Kalbi Jim

I attempted to make Kalbi Jim.  We found short ribs at a local grocery store & the butcher cut them down into 2x2 pieces for me.  It's a bit time consuming to make, but luckily it doesn't have to be to exact times so it's pretty easy.


Recipe:
2  to 3 lbs of short ribs
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/2 cup sesame oil
1/2 cup sake
8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or crushed
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 carrots, cut into 2 inch chunks
1 potato cut into 2 inch chunks
1 large onion, cut into chunks

First soak all the pieces of meat in cold water (fully immersed) in a pot.  Let the beef sit in the water for about 45 minutes.  This will drain the blood and is important.  Drain water.


After draining, slice into the beef across the grain but keeping the meat still attached to the bone.

Place the beef back into a pot and cover with water.  Bring the beef to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Simmer for 45 minutes.  Drain the water & wash all the pieces of meat.  Rinse well. 

In a clean pot add the following:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup soy
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup sesame oil
- 1/2 cup sake
- 8 cloves of garlic, minced or crushed
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Heat over medium heat until simmering.  

Add all of your beef to the simmering liquid. Cook over medium low heat - turning occasionally and allowing different pieces of the beef to soak and cook in the liquid. Cook for 40 minutes or until the beef is tender.

Add onion, carrots and potato.

Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are fully cooked, about 15 more minutes.

Verdict:
It was Marc's first time eating this and he quite enjoyed it.  It was a bit sweeter than I like, but I also used less meat than was asked for in the recipe (under 2lbs I used).  I would add less sugar next time.  It was pretty easy to make & will definitely make it again.

Bok Choy Cucumber Kimchi

Some reason, I crave kimchi all the time.  I want it with every meal, Korean food or not.  Since the closest Korean market is a drive away, it's not readily accessible in our house.  I now make this 'instant' kimchi that is constantly made ALL the time! 

Recipe:
Make into a paste with the following ingredients
- 1 Hot Pepper (serrano or jalapeno)
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp apple vinegar
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp crushed garlic
- 2 tbsp gochugaru
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds

In a large bowl, wash your bok choy thoroughly (about 5 small baby bok choys), 3 persian cucumbers (slice) and salt to get the water out.  You can also just use cucumber or just use bok choy.  Rinse them off, dry as best as possible and add the paste.  I also add in green onions and purple onions (sliced thinly).  Sprinkle the sesame seeds on top and it's ready to eat!

Verdict:
A staple in every meal.  Even Marc loves it.  Buy a good fish sauce (my mom recommends the one with the 3 crabs on the bottle as it's the least fishy).  We love it.

Quick Eats: Thai Basil Chicken

Thai Basil Chicken is a favorite in our house.  It's an easy dish to make, cheap and fast.  Plus it's great as left overs.

 Recipe:
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil 
- 4-7  Thai chili pepper, minced 
- 1 tbsp sugar 
- 1-2 packages thai basil or regular basil 
- 1 lb ground chicken  (or pork)
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced 
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce 

Mince garlic and chili pepper together. Clean and pick basil leaves from their stem.

Fry the garlic and chili pepper in oil over high heat. When garlic starts to turn brown, drop the ground chicken/pork in. Stir constantly. Once cooked, add sugar and fish sauce. Next add Thai basil and mix into meat till cooked down.  Serve hot with rice.





Verdict:
 As always a favorite.  We made it with ground pork tonight since the grocery store was out of ground chicken.  It was super delicious and ate it with some edamame.

Quick Eats: California Rolls

Last night, Marc had to head into the hospital with no time for dinner.  Fortunately, the rice just finished cooking, and I could whip these rolls up fast so he could have a small snack before heading in.

Recipe:
- nori
- rice
- avocado
- imitation crab
- cucumbers

* I also added in chopped scallions & sushi rice powder to the rice

Spread the rice onto the nori and roll!

Verdict: A great quick solution when in a pinch (and have rice made).

Pinkberry Style Frozen Yogurt

We had gotten the ice cream maker attachment for my KitchenAid mixer and had yet to use it!  Tonight, I decided to test it out and try making 'Pinkberry' style frozen yogurt.

Recipe:
3 cups Greek Yogurt (I used 2% Fage)
1/2 cup of sugar

Mix the yogurt and sugar till blended.  Put into ice cream maker.

Verdict: 
Pinkberry Frozen Yogurt
Delicious! While it doesn't taste 100% like Pinkberry, it's still quite delicious and am pretty sure this batch will be gone pretty quickly.  I will continue to work on this. 

Ice Cream Maker
It was easy to use and assemble.  I chilled the mixture for a bit, and added it straight to the bowl (that I had put in the freezer ahead of time).  I had set it on 'stir' for about 15 minutes.  The consistency was great and was so easy to make.