Things to eat with Ja-jang-myun

Ja-Jang-Myun, which is Korean noodles in a black bean sauce, is cheap ($6) and super filling. In the sauce there are onions, meat, and potatoes. Not all Korean restaurant's have Ja-Jang-Myun on the menu because to Korean people it's thought of more as a fast-food type of dish. I go to get Ja-Jang-Myun at Tae Hwa Gwan restaurant in Olney, Philadelphia.

If you ever decide to get Ja-Jang-Myun you should also get side dishes that most people order with the dish.

1. Mandoo - fried dumpling

2. Tang Soo Yook - Sweet and sour pork

And to compliment the noodles, these are brought out for free to eat with the meal.

1. freshly cut onions

2.dan mu ji (yellow japanese pickles)

Most people like to put vinegar on the onions, and dan mu ji for more flavor.

Give it a try!

Duk Gook (Rice Cake Soup)

Duk Gook is a traditional meal prepared on New Year's Day to welcome and celebrate the new year! I know it's not not New Year's yet but it's also a commonly made soup. It takes about 30 minutes to make, and you can add dumplings and beef to make it a tastier meal.

Ingredients:

1. store bought Dduk (Rice Cake) flat, oval shaped.

2. boil beef and water to make the broth.

3. soy sauce.

4. two eggs, fried, thinly sliced.

5. dried seaweed sheets, cut into thin slices with kitchen scissors.

Steps:

1. soak rice cakes in cold water for about 20 minutes

2. bring broth to a broil

3. season broth with salt, pepper, and soy sauce.

4. add rice cakes, and cook for 10 minutes.

5. enjoy!

it's even featured in People magazine!

I really appreciated this article because it did not just skimp out on the true details of a Korean New Year, but the author went in-depth on the details of her day. I wasn't surprised to see an asian writer, Thailam Pham, cover the story. It's typical of any news outlet to put someone of the same race to cover a particular event. Although, Pham, is a Vietnamese last name, and I'm sure did not know much about Korean New Year, People magazine thought it was a good idea for an asian person to write about it. I don't think it's racist but I wish more people would realize, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, and other asian ethnicities are not the same!

Dduk-bok-kee (떡볶이)

Spicy Rice Cake!

I've previously mentioned how much I love spicy things, and i'll say it again: I love eating spicy things. It's probably not very good for me, but it's okay :)

This dish is easy to make because you literally just throw things inside a pan and you're done!

Ingredients:

1. Dduk: Thawed packaged rice cake.

2. Korean hot pepper paste

3. Odeng (fish cake): you want to cut them up into small pieces and cook them with the dduk (rice cake).

4.Hard boiled eggs: you want to cook them and cut it half to add to the dish.

5. 4-5 cups of water to boil.

Steps to making dduk-bok-kee:

1. Boil water. (the water will shrink as you cook).

2. Add the cut odeng (fish cake) and cook it for 3 minutes before adding dduk.

3. Add dduk and cook until it is semi soft but not fully cooked.

4. Add the hot pepper paste to the mix and measure it to how spicy you want it.

5. Add a hint of sugar and salt depending on your taste.

6. Lastly, add the hard boiled egg and mix it in with the sauce to finish it off.

it's really up to you what you want to put in the dduk-bbok-kee. You can add vegetables, and any type of meat you like. All you need is the hot pepper paste and water to complete the popular dish!