ZenKimchi Korean Food Journal

Get Your Dessert on at Cornerstone

ZenKimchi — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 19:07:30 PST

Cornerstone, the flagship restaurant of the Park Hyatt Seoul, will host dessert buffets every weekend afternoon from 3 to 5 starting in January. They pride themselves in using natural ingredients and as little chemical sweeteners as possible–bringing out the rustic qualities of ingredients without muddying them down with sugariness. Macaroons, cakes, tarts, cookies, chocolates. There [...]

YOUR MISSION: Christmas Cakes

ZenKimchi — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:20:10 PST

We’re in wacky Christmas cake season in Korea. Each year the bakeries, doughnut shops, ice cream parlors and anyone in possession of a piping bag sell cakes that are even more over-the-top than the year before. YOUR MISSION Take pictures of the coolest, wackiest, most amazing Christmas cakes you see and send them to zen_at_zenkimchi.com. We’ll collect [...]

Red Bean Porridge on Winter Solstice (동지팥죽)

shinshine — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 10:54:16 PST

Posted by shinshine Every winter solstice, the shortest day with the longest night of the year, comes with red bean porridge (팥죽; pat juk or pat jook) in Korea – which has also become my annual habit from my childhood. Red beans, also known as azuki beans, are often used in dishes that symbolize good wishes in Korea because the [...]

NEW ADVERTISER: The Wolfhound Pub

ZenKimchi — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 22:53:04 PST

You may have noticed a little change on the sidebar–those of you who bother actually coming to the site (sounding like a Korean mom, huh). We are happy to team up with the Wolfhound. You may remember that I’ve been a fan of the place for years. It’s great when we get ads from products and [...]

Last Minute Gifts for the Korean Foodie

ZenKimchi — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 21:55:46 PST

We’re in crunch time now. For the Korean foodie in your life, or for the food nut in general, here are some books that I have read and recommend. Good Morning, Kimchi (Sook-ja Yoon) The Grande Dame of Korean cuisine teaches the basics of making kimchi and the major styles. She then shows how to bring the [...]

Bek Se Ju Ball

shinshine — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:48:12 PST

Posted by shinshine I grew up eating a snack called Homerun Ball (홈런볼) in Korea, which is essentially mini cream puffs with chocolate filling inside. The whole package was etched in my mind as a Korean snack when I was growing up. Although I’ve seen other forms of Homerun Ball elsewhere and since then, namely profiteroles and croquembouche, the [...]

Chef Rachel Yang’s Ddeok Moussaka with Tomato Marmalade, Eggplant Caviar and Caramelized Zucchini

ZenKimchi — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 19:49:49 PST

Earlier this year Chef Rachel Yang of Joule in Seattle wowed the audience of the Ddeok Festival with her cooking demonstration. This was her appetizer, Ddeok Moussaka with Tomato Marmalade, Eggplant Caviar and Caramelized Zucchini. She explained it’s “basically deconstructed moussaka with rice cake.” The picture doesn’t give it justice, but I tried it, and all [...]

Christmas Cooking Classes with an Italian Touch

ZenKimchi — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 21:07:19 PST

Executive Chef Stefano di Salvo of the Park Hyatt Seoul will conduct a Christmas cooking class from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. this Wednesday, December 16th at the hotel. It looks like a lavish set with Marinated Scallops, Prawn Torteli, Lobster Casserole, Beef Tenderloin, a classic Italian Panettone and more. The classes are 90,000 won [...]

CBTL in Seoul Finance Center

JustSteve — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 18:23:34 PST

Posted by Steve Ward “CBTL” is supposedly the high-end brand of Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. At the Seoul Finance Center location they boast their fancy espresso machine, which is the espresso machine of choice of the pope. After hearing about the place like six months ago I finally found myself in the neighborhood and popped in [...]

Thoughts on Top Chef Season 6 (and the future)

ZenKimchi — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 05:47:55 PST

Well, it’s over. Chef Blue Steel won. And it was a good fight. Much of the season was a blur, especially around the time of Ashley’s departure. There was some great talent this year. The bar keeps getting higher. Let’s quickly recap the season. For a reminder of the contestants, [...]