Japadog meets K-pop

A nice couple weeks, it's been. Lovely weather, lots of delicious cooking, but nothing really noteworthy that I can think of. I guess I could show you the nettle risotto I made, but I've already blogged that (though this time I made it with ham instead of lemony chicken or artichokes or somesuch). Besides, everyone blogs risotto-y things this time of year. Steaks with roasted tomato mac and chee is also all well and good, but not anything new.

The weather has been so nice that I've been in the garden nearly every free minute. Free minutes, though, are relatively rare these days, as Zeph fussily teethes and his naps have become somewhat longevity-challenged. Therefore, I'm a little ashamed to admit that we eat the odd hot dog and tots dinner (washed down by either root beer or beer beer). And since I still have that pile of Korean pickled things staring me down every time I open the fridge (but no pickle relish or sauerkraut, oddly), I figured, why not make some Korean relish? It'll be kinda like those Japadogs Scott and I had in Vancouver that one time. Besides, if people go nuts over those bulgogi tacos why can't I bastardize someone's culture with a hot dog?

I coarsely chopped doraji (that spicy balloonflower root) and oijangajji (those spicy cukes) and added a little furikake for some seaweed and sesame kick. Relish done. And for the coup de grâce, I made my new favorite condiment: gochujang mayo. I got the idea from Japadog's Misomayo, but since I was going Korean with this I used gochujang instead. I did also add a little shiro miso for sweetness, and smeared on thick, this is the best hot dog I've eaten in memory. The hot dog was a Nathan's 100% beef (like we care!), but I wouldn't kick a kurobuta frank outta bed either. Daikon sprouts woulda been lovely, too, but I didn't miss them too badly as I shoveled this into my maw while standing over the kitchen sink. Manidŭseyo!

Serve with a crispy wheat beer (I really like Rogue's Morimoto Soba Ale these days) and rice crackers.

Bibimbap, revisited

Just a shorty today, to show off some delicious bibimbap I threw together from ingredients I didn't make myself. I did cook the rice and arrange everything, but unless you ferment your own doraji and kimchi (I didn't), all you're really doing is arranging bits on a bowl of steaming white rice. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I don't even have a stone bowl to make this a proper dolsot bibimbap. In fact, I only made this because I didn't have any bread for the intended roast beef sandwich and realized I had a fridge full of Korean pickled things and a sack of Calrose rice. I warmed up the roast beef with some sesame oil and nestled it among the banchan I had on hand (clockwise from the top): kimchi, a crunchy seaweed salad, pickled cucumber (I had two kinds: a spicy Korean oijangajji and salty-sweet green Japanese aokappa) and doraji (balloon flower root). I guess I did saute some shiitake mushrooms in soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. Top with an egg and gochujang. I usually use an egg fried over easy, but tried it raw this time. I prefer fried.

Whaddaya know, I cooked after all.

Serve with a glass of soju and since you already added Japanese pickles you may as well sprinkle with some shichimi togarashi.

Bibimbop

Meeehhhhhhh. Weh!

An ass-busting week in the field, an all-night Halloween bender followed by an all-day wicked hangover, then I started my woman times yesterday. I have not given less of a shit about blogging since I chopped off the tip my pinky last spring. I haven't blogged in more than a week, and no one has even noticed! Cue tiniest violin in the world playing my fucking song.


Needless to say, I need a little hug. Sure, the husband is good for a pitying hug when I give him that look (he has a special way that makes you feel comforted, but not patronized, even when you know you're being an unfuckable hag), but nothing can hug my insides like a bowl of bibimbop.

Bibimbop is the ultimate Korean comfort food - I surmise it's what Korean moms make their rainy-day kids instead of grilled chee and Campbell's tomato soup by the fire. A hot bowl of steamed rice top with bits and ends: leftover steak, thinly-sliced and dressed with black vinegar and sesame oil (throw some leftover eggplant in there too to soak up some beefy juice); some sautéed shiitakes (from my shiitake logs) marinated in mirin, sugar, thick soy sauce and black pepper; thinly-sliced cucumber quickled in rice vinegar, sugar, salt and black sesame seeds; some wilted bean sprouts hit with a splash of mirin and sake; yam boiled in soy sauce and sugar; and red bell pepper and onion browned with sesame oil, chile and garlic. I have some leftover gai lan with oyster sauce, throw that on there too. Oh, and you can't forget a spanky wad of kimchi. Top with an egg fried over easy (stir the raw yolk into the hot rice) and a blob of gochujang. Commence toe-curl.


Now if you'll excuse me, I have some Gossip Girl and Heroes to watch.

Well, I can't be a creative genius ALL the time

The holidays are finally behind me, I don't hafta worry about the thousands of empty booze calories on my daily count, and I don't need to cook something to impress anyone for the first time in several weeks. Oh yeah, did I mention that my inaugural Royal Foodie Joust lamb dish was being served to a CIA graduate who is a taster for Wine Spectator magazine (I didn't win, btw, and I was gonna call shenanigans but the guy who won has been around a hell of a lot longer than me and probably deserved it more)?

So I say "fuck cooking" tonight. I would, anyway, except that I can't not cook. Ever. Tonight's dinner would have been a big fat sack of boil-in-a-bag failure if I hadn't gotten a wild hair up my ass to doctor it up. So instead of simply eating this:


...we ate this:


Heather's Refusal to Just Keep it Simple, For Fuck's Sake
Serves 2

Ingredients:
a bag of some ready-made Korean laziness you picked up at the Asian grocery store (it comes in many flavors - I also like the spicy squid stew)
1 cup of uncooked calrose rice
2 eggs, fried over easy
maybe a spoonful of gochu jang if you have some, or some sesame-chili rice seasoning or sommat

Cook the rice. Put the bag of Korean laziness in a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes. Put rice and Korean laziness into a large bowl and top with fried egg and gochu jang or sommat. The raw yolk makes gravy when stirred into the hot rice/soup.

Oh, don't look at me like that. I didn't totally phone it in.