Mapo Tofu 麻婆豆腐

Mapo tofu is one of my chinese cooking dishes that is popular among my husband and my parents in law...or shall I say it's a dish that more suit to their Korean taste buds? (合胃口) .  It's my favorite one dish meal that save a lot of preparation/cooking time ;)

 

I try to utilise my duenjang paste (Korean fermented soy bean paste) and gochugaru (hot pepper flakes) in my pantry to create this dish.  Besides cooking duenjang jjigae (Korean fermented soy bean paste stew), you may want to use the duenjang paste to cook mapo tofu, the taste is equally nice by using Chinese doubanjiang (豆瓣酱).

 

 

 

Serving: 2 person

Ingredients:

200g Minced pork

1 pack Japanese pressed tofu (about 400g)

1 & 1/2 tbsp Duenjang (Fermented soy bean paste)

2 tbsp Gochugaru (hot pepper flakes)

1 tbsp cooking Oil

1 tbsp Minced garlic

1 tsp Sugar

250ml Water

1 stalk Spring onion (chopped)

Some chopped Red chilli pepper (optional)

Some chopped Green chilli pepper (optional)

 

Step by step photos:

 

 

 

1.  Prepare a wok/pan, add in cooking oil and garlic, slightly stir until the garlic fragrance came out over medium low heat.
2. Add in minced pork, keep stirring until the meat turn half-cooked.
3. Add in duenjang and gochugaru, stir until well mix.
4. Add in water and let it simmer for about 2 minutes over medium high heat.
5. Cut the tofu in big chunk and add into the meat sauce, slightly stir the tofu gently.
6. Keep simmer until the sauce thickens or you can add corn starch mixture (corn starch + water) to thicken the sauce if you prefer thick gravy.
7. Garnish with spring onion and chopped green/red chilli.
8. Serve warm with rice.

 





Old School Korean Lunch Box (Dosirak)

Bought two old school lunch box container some time ago from Korea but just store them in my kitchen cabinet.  Today while tidying up my cabinet, I saw these containers and thinking it's time to put food in the lunch box instead of storing them...lol...

 

In the old days, lunch box is made from metal box where the metal will allow heat transfer from the stove top heaters and keep the food stay warm until lunch hour.  The dishes for olden days lunch box were simple, usually pack with protein like eggs or sometimes with some meat like sausage and luncheon meat, top up with kimchi.

 

 

 

Serving: 2

Ingredients:

2 bowl of cooked Rice

100g of Luncheon meat (cut into bite size)

1/2 cup of cut Kimchi

Pinch of Sugar

1 tsp Sesame oil

2 Eggs

Some Oil to fry egg

Some crushed/cut seasoned roasted Seaweed

Some sesame seeds for garnish

 

Step by step Photos:

 

 

 

 

 

1. Cut luncheon meat into bite size.
2. Heat up a non-stick pan, add in the cut luncheon meat and fry over medium low heat until both sides turn golden brown.  (You can use some oil to fry the meat.  I do not add any oil to fry the meat as oil will release from the luncheon meat itself).
3. Remove the luncheon meat from pan.  Use the oil from the luncheon meat, add in cut kimchi and stir-fry.
4. Add in sugar and stir-fry for about 3 minutes over medium low heat.
5. Off the heat and drizzle sesame oil over the kimchi.
6. In another pan, add some oil and fry 2 sunny side up eggs and set aside.
7. Scoop cooked rice into the lunch box.
8. Arrange the luncheon meat, fried kimchi, egg and seaweed on top of the rice.
9. Before eat, slightly cut the egg and luncheon meat into smaller pieces using spoon, close the lid and shake a few times until all the side dishes and rice are mix together.
10. Serve warm ^^

 

 

 

 

 

 

Homemade Granola Bar

Today's recipe is not a Korean dish but I would like to write it down in my blog to keep as my future reference because these granola bars is so yummy!  I like the nutty flavour and the crunchiness texture and how it serves as a super easy, fast but high nutritious breakfast/snack in my family.  Can't stop munching~~
I came across this recipe from a homecook group that I join in Facebook.
Recipe adopted from: FB Daily Homecook Meal (Zac Ng) & http://mybakerlady.com

Serving: About 24 bars (1.5 x 3 inch)
Ingredients:
3 & 1/2 Cup Rolled oats
1/4 Cup Canola & Sunflower oil
1/4 tsp Salt
1 cups Dried fruits & mix nuts (I used chopped walnut, pumpkin seed, sunflower seed, chia seed, black sesame, white sesame, dried mix raisins)
1/4 Cup Honey
4 tbsp Brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon powder
Baking tray size: 9 x 13 inch

Step by step photos:

1. Preheat oven 180°C.  Prepare a big bowl, mix rolled oats, salt and oil until well coated.
2. Prepare tray line with aluminium foil, pour the mixture in step 1 and spread them evenly on the tray, bake over 180°C for 8 minute, stir and continue to bake for another 8 to 10 minutes until the oats turn pale gold.
3. Remove the oats and adjust the oven temperature to 150°C.
4. Prepare a bowl, mix in all dried fruits, nuts oats.
5. Prepare a pan, pour in honey and brown sugar.  Keep stirring until the brown sugar dissolves over medium low fire.
6. Off the fire and add in cinnamon powder.  Keep stirring.
7. Add the honey mixture to the dried fruits, nuts and oats.  Stir until well combined.
8. Line a baking sheet in the tray, pour the mixture in step 7 using a non-stick spatula and spread evenly all over the tray.
9. Line another baking sheet on top of the mixture and get another same size tray to press on the mixture so that the mixture will have a tight and even height.  (If you do not have another same size tray, just use the spatula and press tightly).
10. Place the tray in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes (150°C) or until golden brown.
11. Take out the tray and cool on a wire rack for 10 to 12  minutes and cut them into bars using knife.  Do not cool down too long where the mixture might be harden and hard to cut later.  Place the cut granola bars on wire rack until they are completely cool down.
12. Store in fridge for longer freshness :)

*Adjust the sweetness according to your preference by adjusting the brown sugar volume.

Bosot Bap 버섯밥 (Korean Mix Mushroom rice with sauce)

Mushroom here always sell in a pack of 3 with different types of mushroom and it's cheaper compare with buying individually each.  I always struggle what to cook so that I can finish all the mushrooms and my husband told me there is a Korean dish called Beosot Bap (Mix mushroom rice) where you put in different kind of mushrooms with rice and cook.  The best part is this dish can be done in rice cooker! Yay, time saving one pot dish...hehe ^^

Serving: 2-3 person
Ingredients:
2 cups Mix fresh mushroom (I use fresh shitake mushroom and shimeji mushroom)
1 & 1/2 cup Short grain rice
420ml Water
2 piece Kelp (3cm x 3cm)

Meat sauce:
1 tbsp Cooking oil
150g Minced pork/beef (I use minced pork)
1 tsp Minced garlic
4 tbsp Soy sauce
1/2 tsp Sugar
180ml Water
1 tbsp Gochugaru (Korean hot pepper flakes)
1/2 Green chili (chopped)
1/2 Red chili (chopped)
1 stalk of Spring onion (chopped)
1/2 tbsp Sesame oil

Step by step photos:

 

 

1. Wash and rinse rice.  Add in kelp, water and mushroom.
2. Cook the mushroom rice in rice cooker.
3. While the rice is cooking.  Prepare a pan, add in oil and minced meat (pork/beef), stir over medium high heat.
4. When the meat turn half cooked, add in minced garlic.  Keep stiring.
5. When the meat is cooked, add in soy sauce, sugar, gochugaru and water.  Keep stiring on medium low heat.
6. Off the heat, add in chopped spring onion, green and red chili.
7. Drizzle sesame oil and slightly mix in.
8. When the rice is cooked, take out the kelp, scoop out the mushroom rice.  Add the meat sauce and start bibim (mix).  The mushroom and the meat sauce blends really well and it's yummy!

*Tip:  This can be a vegetarian dish if omit the meat in preparing the sauce.  No cooking is needed in preparing the vegetarian sauce.  Just mix all the sauce ingredients together :)



Buchu Jeon 부추전 (Garlic Chive Pancake)

Busy making Mak-Kimchi (Easy-To-Make Napa Cabbage Kimchi) today and have some leftover vegetables (some chives, spring onion and carrot)....so I decided to make vegetable pancake from these veggies...My side of family seldom eat chives but Korean consume a lot of chives, they use chives in many dishes.  There are chives salad, chives pancake, chives kimchi and many more.  This is my first time making chives pancake and I was surprise that it tastes really nice!  The flavor and the aroma from the chives really enhance the taste of this pancake....no meat or seafood needs to added in!  Just dip in the dipping sauce and it's already super yummy! ^^

Serving: 1

Ingredients:

40g Buchu (garlic chives), cut into 5cm length

10g Spring onion (cut into 5cm length)

15g Carrot (sliced & cut into 5cm length)

1/2 cup Korean pancake mix flour

1/2 cup + 3 Tbsp of Water

Pinch of salt

2 tbsp Cooking oil

Dipping sauce

3 tbsp Soy sauce                                         

1/2 tbsp Vinegar                               
3 tbsp Water                                           
1/2 tsp Sugar                                          
1 tsp Chilli pepper powder (gochugaru)
1/2 tsp Finely grated garlic    

Some chopped spring onion (optional)

Some sliced green/red chili (optional)           

     

Step by step Photos:

1. Prepare a bowl, stir and mix the pancake mix flour with water until the flour dissolves.
2. Add in salt and the cut garlic chives, spring onion and carrot strips.
3. Heat up a frying pan with oil over medium high heat (best to use non-stick when frying pancake^^).
4. Pour in the batter and spread evenly over the frying pan.  Cook about 2 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown.
5. Flip the pancake with a spatula and press slightly.  Continue to cook over medium low heat for about 2 to 3 minutes or until both sides of the pancakes are fully cooked with golden brown color.
6. Cut into bite size and serve hot with dipping sauce!  It should be crispy on the sides and chewy on the inside.  Have a try~

 **Tip:  You can use all purpose flour but it's good to add egg and some seasoning like salt and pepper if use regular all purpose flour for pancake recipe.  Will try to make this pancake in future using regular all purpose flour. Stay tune ^^

***Buchu in mandarin language is 韭菜 and in Hokkien language is kuchai ;)