Isn't it Ironic?

I expected a lot of changes when my husband and I moved from Korea to the U.S. I knew that our lives here would be pretty different from the ones we led there. Some things I looked forward to—trading in my scooter for a car and being free to drive wherever I wanted to go, understanding and being understood by everyone, and no longer living in a student dormitory (the housing provided by the university I worked at). Other things I knew would be tough–like having to handle all of the household goings-on (bills, calling for things to be serviced, etc.) and helping my husband understand American culture. One thing that I didn’t count on as being so different was our “food life”. In Korea, we often ate out and I bought 반찬 from the supermarket and got 김치 from my mother-in-law. I worked split shifts and often didn’t get home until after 6:30 so we became regulars with the local restaurants that had a delivery service. On the nights that my husband didn’t eat at work or out with friends and I didn’t feel like cooking, we could easily order in a fantastic meal complete with side dishes. It was like affordable room service! When we moved to the U.S. the amount of cooking I had to do was overwhelming. My husband would rather eat a bowl of ramen than eat out anywhere in our town (except possibly the local sushi restaurant which I also love), but there is only so much ramen a person can (or should) eat.

The irony of it all is that it would have been so much easier to cook Korean food (like I do now) everyday while living in Korea, since things like 고추장 and 간장 were so much easier to get. Even less exotic ingredients like garlic were easier in Korea. There were huge bins of peeled garlic in the supermarkets which I never appreciated since I didn’t have to peel 2-3 heads every couple of weeks like I do now.

One good thing about this need to cook is that it has driven me to find a lot of great recipes for Korean food. I have 3 or 4 really good cookbooks and I use the recipes at koreankitchen.com frequently. I was never able to find a good 순두부 찌개 recipe, but once when I visited a friend, she was serving it for dinner. She told me how to make it and I frantically jotted down her directions. Of course, it’s not as good as the spicy tofu soup I had in Korea, but it’s the best I’ve ever had here (keep in mind that I do not live near a Korean restaurant). Here’s the recipe for anyone who’s interested (or desperate!):

Serves 3-4

1 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 Tbsp. gochu karu (red pepper powder)
½ mild onion (like Vidalia) sliced into strips
2 dozen (or so) medium size raw, peeled shrimp
1 ½ cups of anchovy broth (boil 10-12 dried anchovies in water for 10 minutes to make this; remove anchovies) or water
¼ tsp. dashida (beef broth granules)
2 containers of silken tofu
1 Tbsp. gochu jang (red pepper paste)
6 shitake mushrooms sliced (enoki mushrooms are also good)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1-2 scallions sliced diagonally

Put sesame oil, sliced onion, and gochu karu in a pot and lightly stir fry over medium heat. Add the shrimp and fry briefly.

Add the anchovy broth and dashida and bring to a boil.

Put in the silken tofu, gochu jang and mushrooms and bring to a boil again. Turn down the heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Add the beaten egg and scallions and cook briefly until the egg is cooked.

Remove from heat and enjoy with rice!

(I felt a little funny taking a picture of a pot of soondubu chiggae but doesn't it look yummy?)