Foodbuzz 24×24: Korean Festival Food

Honey&Butter is excited to be featured in FoodBuzz’s 24×24 event! Join me as we indulge in the best of Korean cuisine!

On the menu: Korean Festival Food!
I used to think Koreans ate this food only on celebrations, holidays and festivals because there was something extra special about them. And while they are delicious, I realize now that these dishes are reserved for special days mostly because they are rather labor-intensive. Traditionally, they are made by village women, everyone working assembly line-style, while gossiping about the recent happenings.Except in my parents’ house, the silly villager women were replaced by three reluctant Korean-American girls, with my mother playing the Nazi-director of operations. Ah, the memories.

The following dishes aren’t necessarily categorized to one holiday or another. They are labeled under the category of “Special-day food” in my mind. Basically, food that is too much of a pain in the you-know-what for ordinary days. Making all these dishes in one day was quite the challenge. My calves will tell you.

But let’s not focus on my calves. Onward!

Dish #1: Japchae (Korean Starch Noodles with Veggies)
Let’s start with one of the most popular. When I asked my mom to make this for me a few weeks ago, she retorted, “Are you joking? That’s too much work!” Thanks for the love, Mom. Good thing I came up a recipe. Yay, Japchae!

Cellophane noodles. I believe they are made from sweet potato starch, but don’t quote me on that.  You want the package labeled “Dang Myun”.

Or, “Dried Starch Vermicelli”.

Happy mushrooms. I prefer fresh ones over the dried ones, which have too much of a strong smell for me.

Saute the veggies!

Jap Chae
1 package cellophane noodles (2.2 lb)
10 shitake mushrooms, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced thin
3 carrots, sliced thinly
2- 12 oz pkg frozen cut spinach, thawed
2 green onion, chopped
5 eggs, beaten with 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 lb thin beef slices (such as ribeye)
1 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame oil
5 TB sugar
1 TB minced garlic
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Soak the cellophane noodles in a big bowl in hot water for 20 minutes as you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Heat 4 TB oil and saute mushrooms until brown. Add onion, carrot. Saute 2 min. Add spinach and green onion with 1 tsp salt. Saute 8-10 min. Set aside to cool.
Clean the skillet and add 1 TB vegeable oil. Add beaten eggs and let them cook until golden brown on one side. Flip the egg pancake over and cook the other side for 30 sec. Take off the heat and let cool 10 min. Slice into strips.
Clean the skillet again, and heat 1 TB oil over med-heat. Add the beef ribeye and cook until nice and brown, seasoning with 1/4 tsp salt. Set aside to cool.
In a big skillet, add the soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, garlic, pepper flakes and sesame seeds. Heat on med-low until the sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat and set aside.
Drain the soaked noodles from the hot water and boil in a pot of boiling water for about 5 minutes. You don’t want to cook them through at this point. Drain the noodles and toss them into the big skillet with the soy sauce mixture. Turn the heat on to med-high and cook until the noodles have absorbed all of the liquid, but be careful not to overcook or the noodles will start burning.
Quickly transfer the noodles to a big mixing bowl. Let it cool for 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients- beef, vegetables, and eggs. Mix everything until thoroughly combined. Set out in a big platter for everyone to help themselves.
Japchae is best eat the same day, as soon as possible after it’s made.

Dish #2: Galbi Jjim (Korean Braised Shortribs)

On festival days, I realize this should be made ahead of time. It can slowly cook on the stovetop as you prep everything else. Of course, silly me made this last, waiting impatiently for it to be done. Lesson learned.

Galbi jjim is much like Korean BBQ. Combine those flavors with the slow braising method and you have yourself a very wonderful main dish. Also handy if you don’t happen to have  a BBQ grill.

Tender and juicy, the meat falls off the bone.

Galbi Jjim
2 lb beef short ribs, bone-in

1/2 large onion, sliced thinly
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 TB brown sugar

1 potato, sliced thickly
2 med carrot, cut diagonlly
1 cup sliced shittake mushrooms
2 green onions, sliced

2 TB corn syrup
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 TB sesame oil

Soak ribs 10 min in cold water in a large pot. Drain. Fill pot again with water, boil 10 min, drain and clean the pot well. Rinse the ribs, then place them back in the pot. Add the onions, garlic, water soy sauce, and brown sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Add the veggies, and simmer on medium heat for 1 hour, with the lid open. Stir occasionally and watch carefully to make sure it doesn’t burn. Most of the liquid should be evaporated. Add the corn syrup, pepper, and sesame oil. Stir to combine, and cook about 10 minutes more on med-low heat until there is almost no more liquid in the pot. The ribs and veggies should have a nice glaze-like coating of flavor. Serve with rice and side dishes!

Dish #3: Hobback Jun (Dried Korean squash patties)

These were made with dried Korean squash slices my Grandma sent all the way from Korea. Of course you can get your own at the local Korean grocers.

A thin coating of flour only.

Hobak Jun (dried korean squash patties)
3 cups dried korean squash pieces
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 TB sesame oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 TB soy sauce
3/4 cup flour
2 eggs + 1 TB water
vegetable oil, to panfry

Soak the squash pieces in warm water for 20 minutes, then drain them. Transfer them to a large bowl, and add the garlic, sesame oil, pepper flakes, and soy sauce. Mix with your hands to get it all evenly coated. On two platters, add the flour and egg mixture to each.

While you prep the patties, heat a large skillet on med-high with about 2 TB of vegetable oil. First coat each squash piece in the flour lightly, then dunk it in the egg mixture for a thin coating of egg. Add the squash to the pan, continuing this until there is one layer of squash patties on the skillet. Flip them over as they turn golden brown on each side, and then put them on a plate lined with paper towels to drain excess oil. Continue with the rest of the squash until finished, adding more oil as the pan needs it. Serve with extra salt on top, to taste.

Dish #4: Pollack Jun (Fish Patties)

This is the only way I really like white fish.

The coating keeps the moisture in, for perfectly flaky and tender insides. Also a huge plus- pollack doesn’t have a very high stink factor!

Light sprinkle of fresh ground pepper on top, fantastic!

Fish Jun
1 1/2 lb frozen pollack fillets, thawed
3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 eggs + 1 TB water
vegetable oil

Lightly salt the thawed fish fillets all over. Slice the fillets on a bias along the grain to make thin slices. Set them on a layer of paper towels to absorb the excess water. On two platter, arrange the flour and egg mixture separately. Add the salt and pepper to the flour, and whisk together.

Preheat a large skillet on med-high heat with 2 TB of vegetable oil. Coat each fish piece with the flour, dusting off the excess. Dredge in the egg mixture, then place it in the heated pan. Continue until there is a single layer of fish patties. Flip them over as they turn golden brown, then transfer them to a platter lined with paper towels. Continue until you run out of fish pieces, adding more oil as needed.

Dish #5: Korean Battered Sweet Potato Fritters

Koreans love sweet potatoes. It shows up in everything from dessert to crackers. Steamed, fried, or roasted, they are radical. On special occasions they are frittered. You may think it’s un-traditional to use a frying mix, but I’m pretty sure my Grandma does the same, so I have no qualms. Besides, the easier the better on festival days, when you have to make a gazillion different things in a short amount of time.

This is the frying mix I used. Ironically, there are images of fish all over the front. Just ignore that. Unless you want to make battered shrimp later. (Hmm, that’s not a bad idea…)

Make sure you use Korean sweet potatoes. American ones just aren’t sweet enough. Find them at your local Korean grocers.

Consistency is important, but whisk the batter together just until combined to avoid toughness.

Bubbles are good. If you don’t see vigorous bubbles like this, your heat is too low, and the fritters will come out too greasy.

Korean Sweet Potato Fritters
1 1/2 cup Korean fritter mix
1 1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
1 TB sugar
1 lb korean sweet potato (about 2 medium), thinly sliced
Corn oil, for frying

Whisk together the fritter mix, water, salt, and sugar together in a medium bowl.

Heat about 2 cups of oil in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Test the oil temperature by dropping a small amount of batter. The oil should immediately start bubbling around it. Dip  the sweet potato slices into the batter and gently drop them into the oil. Be careful not to over-crowd them. You want a single layer cooking at a time. When one side becomes brown, turn them over with tongs or chopsticks. When the other side also turns golden brown, transfer them to a big platter lined with paper towels to absorb excess oil. Continue until all the sweet potatoes have been cooked.

Conclusion:
Foodbuzz 24×24 was exciting and I had a blast. My kitchen doth complainth, though. During a span of a single day, I set my fire alarm off, caused my microwave to implode while giving off gunshot sounds, and also managed to do the following:

Yes, sad I know. How on earth…? Needless to say, I am on the market for another frying pan- one that can handle all the apparent abuse.

Happy Korean Festival Food-making!