HOW TO MAKE SOJU

HOW TO MAKE SOJU -Soju I think is the most popular wine in Korea. It is very abundant that you can find it from almost every food carts in the city of Seoul. I am not a drinker but I could observe that when the sun sets in the evening, many Koreans are gathering all around the downtown eating some food and drinking Soju. Brewing your own Soju is advisable because you can have the power of controlling the amount of alcohol and sugar content of your Soju according to your personal preferences. Making Soju is not that hard. All it takes is only  less than a month for the wine to be brewed completely. There are few things to remember when making Soju: First, when brewing, make sure the content is undisturbed to guarantee its higher alcohol content. Secondly, you can adjust the amount of sugar if you want to make it a bit sweeter than usual. Thirdly, you can add water to the finished product if you want to lower its alcohol content. Lastly, check for gas build-up in the container, if this happens, lightly open the lid to release the pressure. Here is the procedure:

                              

HOW TO MAKE SOJU

INGREDIENTS
water (cold)
1/2 cup Nuruk enzyme
1 regular pack beer yeast
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups rice

Preparation and procedure for brewing Soju
1. In a colander, put the rice and wash thoroughly with running water.
2. Transfer in a bowl and add the cold water. Soak for an hour.
3. Using rice steamer, steam the rice for an hour. Remove from steamer and let rest for 6 minutes.
4. Put the rice in a container with sealable cap. Add 4 cups of cold water, Nuruk enzyme and yeast.
5. Stir perfectly to dissolve yeast and nuruk enzyme. Put the cap and seal.
6. During the first 5 days, stir the mixture two times each day and put back the cap and reseal.
7. After the first five days, make sure the mixture is undisturbed until the last day of brewing.
8. After 25 days of brewing, the mixture is ready to be filtered.
9. Using a cheesecloth, filter the mixture to separate the wine from the rice.
10. Add sugar to the wine and stir until the sugar is perfectly dissolved.
11. And serve.

HOW TO MAKE SOJU

HOW TO COOK GALBITANG (KALBITANG RECIPE)

HOW TO COOK GALBITANG (KALBITANG RECIPE) -Galbitang or Kalbitang is a Korean soup with many variations which are made from beef short ribs. Onions and Daikons are the primary ingredients for this dish. Its name derived from Korean terms 'galbi' which means short ribs and 'tang' means stew. The technique in cooking this dish is slow cooking for a longer period of time that gives the dish a tasty soup and also makes the beef tender. In Korea, Galbitang is commonly served as main course, also served with rice and some grilled fish. Someone told me that Galbitang used to be a very fancy dish in 17th century that only the member of royal families could afford and eat. In Korea, this food is also served in many family occasions such as baptismal, wedding, birthdays and even family reunions. This dish is also commonly cooked with some noodles and vegetables like radish. I have seen many versions of this dish like from clear soup to ones with soy sauce in it. Galbitang is also one of the perfect foods to be eaten during winter and rainy season because the hot soup gives our body warmth. If you are a hot and spicy dish lover, then i suggest that you add some spicy ingredients to your Galbitang but you don't want it to be like that if there is little kid you expect to eat your Galbitang. As always, you can improve my recipe according to your taste and preference. Here is the recipe:

                                image source: wikipedia.org



HOW TO COOK GALBITANG (KALBITANG RECIPE)

Cook Time: 80 minutes
Yield: 4 servings



INGREDIENTS
32 ounce beef short ribs (cut into serving pieces)
1 small Chinese white radish (peeled and sliced into 1 inch thick)
100grams bihon noodles
1/2 tablespoon salt
2 scallions (sliced into thin pieces)
4 cups water

Sauce Ingredients:
6 cloves garlic (minced)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
4 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

PREPARATION AND COOKING PROCEDURE
1. Prepare the ribs by washing thoroughly with running water to get rid of blood.
2. In a bowl, combine together the sauce ingredients. Add the radish. Set aside.
3. In a pot, pour 4 cups of water, add the ribs and bring to a boil. When boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Remove the scum as much as possible.
4. Add the radish and sauce mixture and simmer for additional 5 minutes.
5. Add the noodles and simmer for additional 5 minutes.
6. Add the scallions and simmer for another 1 minute.
7. Transfer in individual serving bowls and serve.

HOW TO COOK GALBITANG (KALBITANG RECIPE)

HOW TO MAKE YEMA (RECIPE)

HOW TO MAKE YEMA (RECIPE) -Yema is a very delicious sweet custard candy which is very popular in the Philippines. This is one of the favorite 'pasalubong' of the Filipinos. Pasalubong is a Filipino term for going back home present. This gooey candy is made from egg yolks primarily combined with condensed milk and some butter. Making yema is not that difficult unlike what others think or say. I have tried many versions of this dessert and I discovered that you can make many versions of it. You can add vanilla sauce, maple syrup, apple sauce and many kinds of flavorings. I tried adding chocolate but I ended up adding coffee because my goal was to make my Yema more brownish, the outcome with chocolate was good though. If you are in the Philippines and you are going to ride a bus, many street vendors ride along and going to offer you packs of Yema candies. This candy is commonly wrapped with cellophane plastic but many makers use wax paper to keep the yema from sticking to its wrapper. We are not going to need sugar for this recipe because condensed milk is already sweet unless you want your yema to be more sweet than it is supposed to be. The price of this dessert is not expensive at all. A pack with 20 small pieces I think only cost 10 pesos or at least 20 pesos tops. Some of the preparations are different that you can even notice it from the texture. Some are as hard as the commercial candies and some are like very chewy. If you are having a family reunion, Yema would be perfect for desserts and also for going away present for your relatives. If you are a mother of small kids, this one is a good treat because kids love Yema, but I would like to remind you that tell your kids to brush their teeth after eating it because the sugar it contains will break the sugar into acid that can destroy their teeth if not brushed. Here is my easy Yema recipe:

 

  HOW TO MAKE YEMA (RECIPE)

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 20 small pieces


INGREDIENTS
1 regular size can of condensed milk
3 eggs (yolk is what we need, set aside the whites for other purposes)
2 teaspoon butter

MAKING YEMA PROCEDURE
1. Put the skillet over low heat.
2. Pour the condensed milk and egg yolks while stirring.
3. Add the butter. Continue stirring until the mixture thickens.
4. When the desired thickness is achieved, remove the skillet from heat.
5. Cut the plastic wrapper into 3x3 inch squares.
6. Scoop the mixture and roll it into a ball and wrap. Do the process for the remaining mixture.

HOW TO MAKE YEMA (RECIPE)

HOW TO COOK CURACHA (RECIPE)

HOW TO COOK CURACHA (RECIPE) -this dish is a traditional crab food popular in the province of Zamboanga in the Philippines. This dish is made of spanner crab also known as red frog crab which can only be found in the waters of Jolo, Sulu. Its name is a Chavacano term which is a dialect in the province of Zamboanga. The same dish is also called Kagang Pamah in Tausug. spanner crab is a genetically hybrid crustacean. This crab is red in color that stays that way even when cooked. The most common way of cooking Curacha crab is steaming or boiling to keep the flavors but there are some methods of cooking Curacha Curacha to make it more appealing and delicious. One of those methods is what we call 'adobo sa gata' which is cooked with coconut milk combined with garlic and ginger. Spanner crab is different from the common crabs that we know because most of its meat is found in its body, not in the claws. This recipe I am going to share with you is not very spicy so that most of you can adjust the amount of spices or you can add ingredients like chili to make it more hot and spicy. Here is the simple recipe for Curacha:

                               image source: biyahilo.blogspot.com

HOW TO COOK CURACHA (RECIPE)

INGREDIENTS
4 pieces curacha crab (about a kilo)
300ml coconut milk
4 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 bulb garlic (crushed)
1 thumb-size ginger (grated)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoon rock salt
red chili pepper (optional)

PREPARATION AND COOKING PROCEDURE
1. Prepare the curacha crab by washing it with running water thoroughly.
2. In a pot, put the crab first then Put the garlic, pepper, salt and ginger over the crab. If you want it to be more hot and spicy, you can add chili powder or grated raw red chili.
3. Pour the coconut milk and bring to a boil.
4. When the coconut milk boils, lower to medium heat then add the oyster sauce.
5. Simmer until the coconut milk becomes oily.
6. Remove from heat and serve with rice.

HOW TO COOK CURACHA (RECIPE)

HOW TO COOK DAK BAL (RECIPE)

HOW TO COOK DAK BAL (RECIPE) -it is a popular Korean dish made of chicken feet. Many people especially the Americans do not like the idea of eating it. They find it too disgusting to eat. This dish to me is not disgusting at all depending on how it is prepared. The best way to prepare the feet is to remove the fingertips, rinse with boiling water, then remove the outer layer of skin. The hot water actually keeps the outer layer of the skin from sticking to the main skin. That way, the feet is clean enough to be cooked. We do not eat chicken feet in America but I would like to point out that Korea has very different tradition from US and eating chicken feet is part of it. Like the Buldak, this dish is also prepared and cooked with the intention of making it hot and spicy. In Korea, this dish is also eaten accompanied with Soju or Beer. Dak Bal is easy to make. It does not require too many ingredients. Making the sauce hot is good enough. But what I am going to share with you is how to make Dak Bal in more appealing way so that I can still attract more people to eat this delicious food. Here is the recipe:

                               image source: eastmeetsmacon.wordpress.com

HOW TO COOK DAK BAL (RECIPE)

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:
30 ounce chicken feet
1/2 cup rice wine
6 tablespoon water
2 thumb-size ginger (grated)
1 small onions (minced)
6 tablespoon soy sauce
4 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoon hot chili pepper
3 teaspoon oyster sauce (I prefer Mama Sita's)
1 star anise bud
2 teaspoon sesame seeds (toasted)
boiling water

Preparation and cooking procedure:
1. Prepare the chicken by washing it boiling water.
2. Remove the fingertips and the outer layer skin (the yellow skin.)
3. In a pan, saute garlic and onion until golden brown.
4. Add the chicken feet and saute until the reddish color is gone.
5. Add the remaining ingredients except the sesame seeds.
6. Bring to a boil and simmer. Toss frequently until the sauce thickens.
7. Transfer in a serving plate, garnish with sesame seeds and serve with Soju.

HOW TO MAKE DAK BAL (RECIPE)