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Gungjung Tteokbokki
Gungjung Tteokbokki
Gungjung Tteokbokki translates to royal court rice cakes. Typically you see rice cakes in a spicy gochujang sauce, which in Korea is considered street food. This version of rice cakes is sautéed in soy sauce with vegetables and is seen as high class food. It is usually prepared with thinly sliced beef that’s sautéed with the mushrooms. I made this dish vegan and replaced the beef with more mushrooms.
Ingredients
- 16 oz korean rice cakes
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 medium green zucchini large julienne cut
- 1 medium carrot large julienne cut
- 1/2 small yellow onion sliced
- 3 green onion cut into 2” pieces
- 4 oz button mushrooms sliced
Sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp mirin
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp garlic minced
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to boil. Add in the rice cakes. Cook until they float to the top. Strain in a colander, but don’t rinse.
- Put in a bowl with the soy sauce and sesame oil. Set aside.
- Mix together the sauce ingredients.
- Add 1 tbsp of the sauce to the mushrooms. Let marinate when you are chopping the other vegetables.
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add in the carrots, zucchini, onions, and green onions. Add the salt. Sauté for just 2 minutes. Remove and put in a bowl.
- In the same pan, sauté the mushrooms for 2 minutes.
- Add in the rice cakes. Sauté for 2 minutes.
- Stir in the sauce.
- Stir in the vegetables. Sauté for another 2 minutes.
Ojingeo Bokkeum (Spicy Stir Fried Squid)
Ojingeo Bokkeum (Stir Fried Spicy Squid)
In Korean, ojingeo is squid and bokkeum is stir fried. So this is stir fried squid in a spicy gochujang sauce. This dish takes only 5 minutes to prepare and is rather healthy. I purchased my squid heads at my local Asian market frozen for $3lb. Squid is that inexpensive. You can purchase just the head, or the whole squid. They come already cleaned. The trick to cooking squid is to only cook it for 2 minutes. Any more will make it tough. This whole dish cost a little over $5 to make for 2 large servings.
Ingredients
- 16 oz squid heads
- 1/4 cup white onion sliced
- 1 medium carrot sliced
- 1/2 zucchini sliced
- 3 green onions chopped into 2” pieces
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Sauce
- 2 tbsp gochujang pepper paste
- 1 tbsp gochugaru pepper flakes
- 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tbsp corn syrup
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 1 tsp ginger minced
- 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Mix all of the sauce ingredients together. Set aside.
- Wash the squid tubes in cold water.
- Slice into 1/2” thick rings.
- Marinate the squid in the sauce for 15 minutes.
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. Add in all of the vegetables. Sauté for 2-3 minutes.
- Add in the squid and sauce. Cook for no more than 2 minutes or the squid will become tough.
Black Bean Soup with Masa Dumplings
Black Bean Soup with Masa Dumplings
This black bean soup with masa dumplings is really tasty and simple to make. It takes a whole 20-25 minutes of prep and cooking time. The dumplings are made out of masa flour, pork cracklings, and water. Other additions that can be added to the dumplings include green onion, cilantro, corn, and cheese. Garnish the soup with cilantro, queso fresco, pork cracklings, and sour cream. This kind of has the feeling of a Mexican matzo ball soup.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp lard
- 1/2 medium white onion
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 cans black beans
- 1 cup water
- 1 epazote branch
Masa Dumplings
- 3/4 cup masa flour
- 1/2 cup pork cracklings crushed
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup warm water
- 2 tsp crushed epazote leaves
Garnish
- cilantro chopped
- queso fresco crumbled
- sour cream
- pork cracklings
Instructions
- In a large pot, melt lard over medium high heat. Add in the onions, garlic, and salt. Sauté for 3-4 minutes.
- Add in the black beans with their broth, water, cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, and an epazote branch. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- While the beans are simmering, mix together all of the masa dumpling ingredients.
- Roll into small balls.
- Press your thumb into the center of each ball like so.
- Add the dumplings to the soup.
- The dumplings are cooked when they float t the top. They take about 5 minutes.
