Israeli couscous is couscous on steroids. It’s much larger than the familiar North African version. Comparatively, Israeli couscous has a nutty flavor and is chewier. Israeli couscous also lends itself to salads better than its diminutive cousin. I came up with this recipe the other night by combining that pumped-up pasta with a little kitchen…
Custom chocolate comes to Korea
Ol’ Blue Eyes did it his way, and Shakespeare provided a buffet of romantic expression in “As You Like It.” Now, the build-it-yourself bliss of custom-crafted chocolate I experienced two years ago from Germany can be embraced via a Korean confectioner. The Chocolate Factory, a new Seoul-based chocolatier, recently introduced itself to Joe McPherson of…
Secret Recipe Club: Bokbunjaju Frosting Shots
Ian Sample, the Guardian UK’s science correspondent, said a few years ago, “Astronomers searching for the building blocks of life in a giant dust cloud at the heart of the Milky Way have concluded that it tastes vaguely of raspberries.” It is not the job of a food blogger to discover the hidden mysteries of…
Review: Pampered Chef Korean BBQ sauce
Pampered Chef, a direct seller of kitchen tools and culinary products only through independent salespeople, offers a modest line of culinary sauces — the Pampered Pantry — and marinades. One of the more recent additions is Korean barbeque sauce. This particular sauce is not a marinade, so I wouldn’t recommend using it as one. The…
Recipe: Korean cheese corn
I won’t say that Koreans are obsessed with the dairy-and-corn combination to the degree that those of us with European genes are with chocolate and hazelnut, but it’s close. In Korea, one can easily find kernel conspicuously piled on pizzas and stuffed into ice cream bars, in locations undreamed of anywhere in North America from…
A balanced view on salt
Those of us convinced that high sodium intake is a primary cause of the high rates of heart attacks, strokes, etc. in the United States — you’ll even see some of that in my earlier posts — need to fold into our kitchen knowledge a generous helping of recent science and a dash of common…
Secret Recipe Club: Pyaaz Ka Masala aka sauted onion paste
This month’s post for the Secret Recipe Club comes from Ruchi’s Simply Food. I found her recipe for Pyaaz Ka Masala, an Indian onion paste and a “mother sauce” for many Indian curries. The final product only bears a small resemblance to its original components. (Jeff Quackenbush photo) Onions are my nemesis. They make me…
My latest article for Yonhap: Center takes American approach to Korean Buddhism
Yonhap’s publication of the article titled Center takes American approach to Korean Buddhism during the celebration of Buddha’s birthday seems very apropos despite the passage of time. I interviewed Empty Gate Zen‘s resident abbot Jason Quinn back in August of 2011 to learn more about this Korean Buddhist center planted in Berkeley, CA near one…
How to stay young with Korean cuisine
Recipes from and inspired by Korea can help you add important anti-aging ingredients to your diet. Dr. Joseph Mercola, D.O., an osteopathic physician based in the Chicago suburb Hoffman Estates, is one of America’s most well-known health advisers. He recently implored readers of his blog to “add these 12 anti-aging ingredients to your diet.” Dr….
Secret Recipe Club: Hobak Jeon (Fried Zucchini) with bonus dipping sauce
This month’s Secret Recipe Club rendition comes from Angel’s Homestead. As I scanned through her recipes, I found her recipe for Fried Zucchini. I’m certain she has no idea (until today) that her recipe is as Korean as King Sejong. I made a couple of changes to showcase the dish’s Korean side as 호박전 hobak…