Iki Sui Restaurant

I finally managed to create a new post, after several attempts last week. I've been very busy since my parents are decided to do minor renovations on our place. Hectic days! Aside from those lousy days, I went to a Japanese restaurant near my place. The place is pretty famous yet it's buried deep in a complex. The food was delicious as usual, we ordered a great variety of food!

Yasaiitame, my mom's favorite. This simple Japanese dish consists of bean sprouts, carrots, leeks, and onion. It was simple stir-fried and well-seasoned with a dap of dashii. My mom liked it very much especially when they platted on white. The colors of the vegetables just poured in the canvas.

Okay the next dish was Agedashi Dofu. Actually, it's one of my favorite Japanese dishes. I grew up with Japanese dishes around me, since my dad loves Sashimi so much! The true agedashi tofu uses silken tofu, some of the Japanese place use regular tofu which taste abit harsh on the sauce. Since, the point of using silken tofu is actually milding the soury tofu flavor.

Agedashi tofu (or agedashi dofu, 揚げ出し豆腐 Agedashi dōfu, often shortened to age tofu or age dofu) is a Japanese way to serve hot tofu. Silken (kinugoshi) firm tofu, cut into cubes, is lightly dusted withpotato starch or cornstarch and then deep fried until golden brown. It's then served in a hot tentsuyu broth made of dashi, mirin, and shō-yu (Japanese soy sauce), and topped with finely chopped negi (a type of spring onion) or grated daikon.

Then it was the proper time for Chawan-Mushi after a few bits of vegetables and crunchy-yet-soft Agedashi Tofu. I added my Chawan-Mushi recipe on my last post, if you’re interested to try. Last but not least is my main entree. I ordered a platter of Chirashi Nigiri Sushi. Definetely could be better but the Tobiko and Ika was on the fishy side that night. Other than that it was alright.

Japanese Food Brunch

This was the menu that I made for that Japanese Food Brunch last Sunday the 18th of May 2008. So I started with the Chawan Mushi!

Serves 5

5 eggs

5 parts of water (use the eggs shells)

2 tsp of hon-dashi

2 tsp of light soy sauce

Stir in all ingredients, avoid bubbles. Pour into 5 ramekins.

Set the steamer ready until theres a rolling bubble on the bottom. Add the ramekins and steam for 8 minutes.

Then comes the Wakame Salad. It was pretty straight forward, I used cucumber as a base, I marinated the cucumber with a spot of kimchi base and yuzu sauce so it gives a soury, and spicy kick on the bottom. The wakame was slighty blanched in hot water and dress lightly with ponzu sauce and shaved bonito on top.

Come along the miso shiru, I put in about 7 cubes of soft tofu, wakame, and negi.

It was the time for my main dish! Salmon Don, I garnish the rice with some tobiko, after i took the picture. The salmon was fresh and I sprinkle some goma-e too! Last but not least the beverage was the usual Green Tea Ice tea!

I didn't take a picture for the green tea ice cream, I put cookies crumbles on top it was crunchy, sweet, and bitter at the same time. Interesting flavor! and It was a good run :)!

I enjoyed my food testing very well!

Korean Food Fever

I've been having Korean Food Fever for awhile now, I'm not so sure why but I'm so into sour, spicy, salty food. I went out with my family to a recent opened Korean restaurant. The food wasn't great but I guess I got some nice pictures. When I sort through my pictures I just realized that most of my pictures are on "portrait" scheme!!

I was fairly curious about the different meat main dishes that the Koreans have, so I researched wikipedia for it. I ordered Bulgogi before and it was quiet tasty.

Main meat dishes (wikipedia.com)

At traditional restaurants, meats are cooked at the center of the table over a charcoal grill, surrounded by various banchan and individual rice bowls. The cooked meat is then cut into small pieces and wrapped with fresh lettuce leaves, with rice, thinly sliced garlic, ssamjang (a mixture of gochujang and dwenjang), and other seasonings.

• Bulgogi (불고기): thinly sliced or shredded beef marinated in soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sugar, green onions and black pepper, cooked on a grill (sometimes at the table). Bulgogi literally means "fire meat". Variations include pork (Dweji bulgogi), chicken (Dak bulgogi), or squid (Ojingeo bulgogi).
• Galbi (갈비): pork or beef ribs, cooked on a metal plate over charcoal in the centre of the table. The meat is sliced thicker than bulgogi. It is often called "Korean BBQ", and can be seasoned or unseasoned. A variation using seasoned chicken is called (Dakgalbi).
• Samgyeopsal (삼겹살): Unseasoned pork bacon cut from the belly, served in the same fashion as galbi. Sometimes cooked on a grill with kimchee troughs at either side. Commonly grilled with garlic and onions, dipped in ssamjjang and wrapped in lettuce leaves.
• Hoe(Pronounced 'hweh') \hö\ (회): raw seafood dish dipped in gochujang or soy sauce with wasabi, served with lettuce or sesame leaves.
  • Sannakji (산낙지) or live octopus. Sannakji is served live and still moving on the plate.
• Makchang (막창): grilled pork large intestines prepared like samgyeopsal and galbi. Often served with a light doenjang sauce and chopped green onions. Very popular in Daegu and the surrounding Gyeongsang region.
• Gobchang (곱창): similar to makchang except prepared from the small intestines of pork (or ox).

Then we also got plenty of side dishes to taste, such as blanched spinach, fried tofu, some green beans, fishes, and of course the famous pickled cabbage! KIMCHI!

Banchan (side dishes)

Main article: Banchan

• Kimchi (김치): vegetables (usually baechu, white radish, or cucumber) commonly fermented in a brine of ginger, garlic, green onion and chilli pepper. There are endless varieties, and it is served as a side dish or cooked into soups and rice dishes. Koreans traditionally make enough kimchi to last for the entire winter season, although with refrigerators and commercial bottled kimchi this practice has become less common.
• Kongnamul (콩나물): Soybean sprouts, usually eaten in boiled and seasoned banchan. Soybean sprouts are also the main ingredient in kongnamul-bap (sprouts over rice), kongnamul-guk (sprout soup), and kongnamul-gukbap (rice in sprout soup).

This was supposed to be Sun Du Bu Jigae!! quiet a disappointment! I used to love the one that Tofu House in LA ~ I was really more Sun Du Bu~ The soup was abit bland and they even put sausage in it! WTF!!

Soups and stews

• Doenjang jjigae (된장찌개): or soybean paste soup, is typically served as the main course or served alongside a meat course. It contains a variety of vegetables, shellfish, tofu, and occasionally small mussels, shrimp and/or large anchovies. Usually, anchovies are used for preparing base stock, and are put out before adding main materials.
• Cheonggukjang jjigae (청국장찌개): a soup made from strong-smelling thick soybean paste
• Gamjatang (감자탕, "potato stew"): a spicy soup with pork spine, vegetables (especially potatoes, 감자) and hot peppers. The vertebrae is usually separated. This is often a late night snack but is also served for a lunch or dinner.
• Haejangguk (해장국): a favorite hangover cure consisting usually of meaty pork spine, dried cabbage, coagulated ox blood (similar to blood pudding), and vegetables in a hearty beef broth. Legend has it that soon after World War II, the restaurant that invented this stew was the only place open in the Jongno district when the curfew at the time lifted at 4 a.m.
• Janchi guksu (잔치국수): a light seaweed broth based noodle soup served with fresh condiments, usually kimchi, thinly sliced egg, green onions, and cucumbers.
• Jeongol (전골) : a traditional spicy Korean stew, consisting of various types of seafood and vegetables. It is generally served on a burner.

• Kimchi jjigae (김치찌개): A soup made with mainly Kimchi, pork, and tofu. It is a common lunch meal or compliment to a meat course. It is normally served in a stone pot, still boiling when it arrives at the table.
• Maeuntang (매운탕): a refreshing, hot & spicy fish soup.
• Samgyetang (삼계탕): a soup made with Cornish Game Hens that are stuffed with ginseng, a hedysarum, sweet rice, jujubes, garlic, and chestnuts. The soup is traditionally eaten in the summer.
• Seolleongtang (설렁탕): ox leg bone soup simmered for more than 10 hours until the soup is milky-white. Usually served in a bowl containing glass noodles and pieces of beef. Sliced green onions and coarse sea salt are used as condiments.
• Sundubu jjigae (순두부 찌개): a thick spicy stew made with soft tofu. Traditionally, the diner puts a raw egg in it while it's still boiling.
• Budae jjigae (부대찌개, "army squad stew"): Soon after the Korean War, meat was scarce in Seoul. Some people made use of surplus foods from US Army bases such as hot dogs and canned ham (such as Spam) and incorporated it into a traditional spicy soup. This budae jjigae is still popular in South Korea, and the dish often incorporates more modern ingredients such as instant ramen noodles.

All in all I'm still on a quest looking for the best Korean restaurant in my area! I'll keep you posted!!

Thanks Wikipedia for listing all these Korean food facts!!