Korean Seaweed Salad

Korean Seaweed Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Soaked or Fresh Seaweeds

1 tsp Gochuchang (Korean Red Pepper Paste)

1 tsp Rice Wine Vinegar

1 tsp Light Soy Sauce

1 tsp Asian Sesame Oil

a pinch of Sugar

a pinch of Salt

1/4 tsp Gochugaru (Red Pepper Flakes)

Roasted Sesame Seeds

Instructions:

In a small pot with boiling water water, add-in the seaweeds and boil for about 5~10 minutes or until they're soft.

When done, drain the seaweeds and run through icy cold water. Squeeze out excess water.

Cut them into several strips, and set aside.

In a small bowl, add-in the red pepper paste, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil.

Then, season with sugar, salt, and red pepper flakes to your liking.

Add the seaweeds into the prepared dressing, and mix well.

Garnish with roasted sesame seeds. Can be refrigerated or serve immediately.

Happy Eating!!

SoGogi MiyeokGuk 소고기 미역국 (Beef & Seaweed Soup)

A mild and tasty soup made with seaweed.

"Korean Birthday Soup"

SoGogi MiyeokGuk 소고기 미역국 (Beef & Seaweed Soup)

Ingredients:

1 cup Soaked or Fresh Seaweeds, or half a cup of Dried Seaweeds (Wakame)

150 g Beef, cut into bite-sized pieces

3 cups Dashi Stock (Dried Anchovies and Kelp Stock)

Beef Marinade:

1 tbsp Soup Soy Sauce

1 tsp Asian Sesame Oil

1 pinch of Black Pepper

Soup Sasoning:

1/2 tbsp Asian Sesame Oil

1/2 tbsp Garlic, minced

1/2 tbsp Soup Soy Sauce

Instructions:

Marinate the beef.

Put the beef in a small dish. and add-in soup soy sauce, sesame oil, and black pepper.

Mix well, and set aside to marinate for 15 minutes.

If using dried seaweeds, soak the dried seaweeds in water for 10 minutes.

Wash them clean, and slightly squeeze to remove excess water.

Then, cut them into 4cm long. Set aside.

In a well-heated pot, add-in  the marinated beef, and stir-fry on medium high until beef is no longer pink.

Add-in the seaweeds, and sesame oil.

Stir-ry for about 3 minutes until the beef is completely cooked.

Pour-in dashi stock, and allow to boil for 5 minutes.

Then, Add-in the garlic, and soup soy sauce. Cook for 5 minutes more on medium-high heat.

Turn off heat. Serve hot and enjoy!!

Note:

Seaweed is very good for pregnant women to eat; when serving, cook with big seaweed with the stems not chopped. It is also typically consumed after giving birth as miyeok contains a high content of calcium and iodine, nutrients that are important for nursing mothers.

In Korea, seaweed soup is also intended to be eaten on birthdays.

When students take tests, however they do not eat this soup. They say eating it will cause them to fail exams because miyeok is slippery. ㅋㅋ

Sunomono 酢の物 (Japanese Cucumber Salad)

Sunomono cucumber salad is a light and refreshing vinegared dish in Japanese cuisine.

Sunomono 酢の物 (Japanese Cucumber Salad)

Ingredients:
1 cucumber
1 tbsp dry wakame (dried seaweeds)
1 tbsp mirin (sweet rice wine)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp dashi (dried anchovies and kelp stock ), or water

1/4 tsp black/white sesame seeds for garnish
slice of lemon for garnish

Instructions:
To make the sauce:
Mix mirin, rice vinegar, and dashi. *If you don't have dashi, you can use water.

Prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Slice cucumber using a mandolin or knife in thin rounds.
Sprinkle a generous amount of salt on the cut cucumbers and mix thoroughly. *Marinating the cucumbers in salt and water will soften them.
While waiting for the salt to seep into the cucumbers, place the dry wakame in a bowl with hot water for few minutes. *This will hydrate it, making it expand in the process.
When fully hydrated; wash in clean water and squeeze away the excess water.
When the cucumber has marinated, wash the slices in cool water and squeeze out the excess water.

To assemble:
Mix the cucumber and wakame with the sauce and add a garnish of sesame seeds and sliced lemon.

Serve and Enjoy!!!