16yrs old + no cooking experience = questionable korean food

[rooraa]

Well, 내 엄마 has just told me that on Tuesday, after my 쌍둥이 and 나 get our shots, we are going to stop at the korean market up there! And my plan is to buy lots of ingredients so I can attempt to cook up some yummy korean dishes! The problem is I have never successfully completed a real dish without any help (from 내 엄마) sooo, I'm wondering how I can fare with korean food. But the things i want to make seem to be quite simple so I probably have nothing to worry about

1) 김밥

oohh yeah, that looks good

2) Ddeokbokki (how is that spelled in 한글? 떡볶이?)


3) aaaand of course I have to try 짜장면!
This dish has got to be the most popular dish in korean dramas! And every time I see it, I get an urge to want to try it! They make it look sooo yummy!



but I have to buy some ingredients and so far my list seems to consist of:

1) 고추장 (hope it's not that hot!)

2)단무지 (actually 내 엄마 has bought this (twice i think) but i never tried it but 이제 I think i will!)


3) noodles for 짜장면

4) 춘장


5) 가래떡 (it'll be interesting to try eating these "cakes" (I consider them to be reallllly big noodles )

6) pork belly

7) potatoes

fish cake (what is it called in korean?)


9) cabbage


I'm probably missing a quite of stuff, but my wallet is going to be dead after all of this shopping! I don't want my mom to buy the stuff for me because...I just don't? ㅎㅎ

음... yeah, I just wanted to share this bit of info with you all. Wish me luck ^_^

Oh yes, you might have noticed something about the pictures. I got them from http://mykoreankitchen.com and http://blog.maangchi.com. Check these sites out!

[javiskefka]

For the 김밥, you might want to get some:
sesame oil - prevents the seaweed from cracking when you roll it
eggs - just scramble them and thinly slice
carrots - you can also use this in the 떡볶이
cucumber
spinach or other greens
meat - imitation crab or beef
fish cake - called 오뎅 in Korean

[rooraa]

I know i need those too but i was too lazy to type it up, thanks for the reminder though!

[hyunwoo]

Wow!! A great shopping list ! Makes me hungry ! hehehe.

오뎅 is also called 어묵 in Korean by people who want to avoid Japanese-based words in Korean. although most people still call it 오뎅

I think you'll do a good job please upload a pic of what you made if you can! hehe.

[rooraa]

haha, you bet I will! I hope my grocery shopping and cooking will go well

[Bouks]

I see some familiar things, that I also found in my Korean market experience I got my sticky rice cake already cut into pieces. I will make "dduk guk" soon. Maangchi's blog is great - I'm using it to fill in recipes that my Korean book doesn't have.

Does anyone know if vegan "seitan" (wheat gluten meat substitute) works as a good replacement in beef recipes? For when I want to serve people with diverse dietary preferences.

What is "danmuji", is that squash?

Another question - my Korean cookbook gives a namool recipe that requires "chinese bellflower" and "fernbrake". What other vegetables can I make namool with? I don't think I"ll be finding bellflower and fernbrake anytime soon.

[javiskefka]

Danmuji (단무지) is the ubiquitous sweetened yellow radish found on Korean tables. In the picture in rooraa's post, it's been cut into long, rectangular slices. You'll also often see round, width-wise slices too.

[Bouks]

What could you with it, besides putting it in kimbap? As a side dish, is anything done to it, or is it served right out of the package?

[javiskefka]

That package is definitely for kimbap. In fact it says "For use with kimbap" in the upper left corner.

It's served in the round disc form as a side dish. The only thing to do with it is maybe add some vinegar to dampen the sweetness.

Also, it's sometimes mixed with soy sauce and sesame seeds.

[SiEd]

I once made my "idiosyncratic" version of 떡볶이 which had some leftover kimchi, gochujang, 떡볶이 떡, and bacon (!). I was basically getting rid of leftovers, as you can tell. It was great, but I don't think you would find a version like that anywhere in a 포장마차! And sorry, I don't have a picture.

그런데, 요리법 단어 "볶이", "볶음"의 다른 것은 뭐예요? ("What's the difference between "볶이" and "볶음"? -Sorry if my Korean sentence doesn't make much sense...)

[SiEd]

Or maybe a better constructed sentence would be:

요리법 단어 "볶음", "볶이"는 어떻게 달라요?

But yet again, I'm not sure.

[manyakumi]

요리법 단어 "볶음", "볶이"는 어떻게 달라요?

볶음 is a standard word.

볶다 -> 볶 + 음(suffix for making a noun)

볶이 is kind of a slang for 볶음
but you could find that word only for 떢볶이, i guess.

Originally, 떡볶음 is a right expression though,
everybody used to say 떡볶이 because it sounds more friendly.

[the_haunted_boy]

I really would love to try more Korean food...these kinds of posts always make me want to try new food.

[rooraa]

Well I did it, I finally went to the Zion Market and bought the ingredients for 짜짱면 but I had a really hard time finding the 춘장 but I did find it ^^
So in all I bought the noodles (I think I bought the wrong kind, maybe for a soup?), black bean paste, carrots, Korean radish, and some sweet potatos. The rest I already had at home.

Back at home, I was excited to make it and try 짜장면 for the 1st time! However I did run into a little problem: the 물 for the noodles overflowed and foam was spilling all over the place and the noodles ended up being extremely sticky which I don't think is exactly right >__>
But at least the sauce looked just like the one in the pic. Oh yeah and instead of pork belly, my mom had actually bought some bacon (which is an extreme rarity in my house, i probably ate it 2 other times during my 16 year existence) so I used that instead

Then finally everything was done! I put some noodles on a plate and spooned a heaping amount of the sauce on top and mixed it jsut like they do in the dramas. I took a big bite and I discovered I do not like 짜장면. Don't get me wrong, I really wanted to love it but the taste was jsut not to my liking TT___TT Dang it.

I felt so sad! But I want to be positive for afterall, that wasn't the authetic Korean real deal, I had only tasted my own concocation which probably tasted hopefully completely different from real 짜장면 but then again, maybe it's just an acquired taste that i sadly dont' posess

[matthew254]

oh roora have faith - real 짜장면 is delectable.

Fear not! As an amatuer chef myself, I must say that my best cooking attribute is perseverance (and talking loudly - that seems to help all food). I have made some seriously terrible dishes. My wife can confirm this. But, I can also cook a mean 의김치 that will knock you on your feet.

I wish I had picture of my first 짜장면 - It looked more like corned beef hash. It was aweful.

You'll get it right soon - you're great for even attempting it in the first place! Keep us updated on your next dish.