochukaru, sea salt, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Stir until evenly distributed. Make sure the area is well ventilated and try to keep any steam from getting into your eyes.

Sautee for another 2-3 minutes to help release the flavor of the kochukaru. If the mixture looks like it might be in danger of burning, reduce the heat to medium.
Add enough water to barely cover the meat, increase the heat to high, and bring up to a boil.
Add the tofu and let come back up to a boil. Drop the heat to medium, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes.
Insert the clams hinge-side down. Cover, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil, then simmer until all the clam shells have opened. Should take less than 10 minutes.

Don't worry...

I-WILL! LOL!

Seoul Olympic park

Yipee! cutie and i love my pose!

random thoughts...

travel travel travel..what will i do there? check on the area? Do i have enough money to do shopping? Gosh what will i do if i get lost in a place with not enough english speaking people?

Question questions questions...ok no more just pack your stuffs!

Purpose Driven Life

Recieved A Purpose Driven Life book as a gift. I am not a bookworm so i wondered why i recieved this kind of gift. Felt weird. Knowing myself it will take more time to finish one whole book unless that's Archie comics or something that has many illustrations. Challenge will be how i can finish this book in 40 days.

Browsed a few paged of the book and felt weird since really some might hit you. Thank you for this wonderful book and i will try reading it. I may not know my true purpose in life i might have the drive to see my worth.

Thank you Rick Warren for such an inspiring book. May it reach more people thru God's grace.

Special Spicy Braised Crabs

1Kl Red Crabs
Oyster sauce
Leeks (slice the whit part thinly and the green part cut into an inch in lenght)
Soy Sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste
onions
garlic

clean crabs and cit into half. In a pan heat cooking oil and saute garlic and onions. Add crabs and saute until it turns into red. Pour in oyster sauce and half a cup of water season with salt and pepper. Sugar to taste.Add sliced siling labuyo(optional) and then simmer. Put the leeks(stalk part) and reduce the liquid. Cover and put the green part of the leeks. Stir and check if crabs is full cooked.

Serve with rice. The sauce can already be a good dish already!

TRUST

so again...what is trust...

Seafood Lasagna

1/2k lasagna noodles
1 jar spaghetti sauce or favorite homemade
1 package frozen cooked salad shrimp, thawed and drained
1/2 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2/3 cup shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese/quick melt cheese

GETTING READY

1) Preheat oven to temperature of 375 degrees.
2) Make the lasagna as per the instructions given on the package.

MAKING
3) Into a saucepan, empty the spaghetti sauce and cook gently for about 10 minutes till the sauce has thickened and has reduced to about 3 cups. Stir in the shrimp.
4) In a small bowl, combine together the ricotta cheese, PArmesan cheese, parsley and pepper.
5) Assemble the lasagna by placing half of the noodles in an 8x8-inch casserole and topping with half of the seafood sauce. USe a small teaspoon to drop half of the ricotta mix on the top.
6) Sprinkle half of the mozzarella cheese all over. Repeat the layers till all ingredients have been used up.
7) Bake in preheated oven for about 35 minutes or till the cheese is bubbly.



SERVING
8) Serve warm after allowing to stand for 10 mi

Express from Bicol

Ingredients:

* 1/4 kilo of Pork liempo – sliced into 1/2 inch strips
* 4 cups of Long green chili – pepper, seeded and julliened-or more depends on yout "hot" meter
* 1 cup of Alamang – fresh(Balao from Bicol is still the best)
* 1.5 cups of Water
* 1.5 cups of Coconut cream (separate kakang gata-first squeeed juice from the coconut)
Pork cubes



Soak Long green chili peppers in salted water for 30 minutes, rinse, then strain well.
In a pan,combine water,pork, and alamang.
Bring to a boil and then lower the fire and let simmer for 10 minutes.
Add long green chili peppers Pour in coconut milk and cook until it produces more oil.

In Bicol pork is not the main ingredient of this dish but chili. Pork mainly is just a saute ingredient and the main star is still chili! Cooking it varies for me depending on who will be eating it.

Serve hot

How to Make Korean Pancakes

photo from Minsok who makes one of the best Haemul JUN
I need to perfect the skill in making Korean Pancake so i can help out in family gatherings and festivities if the time comes and i will be based in Korea LOL!

So after a lot of wexperiments and all...i think this is one of the easiest and i think basic technique in cooking Korean Pancake.
1/2 cup flour (sshhhh you can use the pre-mixed Korean Pancake that i discoverd)
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup water
5-6 green onions, chopped
A bunch of chives, chopped
5-6 slices zucchini, chopped into long slices
1 green chili pepper, finely chopped
2 large size shrimp, chopped OR several small scallops chopped
3-4 scallops, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 egg

1. Make a batter by mixing flour, salt and water.
2. Chop vegetables and seafoods.
3. Heat a skillet over medium high heat
4. Add all the ingredients except the seafood in the flour mixture.
5. Pour 2 tbsp olive oil in the skillet.
6. Add the battered veggies to the skillet, spread as thinly as you can.
7. Place the chopped seafood over the pancake. Sprinkle all over the pancake.
8. Break and whisk one egg. Pour over the top of the pancake.
9. When the pancake looks yellow and brown from the sides, its time to give it a flip.
10. Cook for few more minutes. Add more olive oil if required.
11. Serve with sauce.
Sauce:

Soy sauce put some sesame seeds and thinly sliced shallots or leeks.

If its with seafood it's called Haemul Jun
With the use of the
batter you can make..Kimchi pancake or other vegetable pancakes.

How to Make Korean Pancakes

photo from Minsok who makes one of the best Haemul JUN
I need to perfect the skill in making Korean Pancake so i can help out in family gatherings and festivities if the time comes and i will be based in Korea LOL!

So after a lot of wexperiments and all...i think this is one of the easiest and i think basic technique in cooking Korean Pancake.
1/2 cup flour (sshhhh you can use the pre-mixed Korean Pancake that i discoverd)
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup water
5-6 green onions, chopped
A bunch of chives, chopped
5-6 slices zucchini, chopped into long slices
1 green chili pepper, finely chopped
2 large size shrimp, chopped OR several small scallops chopped
3-4 scallops, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 egg

1. Make a batter by mixing flour, salt and water.
2. Chop vegetables and seafoods.
3. Heat a skillet over medium high heat
4. Add all the ingredients except the seafood in the flour mixture.
5. Pour 2 tbsp olive oil in the skillet.
6. Add the battered veggies to the skillet, spread as thinly as you can.
7. Place the chopped seafood over the pancake. Sprinkle all over the pancake.
8. Break and whisk one egg. Pour over the top of the pancake.
9. When the pancake looks yellow and brown from the sides, its time to give it a flip.
10. Cook for few more minutes. Add more olive oil if required.
11. Serve with sauce.
Sauce:

Soy sauce put some sesame seeds and thinly sliced shallots or leeks.

If its with seafood it's called Haemul Jun
With the use of the
batter you can make..Kimchi pancake or other vegetable pancakes.

Kiam Pehng

If you like to cook paella, you will love Kiam Pehng. The Japanese rice is much better than the malagkit rice that some recipes call for in paella.

Remember, the quantity of the ingredients should suit your personal preference and taste.

Here are the ingredients:

1 kilo pork liempo cut to cubes
1 kiko chicken cut to cubes
10 shitake mushrooms, dried (wash and soak in water, remove stems and cut into half)

1/4 cup sugar (to caramelize)

2 tablespoons large dried shirmps (hebe) soaked in warm water

1/4 cup or so Shallots (tagalog sibuyas)

Garlic

1/4 cup soy sauce

Japanese rice -soaked at least for 3 hours or you can use Dinorado rice

Mustard leaves (optional)

Chinese sausages


Saute all the ingredients (except the rice of course) and put soy sauce in the pan. Add water to boil after the ingredients turned into golden brown. Simmer. When it comes to a boil add in the soaked rice. be sure that the liquid is just enough to cook the soaked rice. Steam just like cooking ordinary rice.

If you want it to be steamed perfect transfer everything to the rice cooker and cook.

Served topped with roasted peanuts

Jealousy...bad and it's killing me

Jealousy is simply and clearly the fear that you do not have value. Jealousy scans for evidence to prove the point - that others will be preferred and rewarded more than you. There is only one alternative - self-value. If you cannot love yourself, you will not believe that you are loved. You will always think it's a mistake or luck. Take your eyes off others and turn the scanner within. Find the seeds of your jealousy, clear the old voices and experiences. Put all the energy into building your personal and emotional security. Then you will be the one others envy, and you can remember the pain and reach out to them.

And because of what i see and feel...it's killing me!

California Maki Charity style

Ingredients:
sushi rice
water
salt
sugar
rice wine vinegar
sesame seeds
nori seaweed sheets
cucumber
juice
crab sticks (surimi sticks)
mangoes sliced

Arranged in separate small bowls. Put the sushi rice in a colander and rinse with water until the water runs clear. Put the sushi rice in a small pot and add the water. Season with sugar and salt, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and let the rice soak covered for about 20 minutes. Put the sushi rice on a plate and season with rice wine vinegar. Put the sesame seeds in a coated pan and slightly roast them without adding any oil until fragrant. Put the sesame seeds on a board and spread out evenly. Put the nori seaweed sheets one at a time in the hot pan and roast one side until fragrant. Put each seaweed sheet on a bamboo rolling mat or on a clean dish towel. Spread half of the sushi rice on the nori seaweed sheets, leaving a small part around uncovered (about 1/2 inch). Cover the rice with plastic wrap and press on slightly. Put a cutting board on top and turn over the nori seaweed sheet, carefully slide it back on the bamboo mat. The plastic wrap should be underneath the rice and nori sheet. Peel the cucumber and cut into 3 mm fine thin stripes. Peel half of a small mango, cut into small thin stripes and drizzle with freshly squeezed lemon juice. Put the cucumber stripes, mango stripes and surimi sticks (imitation crab meat) on the nori seaweed sheet (in the lower third). Tightly roll up the California maki roll using the bamboo rolling mat. In doing so carefully remove the plastic wrap. Firmly press the ends of the sushi roll. Put the California maki roll on the board with the sesame seeds and roll back and forth to cover the roll with the sesame seeds. Cut the California maki roll with a Japanese knife or a sharp kitchen knife in 6 equal pieces.

Eggplant With Minced Pork

Eggplant and ground pork are stir-fried with chile paste paste and other seasonings in this spicy Szechuan recipe. For a vegetarian version, leave out the ground pork and increase the eggplant.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutesIngredients:
•1/4 pound ground pork
•Marinade:
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•1/4 teaspoon black pepper
•a Pinch (less than 1/2 teaspoon) cornstarch
•Sauce:
•1/4 cup chicken broth
•2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
•2 tablespoons light soy sauce
•1 teaspoon red rice vinegar, red wine vinegar, or balsamic vinegar
•1 teaspoon granulated sugar, or to taste
•2 teaspoons cornstarch
•Other
•4 Asian eggplants
•1 cloves garlic
•4 tablespoons oil for stir-frying, or as needed
•1 tablespoon bean sauce (hot bean sauce if possible)
•1/2 teaspoon chile paste with garlic, or to taste
•1 teaspoon sesame oil
Preparation:
Combine the ground pork with the salt, pepper, and cornstarch. Marinate the pork for 15 minutes.

While the pork is marinating, prepare the remaining ingredients. In a small bowl, combine the chicken broth, dark and light soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar. Whisk in the cornstarch.

Cut the eggplant into 1-inch squares. Mince the garlic.

Heat the wok over medium-high to high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of oil. When the oil is hot, add the eggplant. Stir-fry the eggplant until it is softened (about 5 minutes). Remove and drain on paper towels.

Add 2 tablespoons oil to the wok. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and bean sauce. Stir-fry until aromatic. Add the ground pork. Stir-fry until it changes color, using cooking chopsticks or a wooden spoon to separate the individual pieces.

Push the pork up to the sides of the wok. Add the sauce in the middle and bring to a boil, stirring quickly to thicken. Add the eggplant slices and the chile paste. Cook for a few more minutes and stir in the sesame oil. Serve hot