Korean Lettuce Wraps (Ssambap)

When my family and I lived in Seoul, we had a favorite restaurant that was nestled along the Han River.  Like many Korean BBQ restaurants, this one served the popular dishes, Ssamgyeopsal (BBQ pork belly), Bulgogi, Galbi, Denjang Chigae, Yukejang, Kimchi Chigae, and another one of my favorites — Ssambap, or lettuce wraps, or what foreigners call Beef and Leaf.

This is delicious with just the lettuce leaf stuffed with rice, the meat of choice (I’m using bulgogi in this recipe), and ssamjang, but it’s also delicious with a piece of grilled garlic, a slice of grilled hot green peppers, and a piece of kimchi all wrapped in a neat little package — or as little as you can make it with all of that stuffed into the lettuce leaf.

During my first tour to Korea over a decade ago, a Korean officer told me that to be “polite”, one must never wrap more than what can be stuffed into your mouth in one bite-sized serving.

But to do that, you can’t wrap as much “stuff” (kimchi, garlic, pepper, meat, rice, etc) into it without having your cheeks bulge out for being so full.

Try as I might to make these into small lettuce wraps, I always end up taking two or three bites with one little package.  I guess this is okay if you’re making this at home.  And make this at home is a must — it’s so delicious that you cannot overlook this dish.  A word or warning, though.  If you add grilled garlic to this, I advise you to make this on a Friday so that you have all weekend to get the smell out of your pores by the time you have to go to work on Monday.

It’s either that or invite your entire office staff to your house for dinner so that you can ALL smell the same for the next couple of days!  🙂

All kidding aside, this is a very simple dish to make.  Give it a try — I know you’ll like it.  🙂

Enjoy!

 

KOREAN LETTUCE WRAPS (SSAMBAP)

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INGREDIENTS:

Bulgogi:

  • 2 pounds lean beef, cut into strips
  • 1 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup vinegar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic

Ssamjang:

  • 1/2 cup Korean pepper paste, or Gochujang
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • Sesame seeds
  • Optional:  1 stalk green onions, sliced thinly

 Other Ingredients:

  • 1 head of green, leafy lettuce
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil, for stir frying the bulgogi
  • Cooked white rice
DIRECTIONS:

1.  Place the beef into a ziplock bag.  Add the rest of the ingredients.  Seal the bag; allow the meat to marinate for a couple of hours.

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2.  Place 2 tablespoons sesame oil into a large skillet.  Add the contents of the ziplock bag — the meat and marinade together.  Cook over medium high heat until the meat is done and the sauce has thickened.

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3.  In a small bowl, mix together all of the ingredients for the ssamjang.  Set aside.

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4.  Separate and rinse the lettuce leaves.  Dry with a paper towel.

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5.  Assemble the lettuce wraps.  Place a lettuce leaf on a plate.  Add rice, bulgogi, and ssamjang.  Optional:  add a piece of kimchi.  Roll up into a little package or wrap, eat, and ENJOY!

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Yaki Mandu

Have I mentioned that I love Korean food?  No?  Okay then — I LOVE Korean food.

I have lots of favorites when it comes to Korean cuisine, but this easy appetizer stands out, not just for its flavor, but because of how simple it is to make.  Why buy the frozen stuff when you can make these right in your very own kitchen?

I use ground pork in my recipe, but you can easily substitute the pork with ground beef or chicken, shrimp, or even tofu.

Give my recipe a try — it’s delicious, I promise!

Enjoy!

YAKI MANDU

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Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds ground pork
  • 1 bunch green onions, sliced thinly
  • 6 shiitake mushrooms, diced
  • 2 tablespoons Dashida Korean beef seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon accent, optional
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • About 50-75 wonton wrappers

Directions:

1.  Place the pork in a small mixing bowl.

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2.  Wipe any dirt off the mushrooms using a damp paper towel.  *Do not rinse fresh mushrooms.  (If using dried shiitake mushrooms, soak in hot water until soft.)  Slice/dice the mushrooms then add to the mixing bowl.

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3.  Thinly slice the green onions then add them to the mixing bowl; mix together.

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4.  Add the garlic, black pepper, sesame oil, Dashida, and soy sauce.

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5.  Place a scoop of filling in the middle of the wonton wrapper.

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6.  Moisten the edge with water.  Fold over, squeezing any air pockets out.  Press the edges together to seal.

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7.  Add a little bit of vegetable oil to a skillet; place over medium heat to heat the oil.

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8.  Turn the heat to medium low.  Fry the yaki madu in the heated oil, turning after a few minutes to ensure even browning.  Fry for about 10 minutes on each side to ensure the raw pork filling is cooked.  Cooking over low heat is key to ensure they don’t burn.

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9.  Drain on paper towels and ENJOY!

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How to cut a Circle out of Parchment Paper

Have you ever had to line a round baking pan with parchment paper, and wondered how to cut a relatively perfect circle freehand?

Well, here’s my super simple way of doing it.

 

First, get your pan out.  Cut out a piece of parchment paper big enough to cover the entire pan.  You should have roughly a square piece of paper.

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Fold the piece of parchment paper in half to form a triangle, bringing the opposite corners together.  Fold the triangle in half again, bringing one corner toward the other (the folded edges should be together).  Keep your finger on the tip or point of the triangle (this point will not change as you continue your folding).

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Fold the triangle again, keeping your finger on the tip of the triangle and bringing the folded edges together.  Repeat the folding several more times until you can’t fold it anymore, ensuring you keep the sides with the folded edges together.

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Once you have a thin sliver of a triangle, place the tip of the triangle in the center of your pan.  Fold the top of the triangle where it comes to the outer edge of your pan.  Cut off any excess parchment paper (the part you folded).

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Unfold the triangle.  You will have a circle that fits perfectly over your pan.

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Musubi

I am so happy to be FINALLY writing this post!  Not just because I love musubi, but because it’s my inaugural SPAM post!!!  (Applause, applause, LOL)

I love SPAM!  If you’re from Guam, chances are you love spam too.  If not, well, don’t criticize until you try it.

This reminds me of a time when I was a young Army Captain several years ago.  I was an instructor at the time, and our unit took the students out for a week-long field training exercise.  Being the good Chamorro that I am, I did NOT pack any MREs (meals, ready to eat).  Instead, I packed some pan-de-leche and SPAM!  🙂  My students knew I brought Spam to the field.  Their reaction was, “Ewwww!  Spam!  No thank you!  Never in a million years would we eat SPAM!  They wouldn’t dare corrupt their bodies with SPAM!”  I told them they didn’t know what they were missing.  My NCO (non-commissioned officer) brought along a field stove and later that evening, we fried up some spam and made sandwiches with the pan-de-leche.  As the spam was cooking, we heard some trampling in the bushes–soon, a couple of our students showed up, asking what it was they were smelling.  I asked why–they replied, “It smells GOOOOD!!”  Of course, being the good instructor I was, I told them I wouldn’t DARE corrupt their bodies with my delicious fried SPAM……….and my NCO and I promptly ate the last few sandwiches in front of them.  😉

Now, back to the important stuff…MUSUBI!

Musubi is a popular snack, not just on Guam, but in Hawaii as well.  Sometimes you’ll hear it referred to as Spam Sushi.

It’s made of a slice of spam that’s been grilled, then topped with rice and wrapped in nori seaweed wrapper.

I like to soak the fried spam in a sweet soy sauce mixture before assembling the musubi.  The sweet-saltiness of the spam takes this to a whole new level.

The photos below show my step-by-step process for making Spam Musubi.  If you’ve never tried it, now’s the time.

I just remembered ANOTHER story about Spam…one where I won a radio contest…but I’ll save that for another Spam recipe post.  In the meantime, make some Musubi.  Or, just fry up some Spam and serve it with hot white rice, fina’denne’ and some kimchi.  Mmm Mmm Good!

SPAM MUSUBI

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My OFFICIAL TASTE TESTER, my 11 yo daughter, Alyssa.  🙂

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Be creative!  You can make Musubi with any type of filling.  I used Chicken Kelaguen to make the musubi pictured below.

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Japchae (or Chapchae), Korean Stir-fried Noodles with Vegetables

I love Korean food.  Japchae is one of my favorites because it has noodles, beef, and a lot of my favorite vegetables like mushrooms, onions, carrots and spinach leaves.

During my first tour to Korea (I served there twice), I remember ordering Japchae and rice from the Korean place on base.  About 15 minutes after placing my telephone order, I’d listen intently for the revving of the Adashi’s moped as he tried to climb the hill to my BOQ (Bachelor Officer’s Quarters).  The sound of the overworked moped meant dinner was about to be served!

This is a quick dish to make, but as my former Korean nanny told me, there is an art to putting it together.  The ingredients must be layered, then gently mixed (by hand) to evenly distribute them without mashing anything.  This is how I make my japchae all the time–cooking each type of ingredient separately (the meat is cooked separate from the vegetables) then layered and mixed.  It is, after all, how Ajima did it, and that’s how it shall be done.

The japchae pictured below was actually cooked by my teenaged daughter.  She whipped it up so quickly that she forgot to take photos of the step-by-step process.

We WILL make this again, however.  When we do, I’ll be sure to take photos of each step and update this recipe.

Don’t let that stop you from making this dish.  It’s so easy–if my teenager can do it, so can you.  Give it a try.  I know you’ll like it.

ENJOY!

JAPCHAE

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INGREDIENTS:
  • 2 pounds beef, sliced thinly
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1/8 cup sugar
  • 6 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 1 small bag of carrots, pre-cut into strips (or 1 large carrot, julienned)
  • 1 medium onion, sliced
  • 1 package button mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 package shitake mushrooms, sliced (see note below)
  • 1 bag of fresh spinach leaves
  • 10 stalks green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 bag Korean vermicelli (sometimes called starch noodles, glass noodles or sweet potato noodles), called Dangmyun in Korean

This is what one brand of Dangmyun looks like:

dangmyung

I also use this brand a lot:

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NOTE:  If you’re using dried shitake mushrooms, soak them in a bowl of warm water until soft.  Squeeze all the water out of the rehydrated mushrooms then slice thinly.

 

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Fill a large pot half-full with water and bring to a boil.  Add the bag of vermicelli noodles.  Cook for 4 minutes or until the noodles are soft. Drain then place in a large mixing bowl.

2.  In a large pan or wok, place the beef, sugar, soy sauce and 2 tablespoons sesame oil.  Stir fry over medium heat until the meat is done.  Stir often to prevent scorching.  Remove the meat from the pan when it’s cooked through; place it in the large mixing bowl, on top of the noodles.  Leave any sauce or drippings in the pan.

3.  Add 2 tablespoons of sesame oil to the pan.  Add the carrots and onions.  Stir fry over medium heat until the carrots are slightly wilted and the onions have begun to caramelize.  Once done, remove from the pan and add to the mixing bowl, on top of the cooked meat.

4.  Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sesame oil to the pan along with both types of mushrooms.  Stir fry for a couple of minutes until the mushrooms have wilted and browned.  Add in the spinach leaves and green onions.  Cook for another couple of minutes, just until the spinach leaves have wilted slightly.  Remove from the pan and add to the mixing bowl, on top of everything else.

5.  Using your impeccably clean hands (I wear cooking gloves–you can buy this in any drug store; they’re the thin, plastic, disposable kind), mix all of the ingredients together.

6.  Do a taste test — if you think it needs more soy sauce or needs a little more sugar, add it in at this time, then mix some more.

7.  Serve as a meal, or alongside Korean BBQ Short ribs (or Galbi, in Korean).  Enjoy!

Japchae

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