Good Scotch Egg

 

What makes a good Scotch egg? I think first of all egg has to be runny when finished, it is a pleasure to see runny yellow egg yoke when you cut in the middle, surround by the firm egg white and sausage  meat. 

I have tried my new recipes with this delicate quail eggs , it is so difficult to shell off  without making a whole on egg white when you boil only just about 1 minute.

Since famous chef, Michelin 1 stared pub, served quail  Scotch egg , Scotch egg has reinvent itself Some chef has made  with ground prawns, I've tried this recipe, delicious!! I do make usually Christmas time. They are very good at festive season drinks party.
Some does with smoked salmon, not dare to try, it would be so expensive.(  not only too expensive and I love smoked salmon just as it is with dill & capers)

Time to time we have lunch at Bray, pub ( owned by most famous chef in U K and made quail Scotch egg famous) with friends who lives in Surrey, we always have quail Scotch egg and move on to Oxtail & Kidney pudding ( very good) with triple chips .
But unfortunately, last week our Quail Scotch egg was awful, specially egg yoke.
was not there at all . I thought I could make a perfect one why this 1 Michelin stared pub's chef can not ?? After all it is a their signature dish.
I have tried waiter's attention but failed and I do not  like to fuss or delay our friend's meal. Well, it was very disappointing. having said that, I should have showed my egg and sent back.
After all we paid a good money for the meal.

I do make with seasoned rice Scotch egg, more like Korean fried rice. it has received very well from my family, and is delicious.   I am going to put in my Korean cookery book. ( if I can find willing publisher and an agent, soon)



 

Traditional Scotch Egg 

My new recipe Oriental Scotch Egg

 

Choseok (Lunar Thanks Giving Day (추석)) Meal

Today, 19th of Sept. 2013, is Chuseok ( Lunar Thanks Giving Day) in Korea, I do miss this Korean Chuseok always. Family gathering , delicious special food and ceremony for our ancestors and feast!!  never red spicy food in this feast because red colour is associate with devil , this story was told from my dad when I was child. and have to open the door during the ceremony because our ancestors' ghost has to enter the house and have the feast made for them. what a lovely tale!!!

I have tried this ritual ceremonial feast every year some how I could not manage the same as I had in Korea. But still I am trying for 33years, adding salted sea bream makes a such difference. I nearly made as our family feast in Korea, this year.

This year Chuseok meal is simple, made namul ( seasoned vegetable) with bean sprout and spinach, prawn and spring onion stuffed dumplings ( mandu), baked sea- bream with ginger and spring onion.

 Baked fish: sprinkled sea salt ( 2tsp per fish) and put in the fridge for a night, wash off salt and bed with soring onion and thinly sliced ginger, and add 2 tbsp of water and baked in the oven ( cover with foil), when fish is lightly salted , the texture is firmer and delicious. My family in Korea does steam with fresh hay under the fish , I loved this hay flavoured fish,  salty ( just enough ) and with rice and namul.
I decided to cook in the oven, it was a success, luckily. we all enjoyed .

Being a Anglo Korean House, I have to add fig and Parma ham salad with roasted red pepper and smoked salmon.
As usual I made bulgogi but not thin beef as usual, slightly thicker and used skirt beef , it was so tender and add more flavour.

It was simple but delicious Anglo Korean Chuseok meal .




bean sprout and spinach namul

fig and Parma ham salad

baked salted sea bream with ginger



prawn dumplings with dipping sauce
 

Korean food in London

 

Spicy Squid

Finally The Times said the fashionable Food in UK is Korean Food! at the moment.  I was waiting for this statement for some years now, It was an inevitable foodie's choice I think. 
London foodies and public regarded south Asia foods are their choice of fashionable foods, specially PHO, Vietnamese soup.  tourist from UK were in love with this special soup.

As a Korean food writer and running Korean cookery, I 've noticed the popularity of Korean food among 30 something generation more than 5 years ago as same time, Korean drama and Korean movie are popular in South Asia and Australia.

I remember sending an email to The Times food writer more than 3 years ago ,saying ( bravely  or foolishly) The Times food section ought to cover Korean food but surprisingly  the food writer replied that he had visited New Malden , Korean cook's house , experienced Korean Home Cooking and write soon, but never did ( perhaps his boss did not like ) .
Since then  Restaurant critic ( The Times)  had review on Saturday Times but he just said, Dinning Korean food is as a cheap and cheerful experience and some good flavours in Korean food, not much special.
Well. if more than 40 Korean restaurants are in London, it says something!

But the chef created on The Times was too modern for my liking. Chef may thought, introduce Korean taste slowly, gently and move on to more  stronger taste.( I hope)

In my experience all my Cookery students are very keen to lean more gutsy Korean food such as Kimchi ( Baechu  ( Chinese cabbage)kimchi), Kimchi pancake, Pajeon, bulgogi, Stone bowl bibimbab, Specially kimchi jjige, Spicy squid, Bo Ssam are their firm favourite .

Bo Ssam

Stone bowl bibimbab

Kimchi seems  a star of Global fermented food now as general fermented foods are getting a lots of notice from chefs and food writers as a healthy food. Even I had approached by Food historians ,they all seemed like to know about kimchi and kimchi making for their book on World Fermented foods.

Kimchi rice

kimchi jjige

Hope Korean Government siege this opportunity make Korean food firmly on the world food map!!
As I firmly believe the food trend is jut like fashion world, it comes and goes all the time.
Should not miss this chance!!