Archive for the ‘cooking’ Tag
‘Korean Kimchi’
With the Harvest season in full swing I’ve been wanting to come up with a recipe for something new and out of the ordinary. I’m tired of the same old things and need to step out of the proverbial box if I can. I reached back into my past for inspiration and actually found some.
Having spent a few years in the Republic of South Korea I was introduced to hundreds of dishes I couldn’t have ever imagined. Some were killer and some were more than a little disgusting. After my first year there I was able to adapt my pallet to a much more exotic range of foods.
One thing in particular that at first glance turned my stomach was Korean kimchi, a foul smelling concoction that is eaten by every Korean at every meal. It smells to high heaven and is as hot as blazes. It’s a fermented Korean cabbage dish covered in a smoking hot red pepper mixture and fermented in clay pots buried in the ground for a month or two. Sounds pretty nasty I know but I eventually I came to like it a great deal. Thankfully, once you’ve eaten some of it you can’t smell it on the breath of others which was a blessing when you intended to spend time with native Koreans. It was a learned survival technique.
I decided I’d make an attempt to create a kimchi dish that had less stench, more flavor, and still have a decent level of heat. Much of the kimchi available here in the US is a milder Americanized version with a medium heat level for the faint of heart. I also have an real aversion to eating food that’s been left to ferment in the ground. I prefer something a bit more sanitary.
Step one was to purchase ten pounds of good old American cabbage and a quantity of good quality habanero peppers. Instead of fermenting the cabbage I decided to pickle it to allow for longer term storage.
I shredded the cabbage into smaller than normal pieces to make it easier to handle when filling the jars. I grated the onions and fresh ginger, mixed it together with the shredded cabbage and minced garlic. I’ve developed a pickling mixture of jalapeño vinegar and a handful of other spices and seeds which I think should mimic the Korean flavor pallet. I decided to make only six pounds of the mixture in case this first attempt failed.
As you can see the end result looks good but will it taste good? It’s been a week since I completed the batch and I’m about to give it my taste test. It has that familiar pungent aroma and the level of heat is exactly where I wanted it to be. I’m pleased to announce that the flavor is a little sweet with a serious bite of vinegar. The spice mixture works well with everything else and of course the habaneros are working their magic. I’m a very happy person. This will make an excellent side dish for any meal and could even be used as a relish of sorts for hot dogs, hamburgers, and the occasional taco.
‘Actual Korean Kimchi’
‘My Version’
I look forward to many meals with this dish as a main component. I do anticipate a few adjustments in future batch’s to increase the heat and to refine the flavor to be closer to the original. Cooking is such fun.
I’ve been a lover of good Mexican food for years and after meeting my better-half (a good old down home Texas girl) and traveling to Texas on a number of occasions I was hooked. During my recent trip to Dallas I was taken to this Mexican restaurant by my nephew who assured me I would be getting authentic Mexican fish tacos. I was excited for the meal and as we arrived I could hardly wait.
True to his word the fish taco’s were to die for. We ate two huge plates of tacos, chili beans, and rice. They drizzled an outrageous jalapeño cream sauce over the tacos that was so damn good it makes me hungry just thinking about it. Four gigantic peach margaritas later and we were destroyed. We slowly and safely made our way home and sat for hours because we just couldn’t move.
They also supplied us with chips and salsa which was good but the Verde sauce was the best. It was not quite a salsa and not quite a sauce. It also wasn’t quite hot enough for me so I decided upon my return to Maine to create a version of my own.
My better-half and I made a visit to a local South of the Border restaurant after my return to fulfill my ongoing taco obsession. It only made me want to create that Verde sauce even more. I thought about it on the way home that night and the next morning I was off to do some early food shopping.
I found the tomatillos, jalapeños, and pickled green chilies to which I added a few spices, some onions, a little jalapeno vinegar and cooked it all until soft. I threw it into a blender and liquefied it for five minutes and OMG. My eyes began watering as soon as I took the lid off of the blender.
Later that day the better-half made a pan of enchiladas over which I sprinkled a cautious amount of the hottest thing I’ve ever created. It was mean, nasty, smoking hot, and freaking delicious.
I was able to can almost a dozen jars of this sauce and it will definitely be used sparingly and as often as possible. I’m already planning the next batch so I can turn down the heat a little to make it palatable for all those so-called lovers of hot food who I’m pretty sure wouldn’t be able to handle this sauce.
“The Finished Product”
I’m a huge fan of both the Cooking and Food channels. Being a huge fan of food makes it almost a requirement. Without a large assortment of food the human race would cease to exist in short order (no pun intended).
I’ve been a cook for most of my life and to this day maintain a large handwritten recipe book with family recipes and many of my own that I use on a regular basis. Nothing fascinates me more than finding a new dish that I’ve never experienced and attempting to remake it “my way” and then share it with friends.
Needless to say everyone who enjoys cooking thinks their family recipes are the best and that their mothers and grandmothers are the final word on anything food related. I fall into that category myself not so much with my mother’s cooking which was only so-so but with my grandmothers which was sooooo good.
I thought today I’d present you with a short trivia challenge on food and cooking related items. As with any other subject there’s thousands of trivia items available to stump and puzzles us all when it comes to food. Here are 10 that I found somewhat interesting and I hope you do as well. The answers will be posted tomorrow so you can check and see how you’ve done. Have fun with it and then go eat a sandwich.
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1. In which American city is the greatest amount of ketchup consumed?
2. Who said: “Never eat more than you can lift”?
3. What was the first commercially manufactured breakfast cereal?
4. How many pounds of dry saffron does an acre of crocus plants yield?
5. Under federal food labeling regulations, how much caffeine must be removed from coffee for it to be called decaffeinated?
6. What are the five most frequently consumed fruits in the United States?
7. What snack food commercial was pulled off the air in 1970 because of complaints from an outraged ethnic group?
8. What popular lunch and snack food did an unidentified St. Louis doctor develop in 1890 for patients requiring an easily digested form of protein?
9. What do Eskimos use to prevent their food from freezing?
10. What eating utensil was first brought to America in 1630 by Massachusetts Bay Colony governor John Winthrop, who carried it around with him in a specially made, velvet-lined leather case?
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I selected these questions because I felt they could be answered easily if you just think about them for a moment. I could be wrong so check back tomorrow.
This morning is for recreation and not creation for at least a few hours. The better-half is long gone to work, the cat’s been fed, and the coffee fresh. I think a short trip to Middle Earth is necessary before I continue what should be a rather busy day.
42” of X-box is the only proper way to kick start a day and I’m loving it. This new Lego Lord of the Rings is a hoot and it appears that it will take a great deal of time to master. I’m at 23% completion and I’ve been working it at it off and on for a couple of weeks already. Hours and hours of continuous fun ahead for me.
Late morning has pulled me back into the kitchen where I’m beginning the process of making my special spicy pasta sauce. My hands smell of onion and are burning like fire from the jalapenos (forgot my gloves). Did most of the prep work last night so it’s all about the cooking and canning today. I’ve got to get back to it right now before things overcook.
La-Dee-Da (Time passing)
Well its two hours later and I’m putting the finishing touches to things. I just finished canning seventeen pints of some really tasty meatless sauce. I went easy on the heat for this batch since many of the people who will be receiving it aren’t crazy about really hot food. I held back one quart jar that we’ll be using for dinner later today. I can’t wait. The one downside to all of this is the cleanup which seems to take twice as long as the preparation. It’s a big, gigantic, huge, pain in the ass.
Tweedle-Dee-Dee
Just finished a rather enjoyable meal of miniature cheese raviolis covered with my delicious sauce. I’m not really bragging but it was one helluva good vegetarian dish. We’ve been trying a little harder to cut down the amount of meat we consume but don’t worry, I’ll never quit completely. I’m a big believer in eating a little of everything but a not lot of any one thing. It’s all about portions and quality for us now. It’s one of the reasons I enjoy making my own food, I know exactly what’s in it. No added sugars or preservatives just great flavors.
Our hobby has expanded to include the making of sauces, relishes, jams, canned pickles and veggie mixes, and spicy green beans (all from the garden). Both my better-half and I make our own versions of home-made wine, flavored vinegars, and a habanero cooking wine that is to die for. Besides being a little healthier for us both it’s also great fun.
Well back to the cleanup. I want to be finished before my better-half gets home.
I refuse to be drawn into the hysteria that is Sandy. I’d prefer to spend this day in the kitchen where I’m creating another batch of my signature chili on this gray and rainy day. I’ve made about a gallon of it so I’ll be sharing with nearby family members who are currently hunkered down awaiting the storm. The house is quiet because my better-half is off to see the new grand child for a few hours and I plan to enjoy it.
I’m considering a ride down along the coast a little later this afternoon to possibly get a few interesting photo’s of the storm’s approach to Maine.
I love Mother Nature in all her scary ferociousness.
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