2012 Festive Food in our house

Roast Goose

Christmas Lunch

 

We decided have a Roast Goose for this year Christmas Dinner instead of turkey. I have cooked goose once, 1997 (?) perhaps.

 

 I love festive season , planing and cooking , specially beginning of December, I always make  cranberry sauce, apple with chilli & ginger jelly for the cheese board.
Made plum sauce for the goose, it is first time but luckily it was very good, sweet .spicy and tangy. red wine , red wine vinegar and mustard seed and sugar, I add sumak( 1 tsp) as well.
My Christmas stuffing is sage and onion, chestnuts, dry cranberry , pine nuts , lemon zest and plenty of lardons with good sausage meat, deliciously fit for the Christmas .

 

Spicy cashew nuts, and almond . making chocolate  with Tabasco, ginger, dried cranberry and pine nuts are great, sweet,spicy (not too much) tangy dry cranberries and lemon zest,ginger. I just add all things I love. Well well. nuts were sorted and bottled for the drinks and gifts for the friends.

Now 22nd of December, Made gravy with roast chicken wings with onions, carrot, garlic. plenty of red wine and port. since 2009, i have started making gravy a few days before Christmas to avoid too much to do on the day , just add more stock, made from the bird's neck liver from inside bird .  

Our 2012 Festive Season Menu:

                                                                       
 24th, Dec, dinner : medley of Seafood and Fish with  char grilled pakchoi and green beans.

25th, Christmas Brunch: smoked salmon and prawn with egg dish

Christmas Dinner : roast goose, plum sauce, braised red cabbage, roast potatoes and parsnips, carrot and celeriac.
Cheese board and very simple dessert ( good  vanilla ice cream with strong italian coffee on the top with my spicy nutty chocolates.

Finally we will have Roast of Prime beef on the bone for our 2013 new Year's Lunch or Dinner.

 

Cranberry sauce and apple, chilli and ginger jelly

Medley of Seafood and Monk fish

Pakchoi and green beans

 

Smoked salmon & king prawn

 

Spicy & nutty chocolate

A day of Kimchi Making in 2013 ( 2nd/ Feb)

I think in  Korean winter Kimchi making day is finished for 2012, probably most of korean house holds doing this annual Kimchi making for the winter month in late November.

 

I had a lovely memory of Kimchi making day when I was a little girl, we were head of Cho's clan and being a head of family we had to make 3-4 different kimchi and a lots of them.Poor my Mum!!!

All family had to pull their weight, as a 6 years old,m my job was I have to count how many sack of cabbage delivered to our garden, I loved that job!!

 

Smell of spices with garlic and ginger , I still can smell , in a huge brown pot, deep red chilli mixture and oyster, what a memory!!

 

Well, I am going to have 2-3 kind of Kimchi making day on 2nd of Feubuary of 2013.

If any one likes to learn Kimchi, Do email me, it will be a fun day.

After make Kimchi you will have lunch with Bossam ( this is our family tradition when I was in Korea).

 

Hope you can ask this class  as a your New year Present .

 

 

Norangjin Fish Market in Seoul

Whenever I am in Korea, I always visit Market , specially fish market . I love looking all these fish and seafood, colour and shape , the noise, all of them.  They are my childhood memory.

On 3rd day,  I went NORANGJIN fish market, as my usual visit whenever I am in Seoul. as I grow up in South East seaside city, I love fish and seafood. specially Hoe ( sasimi, raw fish). I love firm fresh raw fish like sea brill. sauce has to be spicy and sour, sweet sauce ( cho gochujang), thinly sliced .  certain fish, we love with bone in , like spring baby sand dub .
Oyster is my all time favourite, it  was so cheap , £3 for a dozen on the shell, if you buy  shelled oyster , much cheaper, can you believe??? I usually pay £3 for per oyster in London.

I could not resist , bought 12 oyster and a plate of brill hoe , cost( £13) and went in the restaurant to eat,  as you pay for the table ( £2, per person, per fish dish) and give you sauce and a few side dish and lettuce.
It is a wonderful system to have fresh fish in the market, serve in the restaurant.
I wonder why not adopt this in UK.
Fishes are all alive, choose fish and ask them prepare whatever you wish, as sasimi or grill or stew.
take them to site restaurant, and ask them to cook or have as sasimi. it is fun !!

I took my Oyster and fish in the restaurant by myself, 2 French tourist were having raw fish with side Korean dishes, as soon as I told them 12 oyster is only £3 , they were so surprised, and shot out and he bought 12 oyster with a big smile.
 I know French love their oyster, specially from Brittany, we use to have holiday in Brittany, we always enjoyed oyster there, not cheap.

In the evening, the market and restaurant gets very busy, young and old come in the market choose fish or seafood and having a wonderful and jolly fish meal with Korean rice wine ( makgulli) or soju.
It is not only the tourist attraction, also local people's favourite as well. wishing Billingsgate market  can adopt this for London, Why not???

Well, I use to say, if I am ever be a millionaire I would love to eat oyster everyday with a glass of pink champagne .
I can eat oyster every day in Korea even I  am not a millionaire without champagne of course ! 

( raw fish wrapped in the shiso leave)

With Dan ( he is my Korean cookery student)

If any one travel to Seoul, must visit NORANGJIN  fish market .
Get off at Norangjin station,  take Exit 1 and 500 m down the road follow narrow vegetable market and you will be in the Fish market.

 

 



My trip to Korea and my November Korean home cookery class

I am going to be in Korea for 20 days from 15th of October, which I am very much looking forward to seeing family and friends . I will be taking Korean temple food class, I understand temple food in Korea is a new sensation at the moment. Seasonal and organic ingredients are a core of temple food that is my understanding but somehow Temple food is regarding as a super food in Korea, Why?

Fast moving Korean society and  people are looking for and may need spiritual side of life, this is my own theory. well , wait and see this space, when I had temple food class and tasted , I certainly write a blog. I am hopping interview one of temple lady monk who specialises the Temple Food!!

 

When I am back from my travel , I will certainly have a few new recipes from my trip in South West of Korea..

My November class : 10th/Nov, 17th, and 24th. Do email me,  actually if any one in London area can even invite me to just talk about Korean food and cook.
My email: kiejosarsfield@hotmail.co.uk

Let's cook unfussy and highly flavoured Korean Home food with me.

I am talking with certain UK publisher about possibility of publishing my Korean Cook Book but you never know this things.
I do do hope I will get the contract , they will taste my food first, kimchi  ( I am absolutely confident , my recipe ,I inherited from my mum) and others,
Wish Me LUCK! 

Our Chuseok Meal - Korean Thanks Giving Day

 

Today ( 30th of September,2012) is one of the biggest holiday in Korea,  celebrating new harvest season and ceremony to our ancestors. All family travel to the head of family's house,( I know very well, being a daughter of very long line of head of family, the Cho) usually the traffic on the motorway is stand still, takes 3-5 times longer than usual.
 

I miss the this kind of Korean festival day most. All family get together and have a jolly good big party, food and conversation goes hand in hand.

The day starts with ceremony for the ancestors, On the big rectangle low table, put all kind of food, but not to be spicy, and all male members of family offer the food with rice wine to ancestor and pray and offering these newly harvested food, ask to all ancestors for their protection and prosperity to all family, kneeling down with big bow, traditionally, female members are not participate this ceremony , we, female members stay in the kitchen to make sure all foods are cooked properly. I miss not only taste of the food also the smell of burning incense sticks !!

 

After the ceremony we all sit down have a feast, I love this ceremonial and ritual food, even not spicy, I love slightly salty, steamed fish with bibimbab and special soup ( Tangsuyuk).

One thing I can not have here in England this festival food , salty yellow fish, soup, even I make this soup but tastes all different.
 Bibimbab is eaten without chilli paste sauce, put light soy sauce but still I can not match like home in Korea. Well, my sister told me, our ancestor in Korea did not visit my house in England and therefor not blessed by the ancestor, What a lovely story!!! I use to tell my children , told them we have to open the doors to our ghost of ancestors get in and have a nice meal. My children loved this fairy tale !!

After all ceremony we all have mid morning feast, non spicy bibimbab is strangely delicious with salty steamed( on the hay) fish is my all time favourite. I or any one in Korea do not eat non spicy bibimbab but this festival season and memorial day of ancestors , we do eat non spicy food.
according to my parents the ghost of ancestors does not like red colour or spicy food, I love this story as well.
After the feast we talk and drink all day and evening we play Korean card game or go to the hill to see full moon. How I miss this occasion!!

Well, well,  I can not beat all this but we do have mix and match special meal for the Chuseok, always.

This year our special Chuseok :
Lunch : Mandu - steamed Korean dumpling with dipping sauce
            Bossam - slow cooked belly pork wrapped in lettuce with oyster and ssamjang( sauce)
Dinner: Pan fried scallops and spicy squid with black pudding sauce.
             Slow roast lamb shoulder with roast potatoes
 

Slow cooked belly pork

Bossam without oyster 

Scallops and chilli squid

 

Courgette & Green Chilli Pancake ( Yachaejeon)

This pancake is a good end of Summer pancake. Kind of my childhood rainy Summer day's comfort food, of course before crisps or chocolate bar were widely available in Korea.

Courgette's sweet taste and chilli are perfect combination, if you have field sesame leaves ( shiso) are in your kitchen, in my case , in the garden( you can grow in the pot) add  as well.
It is a perfect afternoon snack , this is all my family's all time favourite with dipping sauce.

Ingredients:. 3-4 courgette. 3 long green chilli. 1 garlic ( grated). Strong bread flour.  1tbsp vegetable stock powder. 1 egg. rape seed oil . Dipping sauce: soy sauce ( 2tbsp). rice vinegar (3tsp). 1tbsp chopped spring onion. toasted sesame seed.

Cut courgettes like 5 cm long match stick and sprinkle salt (1 tsp) and leave 30minutes rinse quickly and pat dry with tea towel, do not squeeze, set aside. Cut chilli very thinly and mix with courgettes.
In a big mixing bowl, put vegetables , Put stock powder in a small dish and pour boiling water and stir, add to vegetables.
Put 2 cup of flour into the vegetables and add water little by little and make batter, it should be like thick pancake mixture. season with salt and pepper. If you have sesame leaves (4), chop and add to the mixture. Finally add egg mixture in the batter . leave 30 minutes .
Heat oil in the pan and put 1 ladle of batter in the middle and spread out with back of spoon and cook until light brown, turn over and cook.
Cut cooked pancake 2cm square and serve with dipping sauce ( All dipping sauce ingredients in the bowl and mix, if you like spicy one add chopped red chilli)

Pan cake is better eaten when they are hot.
This is much healthier option than cake or crisps for a snack,, perfect for the vegetarian!.

PS: October Korean Cookery: 6th, 13th.

I will blog from Korea when I am in Seoul , from mid of October.


 

My ideal 5 course Real Korean Food

 

Korean food is getting really a lots of attention from Londoners , and one glamorous TV chef is going to open Pop Up Korean Restaurant in East London.  It is a very good news indeed as long as the chef knows how to make real one, as the chef is cooking all of dish ( according the article).

Mentioned of making spicy fried chicken marinated in butter milk but sounds just like American / Texan chicken than Korean .

5 course meal for £35 with fun karaoke as well.

 

The chef was inspired by Korean Food Scene in LA and NY, specially David Jang's eatery in NY.

Lets hope the chef knows all about Korean cuisine first.

I love David Jang's Book, MOMOFUKU, but certainly it is not a Korean cook book , more like his own take, twist on Korean ( as he is America born with Korean parents from Korea), Japanese, and Chinese. Do not get me wrong, I think Jang's recipes are wonderful and lovingly westernised on Oriental cuisine.

 

Well My only wish is the chef know traditional Korean food first !!

I do not mind fusion Korean food but not call them Korean, should serve and understand Kimchi, without kimchi, Korean cuisine does not exist that's the very uniqueness of Korean cuisine.

As far as I know , any other cuisine in the world has one single dish has to be eaten every meal like Korean food, Kimchi!! Lets hope chef serve real kimchi,

 

Let me tell you how I present my ideal 5 course Korean Meal.

 

1.Steam 3 dumplings and serve with  beef broth (Manduguk)  or Spicy Beef Soup (yukgaejang)
 

2. Seafood  mini pancakes with dipping sauce (Haemul pajeon).Or asparagus wrapped in pancake

3. Grilled spicy fish ( salmon or mackerel) with asparagus or Seafood Japchae wrapped in the pancake.

4.. Short rib ,grilled ( galbi gui) with kimchi and mooli salad or cucumber salad.

      OR  Spicy belly pork or Chicken

5. Mini bibimbab with tofu soup, Mini baked kimchi rice with fried egg on the top and soup

6. Spicy fruit soup with pear

 

 

Wash down with cold beer or dry white wine !!, Yummmm