Beef Bulgogi 불고기

Homey Korean Dish

The popular bulgogi dish is super easy – chop, marinate and sauté! My recipe is probably a cutting-corner version…since I do not wish to spend a whole lot of time in the kitchen…and it is too hot to go out to eat…actually, I’m anxious to see the next episode of Korean drama…which I’m addicted to. I love ‘romantic/comedy’ genre. My all –time favorite drama is Secret Garden…Rooftop Prince is really cute too…

Anyway, I just want to say this is 정말 맛있는 (really good), 진짜! (really).

Ingredients and Instruction for 4 servings (Print Recipe Here)

• 1 pound (about) thinly sliced beef, chopped for easy consumption  Note: I used some a little thicker than sukiyaki beef for texture.
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1-2 stalks of green onion minced
• 3 cloves of garlics minced
• 1 Tablespoon of ginger juice (grate ginger root then squeeze the pulp to get juice).
• 4 Tablespoons sake
• 1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon (less or more) cayenne pepper powder
• 2 Tablespoons sesame oil
• 1/2 of large onion, 1/2 inch sliced
• 6-10 stalks of garlic chives cut in 3 inches length.
• 1 package shimeji mushroom, cut off 1/2 inch of bottom end and separate in small sections  Note: I used seafood  mushroom which looks like large enoki mushroom.
• 1 Tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds

1. Combine beef and sugar. This is supposed to tenderize the meat. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix well green onion, garlic, ginger juice, sake, soy sauce, cayenne pepper powder and sesame oil. Add sugared meat and massage to coat, marinate for at least 30 minutes. Add one teaspoon of sugar or honey for intensified sweetness if you like.
3. Add onion and mushroom to the beef bowl and combine well with your gloved hand. Marinate for an additional 20 minutes.
4. Heat skillet at low-medium heat. Dump the whole contents of the bowl from #3 in and sauté until meat changes color and the onion is tender. Add garlic chives and continue to sauté until garlic chives are wilted a little. Lastly, sprinkle with the sesame seeds and combine quickly. Serve hot with cooked rice. 맛있게 드세요! (bon appétit).
   
   

Following Day….I made Yakisoba with  bulgogi sauce left in the pan.

Chocolate covered strawberries are an Independence Day TAPAS instagram post (#todaystapas).  Cute , right?

Some tapas posts are sensible low-calorie, vegan, gluten free…the bean thread noodle salad (春雨のサラダ) with myoga(Japanese ginger), sweet bell pepper, cucumber, tangy soy –vinaigrette dressing. Loving the bowl!

Crown of the garden….just one so far…compact but nice! The artichoke is finally ready for us to enjoy!

What! July already? June must have made a giant leap away…

Steak Irish Pie

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 

My part Irish husband and I celebrate this day by wearing green outfits, maybe listen to his favorite Irish music from Enya, Gaelic Storm, Corrs, Great Big Sea…while having dinner consisting of corned beef, cabbage and potato. Perhaps do River Dance afterward…just kidding!

But this year, out of normalcy, I bought a bottle of beer to made the Irish pie! It seems there is no good substitute for beer…Oh heck!  Standing in front of a specialty beer refrigerator for several minutes at a super market, I was totally lost.

Luckily, a gentleman beside me pointed me in the right direction…you need stout beer? Stout means dark beer…let me see… yep, that’ll work.

Whew…that was awkward. Next year, we’re having corn beef, cabbage and potatoes.

Ingredients and Instruction for 1 deep dish pie (Print Recipe Here)

Recommend equipment: Electric pressure cooker

• 2 pounds steak, cut into chunks
• 1 Tablespoon flour
• 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil or olive oil
• 8 slices bacon  chopped
• 2 large onions minced
• 10-12 fresh mushrooms sliced
• 12 ounce Irish stout beer
• 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 package double-crust frozen pie pastry, thawed – I made from scratch using Barefoot Contessa/ Ina Garten’s pie crust recipe.
  First step - chilling all the ingredients in refrigerator – Perfect!

I

• Egg wash (1 egg and 1 Tablespoon water, beat well)

1. Place meat on a large plate and sprinkle with flour or put meat and flour in a zip-lock bag bag, close tight and shake to coat. Set aside.
2. Set pressure cooker on brown mode then pour in oil, add bacon and sauté until bacon starts to sizzle. Add steak and continue to sauté till browned.
3. Transfer bacon and steak with slotted ladle to a same plate (#1), leaving juice and fat in the pan.
4. Put onion and mushroom in the pressure cooker, cook and stir occasionally until onions are lightly browned and mushrooms are tender.
5. Put meat and bacon back in the pressure cooker. Pour in the beer, add parsley. Set the pressure cooker on low pressure mode and cook for 30 minutes then switch to simmer and cook for 2 hours until gravy has thickened.
6. Heat oven to 400F.Line a deep-dish 9 inch pie plate with a pie crust and bake in the preheated oven until crust is partially cooked and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. ( I poked several holes then lined with aluminum foil and put pie weights in then bake for 10 minutes first. Remove pie weights and bake for additional 3-5 minutes). Remove it from oven. Keep the oven on.
7. Spoon cooked steak filling into the baked pie crust. Cover with another crust. Press the top crust and *bottom crust to seal tightly.* bottom crust is hot so handle with care.
    
8. Brush top with egg wash. Place pie pan on the rimmed cookie sheet to prevent spillage and bake for 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown. Serve with sour cream if you like. Variation: Add 1-2 Tablespoons of raisins for little sweetness.

My husband made beer bread using the rest. It resembles brioche.

As you know March 14th 2015 (3-14-15) was Pie Day.

Today’s TAPAS (#todaystapas) also I posted pies made with left over pie dough.  Happy Birthday Einstein!

3 more days to official Spring!

B&B

Burdock and Beef

Jubilation! I feel that and at the same time things get hectic when the holidays are approaching. Our meal selection moves to the ”No-Fuss” zone often (like every day).

A quick inventory of my refrigerator indicates I need to use burdock very soon. This root vegetable is a fairly long survivor in the vegetable bin though, the flavor might diminish and the nutrition value may be questionable…yada yada yada…the bottom line is that I don’t want to throw it away.

It’s not exactly a 30 minute meal but for me it uses the familiar nikomi (煮込み/stewing) method, so no need to see the recipe. It resembles sukiyaki, the sweet beef flavor is just what you need to quiet down your hunger before jumping into the car to catch that new movie starting in 15 minutes!

Ingredients and Instruction for 4 servings (Print Recipe Here)

Necessary equipment: drop lid – use one size smaller pan lid or make with foil

• 1 burdock
• 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
• 300g thinly sliced beef (At the Asian market it is called sukiyaki beef) cut in 2 inch strips
  
• 2 cups dashi stock (I used 1 packet of powdered dashi dissolved in 2 cups hot water)
  
• 4 Tablespoons of sugar or 4 packets of pure stevia for a sugar-free version
• 3 Tablespoons of sake
• 2-3 Tablespoons of soy sauce or tamari sauce for gluten-free version
• Toppings -1-2 stalks of green onion or mitsuba (三つ葉/Japanese honeywort) chopped for garnish (optional)

1. Prepare burdock – Do not peel the skin. Scrub and wash burdock with a vegetable brush under running water thoroughly. Slice in 1/2 inch diagonally. Soak in water for 5 minutes, drain. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan at medium heat. Add prepared burdock and sauté for 3 -4 minutes.
3. Add beef and dashi stock. When it starts boiling, lower the heat to low. Scoop out scum that appears on top with a spoon and discard into a bowl filled with water to rinse the spoon.
4. Add sugar and sake and place the drop lid on top. Simmer for 10 minutes.
   
5. Add soy sauce and cook for 20 minutes. until the liquid is nearly evaporated.
6. Heat the pan to high and stir the burdock and beef to intensify the saltiness about 1 minute (All the liquid should be gone at this point).
7. Serve hot over cooked rice and garnish with chopped green onion or mitsuba, dropping an egg yolk is also a nice move.

Variation – Because I like to have some sauce in rice bowl, I shorten the cooking time – see step #5 and I skip # 6.

 

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

                                                   - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Curry Noodle Soup

With Spicy Curry Oil

While watching the Japanese television show ‘Smap x Smap’ which I downloaded from the network, I saw that one of the teams made a  curry noodle soup dish that looked scrumptious! Suddenly I was craving fat noodles – udon.

Although I was not able to find the exact recipe, I toyed with it and came up with a recipe that I think is acceptable. A few drops of curry oil enhanced the flavor so make the oil first.

Ingredients for Spicy Curry Oil yield approximately 1/2 cup

• 3 Tablespoons curry powder
• 200cc Olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed with the flat side of a knife
• 1x1 inch cube of ginger root peeled and sliced
• 1 dried Japanese red hot pepper (optional), seeds removed and slice the pod. Note: if you like spicy, use more.

1. Put curry powder in small pot. Dry sauté the curry powder at low heat until fragrant  –do not burn.
    
2. Pour oil in, add garlic, ginger and red pepper if using then simmer on low heat for10 minutes. Turn off heat and cool in pan.
3. Set a sieve lined with paper towel on top of bowl,  strain the oil.

Ingredients and Instruction for Curry Noodle Soup for 2-4 servings (Print Recipe Here)

• 1/2 of large onion thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 pound of thinly sliced beef (sukiyaki style), cut into 2 inch length
• 6 cups water –  add less water if you like thick soup
• 2-4 (50g to100g) curry roux block
  
• 150cc mentsuyu sauce (I used Zarusoba Straight as it has no MSG)
• 1 packet (1 tablespoon) of bonito no-MSG dashi powder
• Frozen udon noodle –1 bundle per person
• 1-2 stalk of green onion thinly sliced

1. Heat oil in large pot at medium low heat, put onion in and sauté until transparent
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2. Add beef and continue cooking till the beef is no longer pink.
3. Pour water and mentsuyu sauce in and cook until boil, simmer for 10 minutes at low heat. Scoop out if white scum appears on top.
4. Mean while cook udon noodle with plenty of hot water. Drain the water through colander. Divide noodle in individual bowls. Note: Frozen udon noodle is already fully cooked, just warm it up.
5. When the meat and onion are tender, dissolve curry roux blocks and bonito powder. Adjust flavoring to suit your taste. Pour the soup over the noodle, garnish with green onion and serve hot with the curry oil on the side.

Grilled pineapple with curry oil is an exquisite flavor combination. I’m sure you can find other uses for curry oil.

 

We had a overnight guest from Utah. He and his family used to live in a neighboring town, one of his daughters baby sat my son a couple of decades ago…he call my son ‘Merwin’ just to tease him…on his way to Newport, Oregon for fishing. His remarkable efforts to organize and raise funds for autistic children is commendable. Click here for more information.

I feel some sadness seeing this beautiful sunset. I know the summer is fleeting fast. I’m not ready for the summer to end.

…..I suppose I could prepare to welcome the romantic Autumn?

Have a wonderful week!