An International Diplomatic Row Over Mango Mousse

The world is waiting with baited breath to see the outcome of the inter-Korean Summit this Friday. Some are predicting an announcement that will end the 1950s Korean War, others are hoping for baby-steps towards peninsular reunification. Japan is angry about the dessert. Japan is angry about the dessert, because on top of a mango mousse decorated with fresh spring flowers sits a plaque depicting … Read more

Olympics, 이해, and More Delicious North Korean Food

Like Christmas Truce in World War I, the recent Olympics allowed for a temporary warming of relations between north and south Korea, between people still locked in a conflict that is decades old. To incorporate these events into the blog, I decided to cook up some more North Korean food, and headed off to the North Korean food website to peruse recipes. What the site … Read more

A Meal Fit for Kim Jong-Il

One of the difficulties in understanding history and historical works, is to imagine the world truly differently than it is today.  We are so confident that our senses provide us with the, “truth,” that many of us cannot really fathom that the world of the past was different from the present.  Modern audiences recoil at the anti-Semitism expressed in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, and laugh when … Read more

Cold Tofu with Pidan

One of my favorite ways to enjoy 1000-year eggs is as part of a cold-tofu salad. This presentation of pidan is enjoyed all over China this way as well as in Taiwan, Japan and Korea. It is served as an appetizer or as part of a meal with many dishes eaten at the same time. For western cooks, it is simple to make, exotic, nutritious … Read more

Cool as Cucumber Kimchi

Kimchi in the West is usually spicy and hot and made from Napa cabbage. That version is delicious, but it means many of us don’t know what we’re missing. Although the Napa cabbage version is delicious, this fascinating fermented Korean dish can be made from any vegetable, and its flavors can be savory, mild and slightly sweet. There are more than 100 kimchi varieties, another … Read more

Communist Kimchi!

You may recall that in the Kimchi Chigae post I mentioned that I was developing a North Korean kimchi recipe. Well I worked the handwritten recipe with no ingredient amounts that you see here through three iterations – each less spicy than the last. And with some description and input from food and travel writer, Michael Y. Park, who brought the recipe out of North … Read more

Kimchi Chigae

I love kimchi. I have several jars of kimchi in my refrigerator at all times. Kimchi of Napa cabbages and Korean radish, cucumber kimchi, and now, thanks to food and travel writer Michael Y. Park – kimchi from North Korea as well. You see, Michael recently returned from a trip to North Korea with a handwritten recipe for North Korean kimchi in hand. He sent … Read more

Making Kimchi

Kimchi is a fascinating thing. It is a salt-pickled Korean vegetable dish often made primarily of Napa cabbage, but also made of radish, cucumbers, spring onions and a wide variety of additional ingredients that create a range of flavor from spicy and hot to savory to mild and slightly sweet. Currently, there are over one hundred different varieties of kimchi and countless derivative dishes – … Read more

Korean-BBQ Birthday

This year, for the first autumn birthday, we took the family and a guest to a nearby Korean barbeque that has gotten some great reviews.  Honey Pig really is a small slice of South Korea tucked into the DC suburbs.  From its dark and industrial-styled interior to its straightforward, unembellished service and the thumping pop on the sound system it feels like stepping into another … Read more