KOREA A LA CARTESweet, sour, salty and spicy blend in an earthy cuisine

This is my original article that appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, February 21, 2001.

An elderly woman with slicked-back gray hair and pensive eyes crouches toward the earth in the backyard of a stately Midwestern home. She plucks the leaves from dandelions despite the wrath of the sun on this particularly sticky summer afternoon. After gathering a small bagful, she boils the greens, soaks them in water to extract the bitterness, cools them and adds copious amounts of minced garlic, slivers of green onion, a touch of sesame oil and soy sauce.

The resulting earthy concoction is no ordinary dish, and its creator certainly is no ordinary cook. The woman is my halmoni — Korean grandmother — whose enduring kitchen wisdom I now understand stemmed from having to make do with very little. Having endured the Japanese occupation and the Korean War, she learned to make tantalizing dishes with a few basic and often, rather wild, ingredients. The dandelions at my childhood dinner table, compliments of Halmoni, remain my most pervasive recollection of Korean cuisine.

I've been nuts about Korean food ever since my mother, a native of Seoul who met my American father during the Korean War, first fed me kimchi she'd rinsed off under the tap to protect my untrained tongue from the dish's hallmark piquancy. Throughout the course of my Indiana upbringing, steamed white rice and kimchi — the Korean national dish of fermented cabbage, garlic, green onions and crushed red chile powder — was as omnipresent at the dinner table as pot roast and mashed potatoes.

Korean cuisine, like meat and potatoes, is comfort food in its own right. But unlike most of the American dishes that bring us this comfort, Korean food is generally lighter and considerably lower in fat. A typical Korean meal is made up of rice, soup, meat and/or fish, various side dishes and poricha — roasted barley tea. Desserts generally consist of fresh fruit slices or shikhye, a sweet, refreshing rice drink.

"It's a very big meal so there isn't much room left for rich, sweet desserts, " says San Franciscan Hyun-Sun Kim, 27, who was born and reared in Seoul. "There's usually enough sweetness in the meal." The Korean meal is also colorful, laden with variety and never boring. In a single sitting, flavors are spicy, sweet, salty, bitter, sour and pungent.

"There's an expression we say in Korea," says Hyun-Sun. "Bap ee bo yawg ee dah. It means, 'Your meal is the best medicine.' "

BEAUTIFUL STREET FOOD

I got a personal dose of this culinary healing during a two-week maiden journey to Korea with my family last fall. Wherever we went — whether on the bustling boulevards of Seoul or along the rural back roads of coastal Kangnung — a distinct food culture loomed in our midst.

Street-side vendors peddled rolls of kimbap — seasoned rice and strips of vegetables swathed in dried laver (seaweed); ttok boki — rice cakes simmered in fiery red pepper sauce; and jap chae — stir-fried glass sweet potato noodles, meat and vegetables scented with sesame oil and garlic.

Along the eastern coast of Korea, fishermen had strung their daily catch of squid and mackerel out to dry like a fresh batch of wet laundry.

Elderly women, who reminded me of my late grandmother, were perched on the sidewalks selling roasted chestnuts, freshly harvested persimmons and gleaming yellow Korean melons, as well as virtually every ripened vegetable they could possibly muster from their gardens.

Around every corner, it seemed that locals had arranged precious red chile peppers to bask in the sun — a prelude to the kimchi-making season that kicks off in November.

FAMILY TRADITIONS

A centuries-old means of preserving vegetables and seafood during Korea's brutal winters, kimchi was traditionally packed into hangari, large earthenware jars, that were buried in the ground with just their tops showing. This process allowed the kimchi to ferment while staying cool. Families who lacked fresh vegetables during winter always had their coveted kimchi to sustain them until spring.

After visiting Korea, I realized that the Korean cooking I've enjoyed for years in Bay Area restaurants arrives at the table with a generous helping of authenticity.

These restaurants roll out the welcome mat with a tremendous variety of flavorful and unforgettable dishes that keeps both the adventurous and timid diner coming back for more.

At the popular Brother's Barbecue in San Francisco, cries of, "Osso useyo!" and "Annyeong haseyo!" (Welcome! Hello!) ring out across the dining room. Indicated by chopsticks wandering from dish to dish, Korean dining is family-style. Sharing is key.

Panchan — tiny side dishes that crowd a Korean dinner table — includes various types of kimchi, seasoned vegetables, fish and meat. Here's a typical line-up: she ghum che namul — spinach flavored with garlic, green onions, soy sauce and sesame oil; shredded daikon and carrot salad in sweetened rice vinegar; dried laver seasoned with sesame oil and salt; dried anchovies with slivers of jalapeno in hot red pepper paste; pan-fried tofu topped with the quintessential Korean garlic sauce; and fresh cucumber kimchi. Of course, the traditional, fermented-cabbage kimchi, which is served at every meal in Korea, always finds room on a table already brimming with plates.


DO THE ’CUE

What's hands-down unique about most Korean restaurants is that you can tend the barbecue at your table if you like. Replete with overhead exhaust fan, each designated table boasts a wooden charcoal pit insert that gives Korean barbecue its enticingly smoky flavor.

Out from the kitchen come heaping platters of kalbi (short ribs) and bulgogi (bite-size pieces of tenderized rib-eye), slathered in garlic, green onions, sugar, rice wine, sesame oil and other seasonings. Grab a lettuce leaf, add a dollop of steamed rice, a smear of gochu jang (hot red pepper paste) and a morsel of grilled meat, then roll up the resulting masterpiece and pop it in your mouth.

Kalbi jjim, braised beef short ribs, is a sexier version of American pot roast. The ribs are slowly simmered with ginger, daikon, potatoes, carrots, garlic, soy sauce and sesame oil. The resulting sweet, glazelike sauce complements the tender-at-the-bone rib meat. Brother's adds mushrooms and a sprinkling of chopped green onions, then garnishes the meat with strips of omelet.

For a hearty, less expensive and more casual meal, the younger, college-age crowd flocks to Arang, a Korean cafe near San Francisco's Japantown, with a menu and atmosphere similar to cafes in downtown Seoul.

It's fun to hover over steaming bowls of seafood bibimbap — a combination of rice, squid and vegetables cooked with red pepper paste and topped with a raw egg. Quench the fire with sips of ice-cold beer or soju, a potent Korean potato liquor that, in moderation, goes well with most Korean cuisine.

TO MARKET

With the exception of a few specialty items, the ingredients for a Korean feast of any proportion can mostly be found at your local grocer. Even in Pendleton, the cornfield-strewn Indiana hamlet where I grew up, my mother always had the makings of a full-blown Korean meal close at hand.

Among the assortment were two ingredients found in every Korean kitchen — toen jang, salty fermented soybean paste; and gochu jang, hot red chile pounded into a paste with sweet rice and soybeans. A dab of each goes the distance as a flavor starter for soups, stir-frys, salads and various main and side dishes.

Most Korean markets designate at least a couple of shelves to these veritable Korean bouillons, a cogent indication that no real Korean meal can be prepared without them. "They're the salt and pepper of Korea," my mother says.

Hyun-Sun, who from an early age cooked for her mother and has occasionally cooked with and for my own mother, agrees. "Korean food is not only about salt and pepper. It's about variety and the balance of all kinds of seasonings and flavors."

But my favorite morsel of advice has to be the instinctive turn of phrase uttered by Korean mothers and grandmothers to their offspring, whether all are sitting down to a meal in San Francisco, Seoul, Pendleton or Pusan. "Mahnee mogoyo!" — Eat a lot! The Korean meal is also colorful, laden with variety and never boring. In a single sitting, flavors are spicy, sweet, salty, bitter, sour and pungent.

TIPS FOR THE KOREAN TABLE

Understanding these Korean customs may make eating out at Korean restaurants more enjoyable.
Don't leave your chopsticks sticking in your rice because they resemble the sticks of incense used during traditional ceremonies honoring the dead. If you are taking a break during the meal or you're finished eating, lay your chopsticks flat across your bowl or next to it.

In Korea, water is rarely found at the dinner table, so Korean restaurants generally don't serve it unless requested. However, many restaurants will bring a steaming pot of poricha — roasted barley tea — when you sit down.

• Don't take it personally if servers at a Korean restaurant or workers at a Korean market don't flash you a smile. In Korean culture, smiling at strangers is considered overly forward.
• Do feel free to ask your server questions about the menu. Most are printed in both Korean and English, but don't often offer an explanation of what the dish is.
• Do request that the kitchen grill your meat if you're not in the mood to cook it at your table. It's your choice.
• Do be prepared to emerge from a Korean restaurant smelling like a barbecue pit.

A LITTLE KITCHEN WISDOM

Hyun-Sun and my mother have given me a few simple pointers that speak volumes about the heritage the three of us share. Among them:

• Blend ingredients with your hands to ensure thorough mixing. Wearing thin plastic gloves is an alternative if you don't want to get your hands messy.
• Taste constantly throughout preparation of a recipe.
• Avoid using sesame oil and rice vinegar in the same recipe.
• Before clicking on the rice cooker, let the rinsed, uncooked rice sit in its cold cooking water for 20 minutes.

KOREAN BARBECUE (BULGOGI)

Bulgogi literally means "fire beef,'' but most Westerners know it as Korean barbecue. One of the more popular dishes in Korea, bulgogi can be found on the menu at most Korean restaurants. Thin, tender slices of beef are marinated in a zesty concoction of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and other flavorful ingredients, and then cooked quickly over a hot charcoal grill at your table. Relatively easy to prepare at home, bulgogi is just as delicious sauteed or broiled. No matter what the method of preparation, bulgogi is an exceptional treat when rolled up in a cool red lettuce leaf with a spoonful of steamed rice and a smear of Korean hot red pepper paste. This particular recipe calls for chopped Asian pear, which helps to sweeten the marinade and aid digestion.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup Asian sesame oil
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 heaping tablespoon sugar or more, depending on taste
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon mirin (Japanese rice wine, see notes)
• Pinch of myulchi dashida (anchovy-flavor soup stock, see notes), optional
• 6 green onions: white portion finely chopped, green portion coarsely chopped into 1-inch slivers
• 1/2 small yellow onion, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
• 1/2 Asian pear, peeled, cored and chopped
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1 pound boneless beef rib-eye, thinly sliced (see notes)
• Steamed rice
• Large red-leaf or green-leaf lettuce leaves
• Gochu jang (Korean hot red pepper paste, see notes)

Instructions: Mix together the sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar and garlic in a medium-size bowl. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add the black pepper, mirin, myulchi dashida, green onions, yellow onion, pear and sesame seeds. Using your hands, blend together the meat and marinade in a glass bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Barbecue, broil or saute. Bulgogi cooks rather quickly -- just a few minutes on each side. The meat should be cooked through but not dry. Serve with steamed rice, lettuce leaves and hot red pepper paste. Serves 3 or 4.

Notes: Most Korean markets sell the proper cut of beef, but any tender beef good for stir-frying also works well. Mirin, myulchi dashida and gochu jang are available at most Korean markets. The calories and other nutrients absorbed from marinades vary and are difficult to estimate. Variables include the type of food, marinating time and amount of surface area. Therefore, this recipe contains no analysis.

SPINACH SALAD (SHE GUM CHE NAMUL)

Part of the intrigue of Korean dining is savoring the variety of panchan, or small, colorful side dishes, typically served before the main courses. This vibrantly hued spinach salad usually is part of the lineup. Sesame oil gives the blanched and cooled greens a slight smoky flavor, while minced garlic and green onions provide extra kick.

Ingredients:

• 2 bunches fresh young spinach, washed and trimmed (leave the pink stems intact)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
• 4 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• Salt and pepper, to taste 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Instructions: Blanch the spinach in a large pot of boiling water for about 5 seconds. Drain and rinse under cold water until cool. Squeeze out the excess water and cut into 6 generous chunks. Set aside in a medium-size bowl. Mix together the garlic, green onion, sesame oil, soy sauce and sugar. Using your hands, thoroughly blend the sauce with the spinach. Taste, and add salt and pepper as needed. Sprinkle with the optional sesame seeds. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. Serves 2 or 3.

Per serving: 60 calories, 6 g protein, 9 g carbohydrate, 1 g fat (0 saturated), 0 cholesterol, 364 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.

STIR-FRIED SQUID IN SPICY SAUCE (OJINGO BOKEUM)

Sweet heat is the hallmark of this intensely flavorful dish. Gochu garu (Korean ground hot red pepper) and gochu jang (Korean hot pepper paste) are the quintessential ingredients here. The former comes in two varieties: crushed (for stews and soups) and powdered (for kimchi and salads). This spicy stir-fry is delicious served with steamed rice, which also happens to help tame the heat. Although the dish is intended to be extra piquant — some Korean cooks even add a few slices of jalapeno — you can easily make the dish milder by reducing the amount of red pepper powder and hot pepper paste. Both gochu garu and gochu jang are available at Korean markets.

Ingredients:

• About 1 pound squid, cleaned and skinned
• 4 or 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, stemmed, deribbed and sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, deribbed and sliced
• 1/2 yellow onion, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon gochu garu (crushed Korean hot red pepper)
• 2 tablespoons gochu jang (Korean hot pepper paste)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger juice
• 1/2 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 large green onions, chopped
• Salt, to taste
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

Instructions: Using a sharp knife, cut the squid into 2 x 1/2-inch strips. Set aside. Using your hands, blend together the garlic, carrots, bell peppers, yellow onion, soy sauce, crushed red pepper, pepper paste, sugar, ginger juice and sesame oil. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the vegetable- and-spice mixture and cook until it bubbles and the carrot has softened. Add the squid and green onions and cook just until the squid turns bright white. (Squid cooks quickly so be careful not to overcook, or it will be tough and chewy.) Season with salt. Transfer to a serving dish and top with sesame seeds. Serves 4.

Per serving: 180 calories, 15 g protein, 14 g carbohydrate, 7 g fat (1 g saturated), 198 mg cholesterol, 313 mg sodium, 2 g fiber.

CUCUMBER KIMCHI

Kimchi, whose literal translation is "pickles,'' is by far Korea's most famous food. This fermented vegetable side dish — typically made with cabbage, cucumbers or daikon radish as a base and intensely seasoned with hot red pepper and garlic — is served at every Korean meal. Kimchi, whose interaction with the palate runs the gamut from lightly sweet to salty to sour to bitter to pungent, comes in more than 100 varieties. Kimchi preparation was developed centuries ago in Korea as a way to preserve vegetables and seafood during harsh winters. Koreans would prepare the kimchi in the fall and pack it into hefty earthenware urns (hangari) that were buried in the ground. Today, many Koreans still prepare their own kimchi, while others opt for the extensive variety available at most Korean markets. Some kimchi tastes better after it has been aged for several days, but here is a simple recipe that's best served immediately.

Ingredients:

• 4 pickling cucumbers (the smaller the better), skin on, cut into semi-thick wedges
• 1/2 large carrot, peeled and trimmed, cut into thin wedges
• 1 heaping teaspoon salt
• 3 green onions, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• About 4 thin slices of yellow onion (optional)
• 1 teaspoon gochu garu (powdered hot red pepper), or to taste
• 1 teaspoon gochu jang (hot red pepper paste), or to taste
• 1 heaping teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons Japanese rice vinegar (preferably Mitsukan brand)
• Toasted sesame seeds

Instructions: Combine the cucumbers and carrot in a large mixing bowl; add the salt and "massage" it in by hand. Set aside for 30 minutes. Taste the cucumbers. If they're too salty, rinse under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Mix together the green onions, garlic, yellow onion, gochu garu, gochu jang, sugar and vinegar. Using your hands, blend this mixture thoroughly with the cucumbers and carrot. Top with a sprinkling of sesame seeds. Serves 4.

Per serving: 61 calories, 3 g protein, 14 g carbohydrate, 0 fat, 0 cholesterol, 2,902 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.

SEAFOOD & VEGETABLE PANCAKES

This savory treat is usually accompanied by a simple dipping sauce made from soy sauce and rice vinegar. The pancakes, as colorful as they are good tasting, could also work as a substantial lunch or dinner main course, accompanied with steamed rice, soup and panchan (Korean side dishes).

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Korean pancake mix (buchim garu, see note)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 bunch green onions, trimmed and cut into fourths
• 2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 zucchini, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, deribbed and thinly sliced
• 2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced (optional)
• 1/2 pound medium-size cooked shrimp, rinsed, tails removed, halved
• 1/2 pound squid, rinsed well, cleaned and skinned, then cut into small chunks
• 1 egg, beaten
• Dipping Sauce (see recipe)

Instructions: Combine the pancake mix, salt and pepper in a medium-size bowl. Slowly whisk in the water until the batter becomes smooth (the consistency of pancake batter). Cover and set aside. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Ladle about 1/2 cup of the batter into the pan to create a rough-edged, 5 inch-diameter pancake. Once the pancake starts bubbling around the edges, arrange vegetables and seafood on top, followed by 1 tablespoon of the egg. Cook until the underside is golden brown, then flip the pancake, reduce heat to medium-low and fry for 4 to 5 minutes, until cooked through. Transfer the pancake to a paper towel-lined platter. Continue with the remaining batter, vegetables, seafood and egg. Serve the pancakes warm with dipping sauce. Yields 6-8 pancakes; serves 4.

Note: Buchim garu is available at most Korean markets. It is a simple blend of wheat flour, sugar and salt. You may substitute bleached all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon sugar for similar results.

Per serving (without dip): 410 calories, 29 g protein, 58 g carbohydrate, 7 g fat (1 g saturated), 264 mg cholesterol, 765 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.

DIPPING SAUCE

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon minced green onion
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and mashed
• 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (optional)
• Small pinch gochu garu (powdered hot red pepper), optional

Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and blend thoroughly. Serve with Seafood and Vegetable Pancakes. Serves 4.

Per tablespoon: 9 calories, 1 g protein, 2 g carbohydrate, 0 fat, 0 cholesterol, 515 mg sodium, 0 fiber.

BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIBS (KALBI JJIM)

This is a comforting, cold-weather dish, whose intoxicating aromas leave mouths watering. Meaty short ribs are slowly simmered with ginger, garlic, daikon, soy sauce and other ingredients until a rich and flavorful glaze emerges, and the meat is fall-from-the-bone tender. It takes a little while to cook, but this wonderful one-pot dish is definitely worth the wait.

Ingredients:

• 6 dried red dates (see note)
• 2 pounds cross-cut beef ribs, bone in, cut in 3-inch-long pieces
• Cloves from 1 head of garlic, peeled
• About 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped peeled fresh ginger
• 1 daikon radish, peeled, trimmed, quartered lengthwise and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 cups mirin (Japanese rice wine)
• 2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
• 2 carrots, peeled, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 yellow onions, chopped in large chunks
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
• 3 green onions, finely chopped
• 2-egg plain omelet, cooled, cut into thin strips
• Soak the dates in bowl of hot water for 1 hour. Drain and set aside.

Instructions: Soak the ribs in a large bowl of cold water to remove blood and excess fat. Continue rinsing the meat and soaking until the water becomes clear. Bring a large soup pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the meat and boil for about 10 minutes, skimming off the foam that comes to the top. Once the foam subsides, drain the meat in a colander and rinse it thoroughly under cold water. Return the meat to a clean pot and add the garlic, ginger, daikon, mirin, sugar and enough cold water to cover the meat and daikon. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour. Add the potatoes, carrots, yellow onions, soy sauce and dates to the pot. Increase the heat to medium, and cook, uncovered, for about 1 hour, until the meat is tender, the potatoes and carrots are soft and the liquid is slightly thickened. Just before serving, add the sesame oil and green onions. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with the omelet strips. Serves 4 or 5.

Note: Found in Korean markets.

Per serving: 520 calories, 22 g protein, 60 g carbohydrate, 12 g fat (5 g saturated), 129 mg cholesterol, 1,726 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.