Eomuk Guk/Odeng Guk (Fish Cake Soup)

Recently the weather here is rather a bit cold due to the raining and we have been craving for some hot soups. Eomuk guk pop up in my head, I like to drink this soup when we visit Korea, walking along the streets, you will see many street food vendors selling this especially during cold weather in winter.  They serve the soup in a paper cup which is very convenience and also the soup not only warms my tummy but also help to warm up my hands by holding the cup...lol ;)

You can use any types of fish cake, in Malaysia we can find a lot of different type/shape of fish cakes.  you can add in crab meat stick or squid balls too.  It's a bit like our steamboat or lok-lok here but with a different broth :)

Ingredients:

350g of assorted Fish Cakes

8-10 piece wooden Skewers

Some chopped Spring onion

Broth:

1.8liter of Water

6 Kelp (6cm x 5cm)

25 piece of  Anchovies

300g Radish (cut into slices)

1 stalk of Leek (use only white part)

1/4 medium size Onion

2 tsp Soy sauce

1 tsp Salt

Dipping sauce A: (Optional)

2 tbsp Soy sauce

2 tbsp Water

1/2 tsp Garlic (finely minced)

1/2 tsp Sesame oil

1/2 tsp Sesame seeds (optional)

1/2 tsp Gochugaru (Korean hot pepper flakes)

Some Green/Red sliced chillies

Some Chopped Spring onion

Dipping sauce B: (Optional)

2 tbsp of Tsuyu (Japanese soup stock)

Some Wasabi

Step by step photos:

1. Prepare a pot (Use a pot that is high/deep enough for the skewers to submerge in the broth), add in water, kelp and anchovies.  Boil over high heat for 20 minutes without lid.
2. Remove the kelp and anchovies.
3. Add in leek, onion and radish.  Keep boiling over medium low heat for 30 to 40 minutes with lid closed.
4. While the broth is boiling, make fish cake skewers.
5. After 30 to 40 minutes of boiling, remove the veggies (radish, onion and leek) to get clear broth.
6. Season broth with soy sauce and salt.
7. Add in fish cake skewers and boil for 10 to 15 minutes until cook.
8. Add some chopped spring onion and serve hot~

Tip:

- Taste the saltiness of the soup broth after add in fish cakes and adjust from there.  Because the fish cakes add some saltiness to the soup.

- If you plan to have the fish cakes by dipping in the sauce, do not add too much soy sauce/salt in the broth.

Yukgaejang (Spicy Meat and Vegetable Stew) 육개장

Yukgaejang, a nutritious stew made from various types of vegetables.  Usually beef is used to make this stew but I substitute with pork today as I do not eat beef... You can use chicken to make the stew too, it taste equally yumm! :)

 

It's actually require quite a lot of work and time in making yukgaejang from soaking the dried veggie, pulling the meat into strips and boiling the stew for hours....but, the delicious taste from the stew is really worth the effort.  I made a big pot of yukgaejang today and plan to freeze some for later since the hardwork of making this, why not make a lot and freeze for later, right? hehehe lazy me! ;)  Yukgaejang can be consumed for a few days if keep in the fridge or longer up to weeks if kept in freezer.  It's said that the Korean mum will cook this stew if they have plan to go away for a few days of short trip, yukgaejang will keep the husband and children's tummies full.. May be I shall plan a short vacation with my bff and prepare this stew and keep in the fridge for my husband *wink*

 

Some yukgaejang recipes is using one kind of dried vegetable which is gosari (fernbrake), But, my husband insist that To-ran (taro stem) is a must in making the soup =.=", and....I actually have to agree with him.  By adding taro stem, I feel that it helps to balance the smell of gosari which become less strong and the stew taste really balance with the meat, veggies and hint of spiciness.  It may be hard to find these dried vegetables in some area but if can, try to get both To-ran (taro stem) and Gosari (fernbrake) in making this stew.

 

 

 

Ingredients:

1kg of Pork

2 cup of Gosari (fernbrake) (After soaked, squeezed and cut)

1 cup of To-ran 토란 (Taro stem)  (After soaked, squeezed and cut)

1 cup of Shiregi 시레기 (Dried radish greens) [After soaked, squeezed and cut) *Optional

10 piece of Dried Shiitake Mushrooms

1.5 cup of Bean Sprouts

3 stalk of Leek

1 Onion (Large size)

4 liter of Water

 

Seasoning/Sauce:

5 tbsp Soy sauce

4 tbsp Gochugaru (korean hot pepper flakes)

5 tbsp Minced Garlic

2 tbsp Sesame Oil

2 tsp Salt (or more according to taste)

1 tsp of Black pepper

 

Step by step photos:

 



To-ran 토란 (Taro Stem)

 

 

 

1. Boil dried gosari, to-ran and shiregi for 2 to 3 hours separately in water over medium high heat until they are soft.  (Or you can skip this step by soaking them overnight until they turn soft).
2. Drain the boiling water.  Wash them with cold water and squeeze out excess water.  Cut into about 8cm length.  Set aside.
3. Prepare a big pot, add in water and boil over high heat.
4. Once the water is boiled, turn to medium high heat and add in meat and dried shiitake mushroom.  Boil for about 40 minutes.
5. While waiting, slice the leek and onion.  Prepare the seasoning sauce by mixing soy sauce, gochugaru, minced garlic, sesame oil and back pepper.
6. Prepare a big bowl, put in the sliced leek, onion, bean sprout, gosari, to-ran and shiregi.  Add the seasoning sauce and mix with hand until well combined. Set aside.
7. After 40 minutes, scoop out the meat and mushroom, put aside to cool down.
8. Add the seasoned vegetables in step 6 to the boiling meat stock and boil for 20 minutes.
9. Once the meat and mushroom are cool down, slice the mushroom and tear the meat into strips by hand.
10. Add the sliced mushroom and meat strips back into the boiling stock and cook over medium low heat for another 1 hour with lid closed.
11. Serve with warm rice~

 

Tip:

- This stew usually use beef, but pork and chicken taste good too.

- If time allows, prepare the stew in the morning/afternoon and serve for dinner.  Let the stew cool down and re-boil again for another 30 minutes before serve.  This step makes the stew taste so much richer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zebra Butter Cake/ Marble Zebra Cake

This post is non-korean dish related but I have to write down the recipe here because the result is so yummy!  This is definitely a keeper!  Found this recipe online thanks to the homecook group that I join in FB :)

Size: 6" round
Ingredients:
110g Butter
70g Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
30ml Milk
40g Chocolate (melted) or [25g cocoa powder melted & mix in some warm water]
1/8 tsp Salt
100 Cake flour or [Self-rising flour), I used cake flour

1. Cream butter and brown sugar in a mixing bowl until creamy.
2. Add in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Add in milk, mix well.
4. Add in cake flour gradually until all well incorporated.
5. Break chocolate into smaller pieces in a bowl, prepare a pot of water, let the water simmer over medium low heat, put the bowl of chocolate on top of the pot and wait until the chocolate melts.  Stir occasionally with a spoon. Cool down the melted chocolate.  **It will be easier if you use cocoa powder (cocoa powder mix well with some warm water), I didn't have it in my pantry so I used chocolate :)
6. Once the chocolate cool down a bit, scoop half of the batter into the bowl and mix well.
7. Use about 2 tbsp of each batter to create the layers of batter on the pan.  Begin from the middle of the pan, take 2 spoon of white batter then over it add 2 spoon of white batter.  Repeat these steps until all batter has been used.
8. Bake in preheated oven at 170 degree celcious for 35-40 mins or until cooked.  *Test with a toothpick, if the toothpick come out clean then it's cook ;)

**Step by step photos will be updated the next time I make this cake...didn't take the pictures as this is actually my first attempt ^^