Infinite Seoul - Missing Seoul!

Victor Kim in front of King Sejong @ Gwanghwamun (Seoul)

I am missing Seoul not that I was outgoing or hitting parties etc. but the sense of freedom, safety and an atmosphere to enjoy bits and pieces of Seoul make me Seoulsick! I found "myself" or let us say "my soul" in Seoul, South Korea. I have to admit that I am indebted to Korea enormously.

Some of my lifes' best experiences took place here. I finished my graduate studies here. I taught at a university here. I got my best compliments here and the list is endless. I have to admit that every moment in the last ten years has been worthwhile. The upside of living in Seoul was that I came across different forms of arts that enriched me. Music and dance plays an important role in Korea at all levels and are creating waves. I was introduced to BBoys and the hip-hop culture on the streets of Seoul about 9 years ago. Since then, it never ceased to amaze me. If I have to name one country that is the best when it comes to hip-hop dancing  -  my reply will be: Korea. Korean Bboys are fantastic and some of the most memorable and excellent performances I have come across in my life - are from Korea.

In the US, Jay Park (Park, Jae-baum/박재범) and Victor Kim are two famous names - who have earned the respect as Bboys and are darn good at it . They have made their way in Korean pop culture and have been doing good in music as well. When they dance, it seems like they don't have any bones in their body.

Jay Park and Victor Kim visited Seoul, on the invitation by Korean government last year around this time, to participate in Fever Seoul - in which there was the Bbpy dance battle amongst the performers- actually Korea versus the Rest of the World.  I have to say that the local Bboys scene in Korea is truly competative and as everybody knows , for Korean performers, there is a cutthroat competition to get to the top. They proved to be the world's best - some are even better than two dancers I mentioned above.

Here is a video where Jay Park alongside other crew memebers is performing in Seoul at the famous tourist spots such as Cheongyechon, Gyeongbokgung, Myongdong, Seoul Tower and Han River etc. :

Victor Kims's practicing the moves can be seen here:

Some local BBoys from Korea can be seen here(partcipating in Monster Jam 2011)...they are a treat to wach!

All the performances are very entertaining and my tip is that if you visit Seoul don't miss a BBOYS performance.

Bboys battle in Gwanghwamun, Seoul for Fever Seoul, held in 2010 in which world's top Bboys battled aganist the Korean Bboys, a move by Korean government to give recognition to their very own BBoys and at the same time using soft power of branding Korea very successfully.

Some of the top finalist of Fever Seoul were
Bboy Yoriyas (Morocco)
Bboy Bruce Lee (Korea)
BboyAtomic Goofball (USA)
Bboy Redo (Netherland)
Bboy Drama (Italy)

Learn Korean Cooking!

Seoul Global Center's Itaewons- Hannam Global Village is organizing "Korean Cooking Classes together with a Field Trip"...Don't miss the opportunity and join this class. Participants will learn 10 dishes from desserts to royal cuisine.

The classes will be every Tuesday 10am-1pm from October 18th to November 29th, starting with the market tour on the 18th. There is 70,000 won participation fee for all 7 sessions. To register and for more information please contact:
itaewon@sba.seoul.kr or 02) 2199-8884

LOK VIRSA FESTIVAL IN ISLAMABAD (Oct 7- 16, 2011)

Pakistani handicrafts, culture and its heritage can be fully experienced at the Lok Virsa Festival in Islamabad at Shakar Puryan - across from Zero Point.

This is one of those festivals for which I had to wait desperately for an entire year. It never disappointed me. I have so beautiful memories of Lok Virsa and of going there with people - who are no more with us. I am feeling extremely fortunate that I can visit Lok Virsa this year...last time I was able to go there was when I was living in Islamabad - many years ago.

While visiting Lok Virsa don't forget to visit the museum that is also located in the area and is one of the coolest efforts to get to know Pakistan - a little better.

Lok Virsa has one whole week and will come to an end on October 16th. 2011.

Artisians from all over Pakistan are invited and it is full of beautiful handicrafts and souvenirs from Pakistan. Live music and food is another attraction. Now that people do NOT have much of a choice to go outing with their families and all they do is watch TV ( being couch potatoes) - I'd suggest them to definitely go there and enjoy your day. For kids and also for many of us adults - it can be an educational and fun experience.

For more information visit the website of LOK VIRSA.

Mackerel from Andong (안동고등어)

I cooked Andong Mackerel or Kodong-au (고등어) this week. It was my first time to cook it myself, usually I go out in a restaurant to eat seafood. It turned out great. Nevertheless, my room was smelling like a fish for a few hours - gosh!

Andong is famous for many things such as its centuries old traditions that are still well kept in many ways, Hahoe Maeul(UNESCO: World Cultural Heritage site), Mask dance festival, Food : Andong jjimdak and Andong Soju. I spent 3 days in Andong for the famous Mask Dance Festival (2002) and it was my first trip outside Seoul. It is indeed one of the most memorable and exciting ones in Korea thus far .

Now back to the fish, Andong's Mackerel is also very famous ...and compared to the fish in other countries, here fish smells a little too fishy/it's smell is quite strong but it tastes great too...somebody told me that maybe, I am used to freshwater fish rather than the seawater fish...so I feel that way, anyhow!

The pic. below is of 고등어 (Mackerel)
Salted Mackerel is washed thoroughly in vinegar water ( add 2-3 table spoons of vinegar in bowl of water).
 
My recipe was simple (see pictures) and tasted very good. Entire preparation and cooking time took 20 minutes. I have to say that I don't have a kitchen and most of the things I cook either go into the microwave, toaster oven or a small hotplate that is solar powered, hence, I have limitations but I only cook what I really crave for, thank God!

Pieces on the right side were fried whereas, on the left, used in a soup!

Here, I have to thank my neighborhood farmer friends - who have always provided me with fresh supplies of their farms -picked up just before cooking - totally free of cost, have no words to express my thanks to them. These farmers and their families are a fantastic company - a much needed change, I really want in my life and also a window to Korean farming communities of Unjeong Dong - a 300 years old small village which is now nestled between hightech Pangyo(a solar-powered neighborhood with the first wi-fi neighborhood in Korea from 2012) and Bundang, why I mentioned here coz, I used their redleaf lettace!

1. Sprinkle salt, red chillie flakes (or Tandoori masala: if available), cumin and rub it with garlic paste (more the better) and fry in olive oil.

2. Add in a few slices of onion and garlic along with fish, so they fry together.

3.Fry both the sides and serve with a bowl of rice or bread (pita etc.)

4. Wrap a piece of fish, a spoon of rice and squeeze lemon and fold it in a lettace leaf and eat!

Note:

- Wrapping fried meat,(chicken, fish), rice and red pepper paste or with lemon juice in a combination of lettuce and sesame leaves gives a very nice taste to the dish ~ it can be called lettuce wraps or ssam.

- Korean Lettuce wraps: a very traditional way of eating Korean BBQ by folding it in assorted lettuces/sesame leaves and kimchi + side dishes(반찬), the process is called ssam and this is a good way of eating meat of any sort!

TAKOYAKI ( たこ焼き): A Japanese Snack!

Takoyaki-(たこ焼き)-타코야끼- is one of my favorite snacks from Japan which is very popular in Korea. It is a fresh baked squid or octopus muffins (in shape of a ball - eatable ping pong balls) topped with a very tasty sauce. I think it is the most renowned among the Japanese snacks outside Japan. They are crispy from the outside and are hot and soft from inside.

The invention of Takoyaki was inspired by Akashiyaki - a street vendor named Tomekichi Endo in Osaka, 1935. It was first enjoyed as a popular dish in Kantai and then was introduced to Kanto and other areas.

Takoyaki can be purchased in many street food stalls and in takoyaki specialty restaurants and eateries especially in Jongno and Myeongdong area and usually near the schools. We had a permanent Takoyaki Truck outside Bokwang Dong , on the road heading to German Embassy near Capital Hotel in Itaewon.

One can learn to make this from a very interesting youtube video at the end of the post!


Last night, I saw this guy near Pangyo, it is quite rare!

I requested him to come here every day but I think that's not possible since shop owners running snack shops won't like his presence that would attract clients.

For more information on this particular franchise "WANGTAKO" one can visit their website and can buy the ingredients or tools used, right here in Korea. It is a very elaborate site but the only problem is that it is in Korean only. ;-(

Through their website, I found out that it takes only a 1000$ (USD) to set up this business and the most expensive of all is the tray in which we prepare Takoyaki - which is 300$ (USD). I guess I must ask Takashi- a long time friend from Kyoto to get me a small, easy to use tray-for personal use!

I am already full with ideas of even making "hodeok - kwaja" or Korean freshly baked walnut cookies in this this... ;-)

If you are looking for halal snacks on the streets of Seol, then this particular snack is 100% halal. Try it, I'm sure that you will love it.

A LUNCH IN NORRKOPING

I am missing the Swedish lunch - price for students was about 15$(USD) and we had a buffet option (this price was after getting 15% off for students)- with 4 different types of soups, 10 main dishes, a lot of salmon, salads, fruits, desserts - pie or cakes...with a syrup to pour on them...mouth watering..unfortunately, I lost my pictures...but the mouth watering food is still fresh to my mind...ahhhhhhh!!


This was my first lunch in Sweden and after getting so full - it was so hard keep up with the lectures/classes afterwards...really wanted to doze off.



Salad Bar: Ate there a few times and it was great!!!

Korea: Food

Salad with roasted sesame!

Nan Mix: Korean style ( I failed somehow with the nan project but the curry mix was great!).  A Korean food blogger has done a great job here with this mix. I have to say that this mix is NOT enough for one person. I need about 2 of these packs to be full and satisfied and ready for siesta.

Moong Dal (Moong - Lentil Soup)

Dal (Lentils(this is moong) with a tarka of onions, dry (whole) red pepper and cumin seeds.

5 Minutes Stir Fry

Stir fry topped with lemon, oregano and seasoning mix.

Pakkoray ( potatoes and spinach fritters; Cooking time: 15 minutes)

Pasta and sauce made with home grown /organic tomatoes given by a farmer in the neighborhood. My farmer friends in Seoul have provided me with the best produce of the country, the year round and I'm thankful to them.

Iced Apricot drink (Maeshil cha)!

Cooking comes handy and takes me 10 to 30 minutes to come up with any of the dishes pictured above or almost anything except for dal (lentils) - which, if we start from scratch, here it means- soaking, boiling and the whole process- it is a half day labor ( without pressure cooker use)! This dilemma led to rely on red/white canned beans and chickpeas - easily available in the stores in Korea!

Whoever misses home-made meal, pick up a knife, chop and fry...this is al it takes and is a good change too, once in a while.

Peppers

Almost everyone's touched by the presence of peppers in their life at one point or the other, for all the different reasons.

I had no idea that New Mexico State University has a full fledged 'The Chile Pepper Institute'(CPI) dedicated to everything pepper! As they say: "their research can be hot and cool at the same time". The CPI is an international nonprofit organization devoted to education, research, and archiving information related to Capsicum. Since its inception in 1992, it has been a recognized research institute in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences.

I would like to share some info on chile peppers here:

Origin
Chili peppers originated in the lowlands of Brazil as small red, round, 'berry-like'
fruits. This location called the ‘nuclear area’ has the greatest number of wild species of chile peppers in the world today. Scientists believe that birds are mainly responsible for the spread of wild chile peppers out of this ‘nuclear area.’ Over the centuries birds developed a symbiotic relationship with chile peppers. Birds do not have the receptors in their mouths that feel the “heat” and a birds digestive system does not harm the chile pepper seed. So while birds could go around gathering up the small fruits and consuming them with no adverse effects, dispersed seeds would grow into new plants.

Types
There are five domesticated and 25 known wild species of chile peppers. The domesticated species include annuum, chinense, frutescens, baccatum, and pubescens. C. annuum, has the greatest number of varieties and contains the New Mexican pod type, jalapeño, bell pepper, cherry, poblano, and hundreds more pod types. C. chinese has the habanero and scotch bonnet, while C. frutescens has the famous Tabasco. C. baccatum are the South American ‘aji’s’ while C. pubescens is the ‘Rocoto’ and ‘Manzano’.

World's Hottest Chile Ever
It is grown in the UK, that is a bit surprising for me. They say that it is like putting a red hot coal in mouth. to read the whole story click on the title of the post.

Spelling of this Fiery Hot Pepper
1-The Oxford English Dictionary refers to the word chilli as the primary spelling.
2-This word is spelled both with a single and double L's.
3-Today, the common variations are: ‘chile’(New Mexico made it a law to spell it this way), ‘chili’, ‘chilli’, and ‘chile’.
4-I personally think that there is no hard and fast rule to spell these peppers and so if anybody wants to use something else just go ahead.

To dig in more:
http://www.chilepepperinstitute.org
photo credit@ msadinit and sarah

10 Minutes Meal...

.....yes and yet HEALTHY!

It never took more than 10 minutes. Cost a fraction of what you'd pay at a restaurant in Seoul. A simple cup of noodles at 7 Eleven here costs about $2 US.

It is great that I like Kimchi and on top, I have always got a regular supply of homemade Kimchi(Korean pickle) by my friend's mothers which of course is different in taste, texture and quality. The ones served in university cafetarias' are nothing but an unbalanced combination of salt, red pepper powder and cabbage.

Quality of food served at a restaurant can be determined only by the quality of Kimchi served there. If they are not serving a good Kimchi then it means that they can NOT serve a good meal!

Food during heavy Snowfall

Hot soups and the side dishes ward off cold!

Kalbi Thang & Aal Thang - back to back!

Hot soups and the side dishes ward off cold!

This picture was taken on a very/snowy/cold day. This food really brought us back to senses..

The restaurant from the outside

Aal Thang and grilled pollock with lemon and ginger pickle along with sidedishes