RAMYEON IN SEOUL:라면

HODEOK @ NAMDAEMUN

Halal in Namdaemun Market

This kebab place is in Namdaemun at main street towards Namsan. The main road goes straight to Seoul station.

On the really opposite side a man sell rolls with glass noodles (chapchae) and vegetables, don't miss him out. It's also delicious with hot n spicy taste and is halal.

List of "Korean Food" or HANSHIK that is HALAL in Korea

I thought I should put up a list of Korean food or Hanshik (한식) that Muslims in particular can eat at "any restaurant" across the length and breadth of South Korea. This list includes dishes that are served with seafood in it or are simply composed of rice and vegetables or noodles and vegetables. By the way, just to be on the safe side you can tell restaurant manager that: Gogi um-mou-go yeo! (I don't eat meat/ 저는 고기 안 먹어요).

You do not have to look around the halal food restaurants because it is obviously difficult. NOT all neighborhoods offers halal food . It's better that you stick to Korean food that falls within the confines of halal food and there is plenty to choose from. I've short-listed Zen Kimchi's list  here and have made some additions as well.

Korea Tourism website has a very informative page on Korean food so check that out here.

Main Dishes being served in a Korean Restaurant 

Buddhist Temple Cuisine (entirely vegetarian)
Jeon (Pancake) or  Pajeon (Green Onion Pancake)
Yachae Gimbap (Seaweed Rice Rolls)
Bibimbap (Mixed Rice and Vegetables)
O-jingo Bokkeum Bap (Spicy Squid Stew served with Rice)
Boribap (Mixed Barley Rice and Vegetables)
Sundubu Jjigae (Soft Tofu Stew)
Haemul Sundubu Jjigae
Juk (porridges of differnt kinds), Jeonbok Juk (Rice Porridge with Abalone)
Kimchi Jjim (Braised Kimchi with Tofu) 
Lotteria’s Shrimp Burger 
Lotteria's Squid Burger in spicy flavour 
Sae-u Kang (Shrimp Flavored “Fries”)
Doenjang Jjigae (Fermented Bean Paste Stew)
Ddeokbokki (Chewy Rice Cakes in Spicy Sauce)
Mae-eunTang (Spicy Fish Soup)
Nakji Bokkeum (Stir-fried Baby Octopus, I got very sick eating this and then never ate it again.)
Dolsot Yachae Bibimbap (Mixed Rice and Vegetables in a Sizzling Stone Pot)
Dolsot Chamchi Bibimbap (Mixed rice with tuna and vegetables in a stone pot)
Saengseon Gui (Korean-style Grilled Fish served with rice ad side dishes)
Hui Mul (Korean style Sashimi)
Haemultang (Seafood Soup)
Naengmyeon (Chilled Noodles)


Side Dishes (Banchan), Desserts, Snacks or Drinks

Myeolchi Bokkeum (Stir-fried Anchovies)
Odeng/Eomuk (Street-side Fish Noodles)
Hoddeok (Stuffed Street-side Pastries)
Beondegi (Silkworm Larvae)
Golbaengi (Sea Snails)
Jangeo Gui (Grilled Eel)
Sae-u Sogeum Gui (Salt Grilled Shrimp)
Deodeok Root
BindaeDdeok (Mung Bean Pancake)
Ttuekim
Dotorimuk (Acorn Jelly)
Patbingsu (Shaved Ice and Red Bean Treat)
Gyeran Jjim (Steamed Egg)
Corn Ice Cream
Songpyeon (Stuffed Chewy Rice Cakes)
Shikhye (Sweet Rice Punch)
Any product with Green Tea in it
Baek Kimchi (White Cabbage Kimchi)
Mul Kimchi (Water Kimchi)
Oi Sobaegi (Stuffed Cucumber Kimchi)
Ggakdugi (Cubed Radish Kimchi)
Sae-u Jeot (Salted Tiny Shrimp)
Myeongran Jeot (Salted Pollack Roe)
Ssamjang (Mixed Soybean and Pepper Paste)
Yachae Ramyeon (Vegetable Ramen Noodles)
BungeoBbang (Goldfish-shaped Stuffed Pastry)
GeJang (Raw Fermented Crabs)

Hanyang University Opens Halal Food Court

Photo Credit: Hanyang University

Hanyang University located in Seongdong-gu Seoul-si opened a Halal food court on the second floor of Students’s Hall (학생회관) on March 7.

Among the university’s 2,000 international students, approximately 80 are Muslims. This number is still growing, but there are only a few types of food they can eat. Hence, Hanyang University decided to open a Halal cafeteria on campus.

Halal food is available at the cafeteria every Tuesday and Thursday and the price per meal is around 4,500 won. The Halal food court is open to everyone, even if they are not a student of the university.

More info


☞ Address: Hanyang University, Students’s Hall 2F, 110 Sageun-dong Seongdong-gu Seoul-si (222 Wangsimni-ro)
☞ Time: Every Tuesday and Thursday
* Please note that since the food court has only opened recently, they currently prepare food for about 200 people a day until they can properly estimate the demand. So far, the food has mostly sold out during lunch time.
☞ Price: 4,500won
☞ Homepage: www.hanyang.ac.kr (Korean, English, Chinese)
☞ Directions: Hanyang University Station (Seoul subway line 2) Exit 2
☞ Inquiries: +82-2-2294-9181 (Korean)

 

Source 

Halal Shrimp Mandu at Dongdaemun History and Culture Museum

These mandu were really tasty and most important of all, halal and I had 2 serving (16 mandu) and udong too.I could'nt finish udong though.
This place is right behing the mall "Migliore" - at the back street and you have to  take exit 12 of Dongademun History and Cultural Museum.
For the most part, every mandu that you see in stores has pork. In Korea, it's unheard of not to add mandus.

Halal Food in Korea: Pizza School

 

Pizza is one of the most loved and liked meal in the world. Korea has all sorts of Pizza chains from Mr. Pizza to Dominos and Pizza Hut etc. Amongst them is Pizza School which appeared in 2007 and life has become much easier in terms of grab-and-go-sort of meals. Pizzas in Seoul used to sell for about 25USD or 25,000 won (medium size and hardly enough for 2 people) which was obviously very expensive but that isn't the case anymore. Pizza School gave an option of an economical yet tasty  pizza.

Most important of all, their outlets are found in every single neighborhood, usually near schools. They are not located on the main streets but instead, one has to go backstreets to find this chain.

If someone is strict on eating only halal food then Pizza School can be one of places where you can go. They have a couple of choices such as: Cheese Pizza, Vegetable Pizza, Sweet Potatoes Pizza and Shrimp Pizza - ranging from 5,000 won for a basic cheese pizza and going up to 9,000 won for shrimp pizza. However, their most expensive pizza sells for 12,000 won only. In addition, if you know Korean language then ask the person at the counter to minus meat from the numerous pizza varieties that they offer. In this manner, you may have many choices.

If you are coming to Seoul or are visiting places other than Seoul, look for Pizza School for a halal food choices in Seoul. I'm not saying that it's the best pizza in the country however, it is good for the price. 

I wrote about this option so that the people who are new to the city or are living/traveling in budget must have an option.

Today's Menu: Chicken Tandoori Masala...

I think that I have tried almost every restaurant in Seoul that sells halal stuff. One such specialized area for Indian/Pakistani food is Itaewon. In good old days, I used to like the choices we had at Mogul restaurant - located behind Hamilton Hotel....established in 1988 by a Pakistani ... when Korea opened up to the world via Seoul Olympics. This place was always pricey but many of their dishes were fantastic and ambiance always great. With time, I found out that there were some really good chefs at some really small eateries around Itaewon but then not everything on their menu was up to the mark. Some dishes are good at one place and some are equally bad so ...one has to go through a trial-n-error process and they will find some of their favorite dishes. I have recently discovered this little place whose owner cum chef was the head chef of Mogul Restaurant for 22 years until he started his own place...which is down the road from Seoul mosques' main enterance. It is called Pak-Indo Restaurant....very small and modest but some dishes are great. I like their Tikka Masala, Seekh kebabs, Shami kebabs, Palak-gosht, Nans (roghni), samosa are "khasta"  - not like a stone that you can use for Intefadah and last but not the least, kheer! My friend liked their mango lassi and chai and qahvah !

Many a times,  after paying a hefty price and trying their food ...I regret eating out. Not that I love to cook but I'm left with no choice but to cook more often than not. For that matter, I'm happy that we have Foreign Food Mart(FFM), where I can find any ingredient, one would need in an Indian/Pakistani kitchen...no matter how typical it is. Actually, in the past one year, we in Seoul have been lucky to have yet another store called: National Foods. They own 2 shops - one is just across from FFM and the second store is across from Seoul Central Mosque.

Anyhow, so when I go out  - the biggest attraction for me is NOT the halal meat but the nans (tandoori nans).

Prices in Korea for Indian/Pakistani food starts from 10,000KRW for one serving (that means a plate of dal/meat/vege- it is considered very economical) to 40,000KRW.

If one choose to cook by themselves then the cost is much less and the quality is much better. My tragedy is that I simply can't prepare roti myself anymore in my kitchen which runs on solar energy with conduction stoves and that means breads are history. So I have got myself a replacement and that is tortillas. I have also tried frozen parathas and roti from Malaysia (4,000KRW for 5 pieces). One can buy a bag of forty tortillas from COSTCO or Foreign Food Mart for 11 to 12USD. It is a good alternative for a roti  that everyone must have in their fridge....just throw in whatever on it like raw veges/salad/cheese/egg and simply roll it and eat.

Back to my cooking: well, my chicken tikka masala was actually a failure...but still it tasted O.K. Originally, Tikka masala is a British-Indian dish created in Britain....but it is one of the dishes that sell a lot.

Food bloggers have so great photos and recipes to share but since my project failed and I don't take great picture so there you go.....all shame and failure aside, I will still do a post of Tikka masala since I tried and made a lot of effort despite having have fever.

What I did was: simply marinated the chicken in yogurt+chicken tikka masala powder +garlic and let it sit for an hour but overnight marination has better results. Finally, I fried onion and threw in my (not -so -grilled -but)  fried chicken pieces. Left it on slow cooking for 30 minutes....and that was all. I garnished it with ginger strips and mint.  It was good in taste but really wasn't what I had in mind.

Serve it with tortillas or rice.
You can roll it in the tortillas and add in fresh salad...that tastes great too!

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!