Kimchi Risotto

A rainy start to the work week, I wanted to create some new food content as a lot of you have been making several requests as of late. Plus, I've been going through a lot personally, and cooking has always been therapeutic, for me, at least. Eating well never sucks and having others enjoy the food I make results in me being happy, which also never sucks :) So let's talk about this wonderful recipe I tried out - it's nutty, buttery, and tangy with just the right amount of heat, and perfect for a chillier day like today... kimchi risotto! What the heck did I just say?!

Kimchi Risotto

photos by © Suzanne Spiegoski

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/2c Kimchi juice (squeezed from kimchi)

1/2 Kimchi (minced)

3c Vegetable stock

2Tbsp butter

2 Cloves garlic (minced)

1c Sushi rice

3-4Tbsp Gruyére cheese (grated with a microplane)

Directions:

1. Squeeze the juice out of the kimchi using your hands to make 1/2 cup of juice and then weigh out 100 grams of squeezed kimchi. Mince the kimchi.

2. Pour the vegetable stock into a pot and bring to a simmer over high heat. Turn down to low to keep warm.

3. In another pot, add the lard and garlic and saute until fragrant.

4. Add the minced kimchi and continue sauteing until the kimchi is translucent.

5. Add the rice and stir until the rice has evenly absorbed all the oil.

6. Add the kimchi juice along with a ladleful of hot vegetable stock and stir the rice until most of the water has been absorbed.

7. Continue adding vegetable stock a ladleful at a time and stirring until the rice is your desired consistency. You may not need all the stock.

8. When the rice is done, add the grated Gruyère and stir into the risotto. Serve immediately.

I know, initially the idea sounded a bit peculiar. Swiss cheese with kimchi and sushi rice? But the combination of flavors go wonderfully within this dish, and though I've made risottos in the past, I've never tried a fusion recipe of this kind before. And the results were sublime, I'll tell you! One of my favorite dishes is risotto, which would make sense given I'm such a rice girl. But the creamy warm flavors delight my taste buds, as I'm sure they do yours. I love a mean, mushroom risotto, but this kimchi risotto certainly takes the cake! The flavors are really all there, you don't even need to add salt! 

I normally use arborio or baldo rice when it comes to making risotto, but I found sushi rice to be an interesting type of rice to use in this fusion recipe. Though this recipe is derived from here, I did a bit of my own tweaking in terms of measurements and the different use in rice. You could also try using a different form of kimchi, such as turnip/radish, which would still bring the acidity into the risotto. I'd love to give a zucchini kimchi a go, what do you guys think about the sounds of that? 

Here are a few tips to achieving the ultimate risotto: Number one - the broth you use to mix the risotto should be very heat, it better cooks down the rice giving it that smooth, creamy goodness that should be when making risotto. Number two - you can use lard instead of butter should you want a more rich flavor but I like to eat pretty healthy (not that butter is any healthier lol), should you not want to use butter at all, you can try making it with coconut oil! And lastly, when it comes to making your own risotto, try to live a little on the wild side. Mix up the flavors, try something you haven't tried before. Get creative. After all, that's part of the fun when it comes to cooking, am I right or am I right? :) 

LOVE & XX'S,

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Ramen Breakfast Toast

Every now and again I come across a recipe that completely blows me away. Case in point: Cravings. Christine is a writer/food blogger with a talent in food photography as well. I'm always left inspired after visiting her work, but when I came across her ramen breakfast toast on Beautiful Cuisines on Instagram, I had to re-create it! I've never tried making ramen 'toast' and was extremely curious how this recipe would pan out, let alone how it would taste together with all the different flavors. And oh boy, let me just say - they invented #foodgasm specifically for this toast. 

First the latest food trend was all about rice buns, and now ramen toast. And I can understand why. All you need is some salt and eggs to coat the cooked ramen before frying it in a pan (individually) with a little bit of vegetable oil. It was not that difficult to make, though I will say that if you're not that confident at boiling eggs, just be sure to make extra for back-up. To get that nice, soft runny egg, time it at 6.5 minutes. But like I said, it depends on a lot of factors so just put a couple more eggs in for good measure. You'll be good to go!

Breakfast Ramen Toast

Serves 4
Recipe by: What Do You Crave

Photos by: Suzanne Spiegoski // Recipe by: What Do You Crave 

Ingredients:
2 packets instant ramen
4 eggs
Salt
Vegetable oil for frying
1 cup diced tomato
1 small jalapeno, minced
¼ cup diced red onion
1-2 Tbsp. sweet soy sauce*
1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
1 lime
1 avocado
Nori
Chili flakes, optional
Sriracha, optional

Directions:

Make the Ramen “Toast”
Cook ramen noodles according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cool water for about 15 seconds.
Whisk together two eggs with a little salt and carefully mix in noodles.
Divide noodles evenly into 4 ramekins or bowls. Use plastic wrap to press noodles into bottom of the bowls and help hold shape.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Make the Soft-boiled Eggs
Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil then reduce to a gentle simmer.
Carefully add in 2 eggs, one at a time, with a slotted spoon.
Cook for about 6.5 minutes for a soft, runny yolk and set white. Use a timer!
This takes practice to get right and sometimes you may find you need to adjust your cooking time to get it just right. I would recommend cooking a few extra eggs at different increments just to test it out.
Remove eggs with spoon and place into an ice bath to stop cooping process. Carefully peel and set aside until ready to use.

Prep your Toppings
Combine tomato, onion, jalapeno, ginger, and juice from half a lime in a bowl.
Add in 1 Tbsp. of sweet soy sauce and taste test before adding more. Not all soy sauce is created equal, some are saltier than others.
Mix to combine and set aside.
Slice avocado however you see fit and use the other half of the lime to prevent it from turning brown.

Cook “Toast” and Assemble
In a large non-stick pan heat a thin layer of vegetable oil over medium heat.
Carefully plop noodle “toast” out into pan. I’d do one at a time.
Cook for about 3 minutes on each side or until lightly crisp and golden.
Top each toast with nori, ¼ of the avocado slices, ¼ cup pico de gallo, and ½ of a soft boiled egg.
Serve with chili flakes or Sriracha and enjoy!

In the recipe there's a delightful homemade pico de gallo (I always manage to sting my fingers after chopping up jalapeños ha ha) with a nice heat to it. Adding thin layers of avocado brings a creamy buttery sensation to the mix. And the seaweed combined with the soft boiled egg? It's tastes a lot like regular ramen noodle soup, but without all the slurping and with varied textures. For more spiciness, add Sriracha sauce and red pepper chili flakes. I totally loved making this dish! And it's not just for breakfast, you can have this for lunch and dinner too!

I can't wait to do my own twist on the ramen breakfast toast. There's so many ways to make it! You could use kimchi, sausage, radish, and other breakfast-like toppings. So glad I was able to work with a recipe first that not only was had me try something new, but more especially, discovering new tastes in flavors. Thanks again, Christine for such an awesome recipe! I could have waited and done my own creation on this idea, but this one was too good not to share! To see more of Christine and her overall super star-ness, go check out Cravings now!

LOVE & XX'S,

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Kimchi Gazpacho

The long weekend is almost here! Hallelujah! What are your plans for Memorial Day? Going out of town? Vacay trip? Staycation? With the weather now warming up, especially here in New York, where the past couple of days have risen up to the near 90's, I created a new recipe suited for the start to summer! Now that it's getting hotter and the fact that I love soup, I did my own twist on one of my favorite summer soups, gazpacho.

One of my favorite strolls through the city is at the Union Square Green Market. They have everything from jams & honey to fresh farmer's fruit & vegetables, to even flowers, cheese, bread and wine. The works! I love going with the boys for a little quality time along with getting the best produce to cook with! And what's more awesome? They always got new herbs and veggies to work with, such as chive blossoms and red scallions, both of which I have yet to experiment with! I even saw fiddleheads!

Kimchi Gazpacho

Serves 2-3

recipe + photos by © Suzanne Spiegoski

Ingredients:
3 c chopped tomatoes (peeled and seeded)
1/2 c kimchi with juice (chopped)
1/2 c Kirby cucumber (peeled and chopped)
1 large garlic clove, chopped
3 tbs rice wine
salt & pepper to taste
Chive blossoms & red scallions, for garnish, optional

Directions:

In a blender, puree tomatoes, kimchi, cucumber, and garlic. Add rice wine, salt, and pepper. Taste for accurate seasonings. Chill. Pour into bowl(s), garnish, and serve immediately.

Using staple ingredients within a gazpacho such as tomatoes, Kirby cucumbers, onion, and garlic, I incorporated some Napa cabbage kimchi to give this chilled soup a bit of heat. Gazpacho is simple to make. Takes less than twenty minutes to prep and complete. Waiting for the soup to chill is the hardest part! I hate waiting to eat! Ha ha!

I've been wanting to elevate my dishes to another level and have been working on better garnishing my plates. To me, garnishes are vital when completing the look of a meal. In this case, gazpacho would look pretty bland without any decorative gems on top! So instead of using chives or green onion, I went for something completely different and totally out of my normal 'comfort' cooking zone. Never have I tried chive flowers, but now I've got a feeling I'll be sprinkling these onto everything!

LOVE & XX'S

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Gochujang Potato Pierogies

Monday's back with a vengeance and the weekend went by rather too quickly. My latest posts have been focused on Mother's Day and of course, my own Ma. As a last, final tribute to the woman who created me, and in reflection to celebrating life and mothers this week, I had to end it with some time spent in the kitchen, cooking... naturally. But what did I end up making?

I, for the longest time, have been wanting to create and (DUH) share with you guys this recipe I've been working on for a while now! In honor of my parent's heritages, (I'm Korean and Polish, with a slight chance of a little Ukrainian in there), I wanted to create a Korean fusion-inspired dish that not only reflects me but more so, both of my parents. So, I did a twist on the traditional pierogi and made the filling Korean-flavor based!

Gochujang Potato Pierogies

Serves 6 - 8

Ingredients:

Filling:

Photos and recipe by © Suzanne Spiegoski

5 medium potatoes
½ of an onion, chopped
1 clove garlic
4-5 TB gochujang (depending on spice preference)
1 TB brown sugar
1 TB honey
1 TB rice wine
3 TB soy sauce
1 TB sesame oil
1 tsp ginger, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Dough:

3 cups whole purpose flour
½ cup warm milk
½ to ¾ cup of warm water (depending on how much your flour soaks)
1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
A pinch of salt

Toppings:

2 green onion, chopped
sesame seeds
½ cup of sour cream
kimchi
2 tsp sriracha sauce
2 tablespoon of vegetable oil for frying

Up close & personal.

Directions:

For the filling:

1. Place potatoes, half of an onion, and garlic in a pot, cover with water and cook until tender
2. Once cooked, drain and use a hand blender or potato masher, so the potato mixture doesn't have lumps
3. Add gochujang, brown sugar, honey, rice wine, soy sauce, sesame oil, and ginger. Add salt & pepper, mix well. Should have a nice pinkish red color.

For the dough:

1. Pour the flour into large bowl
2. Add a pinch of salt
3. Make a little hole in a middle and start adding milk and butter
4. Add a little water at the time and work the dough until you can form a ball about 10-15 minutes
5. Once done, cover and rest for about 25 minutes
6. Roll the dough until thin (like pasta) and using either cookie cutter or large wine glass cut the circles (use wax paper to avoid a sticky, messy, clean-up!)
7. Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the middle of the circle
   Wet one-half of the circle with water (use brush or fingers) and then seal together
8. Use vegetable oil to fry pierogi on each side until golden brown

For the toppings:

1. Add onions and sesame seeds on top with pierogies and serve with sour cream (kimchi, sriracha sauce, & black pepper mixed in)
2. Enjoy immediately

The filling inside is mostly potato, but it's the spices that give the normal pierogi an extra punch of flavor. Consisted of gochujang (Korean red pepper paste), soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, rice wine, honey and sesame oil, these vibrant and authentic spices are sure to put a twist on any good old fashioned Polish dumpling!

Coming up this week on the blog, a new play on my editorial/fashion series! Since it's been raining nonstop this week here in New York City, we did a more moody-themed shoot and also shot indoors! Basically, I'm expanding more into moods and tones, and not just fashion. Trying to capture more feeling. I'm also looking into creating my next Soju cocktail! Stay tuned! I can't wait to upload! You can check out my latest cocktail here, which was also featured on foodgawker! Happy Monday, beautiful people! Let's get it! 😊🙌

LOVE & XX'S

FOLLOW MAQ + SUZ

Fried Green Tomatoes

Happy Friday, everyone! I'm so delighted to finally share a recipe it took nearly 20 years in the making! Ever since I was a little girl and saw, 'Fried Green Tomatoes', the movie (the book is entirely something else!), I've been obsessed with the idea of trying to make them. I've tried several variations of this Southern comfort food dish, but never in a Korean-fusion way! So, of course, I had to create my own version!

The first secret to the perfect fried green tomato? Bacon drippings. You know all the grease you get after cooking bacon in the pan/oven? Save that for this recipe! I'm serious! You can even freeze it in the freezer should you want to use it in the distant future. I put mine in a Mason jar and it's seriously what gives the tomatoes it's ultimate flavor. Second? Cornmeal. And yellow. It gives a better color than white cornmeal, in my opinion.

Photos + recipe by © Suzanne Spiegoski

Fried Green Tomatoes

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

1 medium green tomatoes (per person)

Batter:
3/4 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c yellow cornmeal
3/4 c buttermilk
salt & pepper
enough bacon drippings to fill 2" deep in a skillet /pan

Sauce:
2 TB coconut oil
1/4 c all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c milk
1/2 c buttermilk
1 TB ranch dressing
salt & pepper

Directions:
Slice tomatoes about 1/4 inch thick, season with salt and pepper and set aside. Combine batter then coat tomatoes on both sides. In a large skillet, heat enough bacon drippings to coat the bottom of the pan and fry tomatoes until lightly browned on both sides. (2-3 min per side) If oil sizzles or pops before you put the tomatoes in, it's too hot! Transfer to a colander or wire cooling rack to drain. To keep the tomatoes from getting soggy before they're served, the best way is to stand them up like wheels in a serving dish instead of stacking them. To make the sauce, add coconut oil in a saucepan until melted over medium heat. Whisk in flour, then milk & buttermilk until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Garnish with fresh dill, cucumber carrot kimchi & red pepper flakes. Serve immediately and enjoy! (You'll think you died and gone to heaven!)

They came out crisp and golden, a wonderful juxtaposition to the tart and juicy tomato. Added components to the dish were fresh dill, cucumber carrot kimchi, and red pepper flakes. I chose these ingredients because I felt it overall completed the entire dish. The combination of flavors was explosive to my palette! You got the acidity from the tomato (By the way, do you consider it to be a vegetable or a fruit?), the slight smoky bacon flavor, the refreshing balance from the dill, and the spiciness from the kimchi and flakes.

Lastly, the buttermilk sauce is creamy and tangy. The final finishing touch. I've been working on my style and plating, what do y'all think? How do you make fried green tomatoes? Perhaps next time, you'll give this recipe a try? It's great as an appetizer or for lunch. Or if you're just very, very, hungry. 😉 Until next time, feel free to comment down below and subscribe (to the right, in the side bar). Have a nice weekend!

LOVE & XX'S,

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