A Practical Guide to Korean Food and Korean Fusion Food

When I was a child, I sometimes went hiking with my mom and we picked up some dropped acorns in the hills. I didn’t hike to the very top but on the way back the basket of my bicycle was full of acorns. At that time I didn’t know how they could be eaten by us, humans, because I always thought that they are for squirrels.

In my memory, I don’t think I liked the seasoned acorn jelly that much because of its bitter taste, but now I love it, it is like an adult appreciates good food more than a child. It has a slightly bitter taste from the acorn jelly and a slightly sweet and salty taste from the sauce, which I love, and this recipe is like that.

Hoping you can get the acorn jelly where you live, here is how the recipe goes.

Ingredients (enough to serve 6-8 people as a side dish) : 5 minutes to serve

• Acorn jelly (도토리묵) – 420 g
• 2-3 lettuce leaves
• 1 green chili (non spicy)

Sauce (mix these in a bowl)

• Soy sauce – 6 tbsp
• Dark brown sugar – 1 tbsp
• Sesame oil – 1 tbsp
• Finely chopped spring onion – 2 tbsp
• Parched sesame seed – 1 tbsp
• Chili powder – 2 tsp
• Minced garlic – 2 tsp

Prep

1. Slice the acorn jelly (1 cm -1.5 cm thickness).
2. Take the seeds out from the chili and thin slice it.
3. Thin slice the lettuce (thickness doesn’t really matter, but mine was close to 1 cm).

Method A) - Better presentation

1. Put the sliced acorn jelly on the plate.
2. Add the sliced chili on top.
3. Decorate the plate with the lettuce.
4. Spread the sauce on the top.
5. Serve it on the table.

Method B) - My mom’s way (it may season the acorn jelly and lettuce better)

1. Put the lettuce, chili and acorn jelly in a mixing bowl.
2. Add the sauce and lightly mix it.
3. Serve it on the plate.

By the way, a pack of acorn jelly is more expensive than tofu (I thought it would be cheap). It was 3,000 won (US $3.20) for 420 g in Korea. I also bought a pack of acorn powder to make acorn jelly from scratch and it was 6,6oo won (US $6. 30). It was requested by one of my readers. I know I really need to make it soon but apparently it requires continuous stirring for nearly an hour without any break, so I gave up for then.

Don’t worry! beloved, I will definitely do it.

Related Posts

Soy sauce Boiled Tofu (Dubu Ganjang Jorim in Korean)

Tofu Kimchi (Dubu Kimchi in Korean)

Simmered Lotus in Soy sauce (Yeon-gn Jorim)

I am into these green bean sprouts lately. They give a flavourful taste to soup and a savory taste to side dishes. I don’t make many side dishes (I prefer one dish meals that don’t require any side dishes, because it is simple and quick, and I don’t need to wash many plates later on ), but I thought I should try some side dish recipes to show you, since I haven’t made one for a while. So I tried making seasoned green bean sprouts and the more I eat them, the more I like them.

Their flavour comes out with a good balance of salt, garlic and sesame oil. They have a mild taste and chewing their fiber is another pleasure (They give a bit of a soft yet crunchy feeling).

Ingredients for 4 people

(Prep time – 2 minutes, Cooking time – 10 minutes)

• Green bean sprouts 250 g
• Salt – ½ tsp
• Sesame oil – 1 tsp
• Minced garlic – 1/8 tsp
• Finely chopped green onion – 2 tsp
• Parched sesame – 1/8 tsp

Steps

1. Rinse the green bean sprouts in cold water, discard the bad beans.
2. Boil some water in a pot. (I used 3 cups of water)
3. Add the green bean sprouts when the water starts to boil.
4. Par boil them for 2 minutes.
5. Drain the water. Cool down the sprouts. (if you lift them with tongs or chopsticks frequently, it cools down faster.)
6. Add the salt on top (sprinkle it all over the place) and leave it like that for 3 minutes.
7. Squeeze the green bean sprouts with your hands. (discard the water if it comes out)
8. Add the rest of the seasoning sauce, and mix them well.
9. Serve them on a dish.

Side story about “Sukju Namul” (Green bean sprouts)

Writing about Korean food certainly makes me study. While I was translating sukju namul into English, which was about a month ago, I found that they are called green bean sprouts in English. Green bean sprouts? Are they made of green beans? I didn’t realize that they are made of green beans (apparently I was ignorant about Korean food and its history before I started this blog), because they disguised their name into sukju all this time. Green bean is Nokdu in Korean, then how come Koreans call green bean sprouts Sukju namul instead of Nokdu namul?

Well, apparently, there is a popular traditional theory and most Koreans seem to believe, that is the true. There was a scholar called Shin Suk-ju in 1462, and he betrayed his king when there was a coup (There was a young king called ‘Danjong’, and his uncle ‘Sejo’ tried to take over the throne.) When the coup happened he was asked to help his king, but he refused to do so. Apparently green bean sprouts go off very easily, so their easily changing characteristic is similar to Shin Suk-ju’s mind. That is why Green bean sprouts are named Sukju namul instead of Nokdu namul.

Apparently green bean sprouts are more nutritious than bean sprouts and have 80 times more nutrients than green beans themself.

Related Posts

Spicy Noodles with Green Bean Sprouts (Sukju Ramyun in Korean)

Thinly Sliced Radish Kimchi

Boiled Beef and Quail’s Eggs in Soy sauce (Sogogi Jangjorim in Korean)