Korean Fusion: Fried Sesame Broccoli Bites

Korean Fried Sesame Broccoli Bites

Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 pound broccoli, chopped into small pieces and steamed
1 teaspoon salt

Korean Fusion: Fried Sesame Broccoli Bites with Ponzu Sauce

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

2 green onion

1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
generous pinch of salt to taste

3 eggs

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup panko
vegetable oil

Green onion or parsley and sesame seeds to garnish

Directions:

1. Cut the broccoli head very short from the stem. Cut the head into small florets. Peel the stems and cut into small pieces. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the salt and broccoli, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until it reaches the desired tenderness. Drain, immediately blanching the broccoli. Dry well before step 2.

2. Combine the broccoli with sesame seeds, 1 green onion, sesame oil, garlic, salt and 1 whisked egg (to use as a binding agent). Toss well to evenly distribute seasoning.

3. Create breading station - flour, whisk 2 eggs, panko

4. Wash hands then spoon broccoli mixture into hands to create 2-3 inch diameter balls. Squeeze together to firmly compact into round ball.

5. Coat in flour, then egg wash, then panko crumbs. Repeat.

6. Heat vegetable oil to 375 degrees.

7. Carefully place several broccoli balls into oil for 3 minutes until golden brown. Remove with slotted spoon and place on cooling rack or paper towels.

8. Serve with ponzu sauce!

Happy Sunday Funday! Without further delay, let me introduce to you (finally) the recipe for my Korean fusion-inspired FRIED sesame broccoli bites! And once you pop one of these addicting bite-size snack attacks, trust me when I say this, you won't be able to stop! To add a touch of heat I made a chili ponzu dipping sauce consisting of soy sauce, orange + lemon juice, mirin and red chili pepper powder. This healthy appetizer will surely be a hit at any get-together/party/event! And even though fried foods are not the healthiest choice when it comes to eating right, there is broccoli in this fried dish so it's not all completely bad like a fried oreo for example! Ha ha! It's definitely a great way to get anyone into this green veggie, especially if you're not a fan of it!

There is one thing I highly DO NOT recommend when working with anything fried. I was so exhausted when making these broccoli bites, I had mistaken the vegetable oil for water and covered the pot with a lid! 😳 Let's just say that I definitely experienced my first grease fire in the kitchen but I handled it like a champ! Lesson learned? Don't try to fry anything when you're that sleep-deprived! You're only asking for trouble, honey! Hope y'all enjoy the rest of your Sunday. Coming up this week on the blog, a new look, and a giveaway in honor of a birthday girl (aka; me)! Stay tuned...

Love & xx's,

FOLLOW MAQ + SUZ

Korean Fusion: The Bulgogi Burger with Fried Sesame Broccoli

I haven't posted a new recipe in a couple of weeks due to brainstorming a dish I've never ever even made an attempt at before. And what is it you might ask? Well, I did my take on a Korean burger, and even though these fusion burgers have been around for nearly years (what?!) I really wanted to create my version of a bulgogi burger. For the hamburger buns, I opted for a healthier choice - sushi rice! On top of the bulgogi is a sunny side up egg, with cabbage & carrot slaw, scallions and sriracha sauce.

Close-up of the fried sesame broccoli and a top view of the burger. Look at that perfect sunny side up egg!

Korean Fusion: The Bulgogi Burger with Fried Sesame Broccoli

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 pound flank steak, cut very thin using kitchen shears

1/3 cup soy sauce

Korean Fusion: The Bulgogi Burger with Fried Sesame Broccoli.

1/3 cup sugar

1 cup water

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1-2 green onion, chopped

1 tsp garlic, minced

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp honey

Pinch of black pepper

Shredded cabbage & carrot slaw

Sushi Rice

2 Eggs

A sprinkle of sesame seeds

Sriracha sauce

Directions:

1. Combine yellow onion, white and light green parts of green onions, soy sauce, water, sugar, sesame seeds, garlic, sesame oil, and black pepper in a bowl until marinade is well mixed. Add steak slices to marinade; cover and refrigerate, 1 hour to 1 day. 4 hours is ideal.
2. Cook sushi rice in rice cooker. To make these rice buns, you simply form patties out of cooked rice (with damp hands!), brush them with a little soy sauce, and fry them until they get nice and crispy.
3. Grill meat until cooked through. Simultaneously cook the egg sunny side-up.
4. Top each patty with the bulgogi, one sunny side-up egg, shredded cabbage & carrot slaw, a slice or two of green onion,  some sriracha sauce and another rice bun.
5. Enjoy the heck out of it with some fried sesame broccoli! :)

These fried sesame broccoli bites are SINFULLY addicting! SO SO GOOD!

But the highlight of this experimental dish is the FRIED sesame broccoli. DUDE. As a child, I wasn't the biggest fan of broccoli, but when my Ma made her famous sesame broccoli as an 'Americanized' banchan, I immediately grew to love it! While coming up with a variety of Korean fusion dishes, a lightbulb went off. My mind instantly thought of frying a Korean side dish. And voila! Garnished with green onion, minced garlic and sesame seeds, the sesame broccoli is probably the best fusion dish I've made to date! I'm really proud of it and am so excited to share you my ideas when it comes to my cooking.  I'm only putting up the recipe for the burger because I'm still adding some final touches to the broccoli recipe.

Dipping sauce for the fried sesame broccoli bites - soy sauce, sriracha sauce, honey and sesame seeds.

The dipping sauce for the broccoli is simple. It consists of soy sauce, a couple of squirts of sriracha sauce and honey, with a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top. I would like to try a yuzu dipping sauce for my next test-run. What do you guys think of these fried sesame broccoli bites? Are you dying for the recipe or what?! I think I'll be doing a separate post just on these lil' guys because they're way too good not to share with the world! Stay tuned...

A closer look at a piece of the fried sesame broccoli. Absolutely delicious!

And here you have it! Take a look at that monstrous burger! Regarding the rice buns, make sure that while shaping the rice into the buns you are with damp hands. Sushi rice can be very sticky so be sure to follow this rule! Also, I've heard parchment paper works well if you want to mold the rice buns this way, but I only had some wax paper in my kitchen at the moment. (Yup, I'm still really not the baking type, but I'm always working on this, though!)

Final look of the bulgogi burger! Ready to be eaten. 😊

Love & xx's,

FOLLOW MAQ + SUZ

Korean-Style Pork Belly Nachos

Well, that title was a mouthful. And deservingly so! I came across this recipe while looking for a smacking good-ass recipe for the Super Bowl on Sunday. Initially I was going to cook kalbi (galbi) but I wanted to infuse a classic American football munchie snack into something partly Korean. That's where I ran into this article on Buzzfeed and DUDE. It. Is. Splendidly. Delish! The flavors are insane! I can assure you, anyone to scarf down on these bad boys will be your new best friends as you've made their life complete. An instant touchdown! Did I mention it's in a cast-iron skillet? The Lodge cast iron is one of my favorite pans to cook in.

Korean-Style Pork Belly Nachos

Serves 4-6

Korean-Style Pork Belly Nachos

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of pork belly, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. red pepper powder
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• ⅓ cup + ¼ cup kimchi juice
• Tortilla chips
• Cheddar
• Monterey Jack
• Chopped kimchee
• Red onions
• Tomatoes
• Scallions
• ⅓ cup sour cream

Directions:

Combine pork belly slices with garlic, soy sauce, red pepper powder, honey, and ⅓ cup kimchi juice. Mix until the pork belly is coated in red. Pan-fry pork belly until fat has rendered and crispy.

Assemble your nachos. In a skillet, lay down a layer of tortilla chips, sprinkle on the cheeses, add chopped kimchi, toss on the cooked pork belly, top with some chopped red onions. Repeat.

Melt the cheeses under the broiler until crispy and bubbly. Mix together the sour cream and remaining ¼ cup kimchi juice and drizzle on top of the nachos.

K-Style pork belly nachos: Get. In. My. Belly. STAT!

These are the prettiest nachos I've ever made!

If you're a fan of pork belly like myself, make sure to get the meat nice and crispy. There's nothing sadder than soggy pork belly! The trick is not to cook the entire pound of meat all at once. Divide the meat into smaller portions when cooking it, that way giving the marinade and pork belly enough room to be cooked properly. I cooked mine just a knob above medium heat, because I like it really crispy. :)

And that sour cream kimchi sauce is OUT. OF. THIS. WORLD. I swear I could put this sauce on anything and it'd taste superb! That's like a fried foodie junkie saying, "I love anything fried. You could fry carpet and I'd eat it." Ha ha ha! But seriously, the combination of the dairy with the tangy juice from the kimchi is excellent and just the perfect complement to this dish. Are you ready for some football?!

What's everyone making this Sunday? Are you a football lover? I'm not really into the game itself, but I adore the ads/commercials and the live performances during halftime. I'm actually really excited to see Coldplay play as this will be their first appearance at a Super Bowl. Plus, Beyonce and Bruno Mars will also be performing, so I've got a pretty good feeling that this halftime show will be awesome! Who are you excited to see perform?

I'm such a girl that I didn't even know who was playing in the Super Bowl until just now when I looked it up! :X In which case, whichever team you are rooting for, whether it's the Panthers or Broncos, have fun, be safe and let the good times roll! Hope y'all have a very nice and cozy weekend. 🏈❤️🏈❤️🏈

Love & xx's,

Daktoritang (Korean Spicy Chicken Stew)

During the winter season, I love a warm, hearty bowl of comfort food. My girlfriend has been asking for my recipe of daktoritang, a Korean spicy chicken stew and ever since we chatted about it, I've been craving for it like mad! It's a quick and easy recipe, one of those 'throw it all in a pot' and 'sit back and relax' type of meals. Takes only about an hour total to make! Such a yummy dinner for any night of the week.

Perfect for any chicken lover, you can adjust the spiciness according to your taste.

Daktoritang 닭도리탕 (Korean Spicy Chicken Stew)

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

A hearty Korean chicken stew with rice.

Sushi rice

2 ½ pounds chicken thighs

2 large potatoes, cut into large chunks

2 carrots, chopped into ½ inch pieces

1 large onion, cut into 8 chunks

4 cloves garlic, crushed

¼ cup water

½ cup soy sauce

 2 tbsp white sugar

3-4 generous tbsp gochujang/Korean hot pepper paste

(adjust based on how spicy you want it!)

Directions

1.       Mix chicken, potatoes, carrots, onion and garlic in a large pot over medium heat

2.       Pour in water and soy sauce

3.       Mix in sugar and pepper paste and bring to a boil

4.       Reduce to low and simmer covered, for 45 minutes until chicken is cooked through and veggies are tender.

5.       Serve with sushi rice.

Close-up of daktoritang, a Korean Spicy Chicken Stew I made for tonight. Delicious!

Cooked in gochujang (a Korean fermented red chili paste) along with vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, and onions, it's a real hit for spicy lovers but what I love about this dish is the ability to be able to alter the hotness of the sauce. Growing up I remember seeing four different pots over the stove, straight up from Goldilocks, when my mother made this. One was extra spicy, one was regularly spiced, the third was mildly spiced, and the littlest pot was for, well, you know how the rest of this goes...

Anyone hungry? Winner-winner, chicken dinner! Don't forget to download the recipe above!

I love it spicy so I usually put in 4 heaping spoonfuls of gochujang in, however, if you would like it on the milder side, I'd recommend a generous 2 tablespoons for it. As for the chicken, you can use any part of the meat, just as long as it's close to 2.5 pounds. I really like chicken thighs, so I used boneless ones for this recipe.

Chicken stew, where are you? You're about to get in my belly, that's where! ;)

You can get gochujang at any Asian market. They're also available online at Amazon and other similar places. If you have more questions about this stew, please comment below. I am always happy to hear and answer questions from my readers. You guys rock! TGIF and hope everyone has a nice weekend! Have a good one. :)

Daktoritang 닭도리탕 (Korean Spicy Chicken Stew) Photos © Suzanne Spiegoski

Love & xx's

Dak Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps with Ssamjang Sauce

Happy Friday! With Winter Snowstorm Jonas inching it's way closer to Manhattan, I'm starting the weekend off by filling my belly with some warm delicious Korean barbeque and lettuce wraps! I normally do galbi, or make bulgogi with red meat but I was particularly craving some good ole' fashion protein. Chicken. And the marinade can be used for any choice of meat, so if you're opting for something more carnivorous, go for it! 

Korean lettuce wraps with ssamjang (쌈장) sauce.

Dak Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps

2 -3 Servings:

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless chicken thigh and/or breast

A head of butter or Boston lettuce, rinsed and dried.

Sushi rice

Shredded carrot, sliced radish and green onion for garnish.

Sweet & savory Korean chicken BBQ lettuce wraps.

Ssamjang sauce (쌈장)​:

4 tablespoons red pepper paste

5 tablespoons soy bean paste

5 cloves garlic, minced

¼ sweet onion, minced

1 green chile pepper, finely chopped

2 green onions, chopped

2 tablespoons rice wine

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Marinade for dak bulgogi (Korean BBQ chicken)​:

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon rice wine

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon grated ginger

1 tablespoon sesame oil

pinch black pepper

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Directions:

Mix all ingredients for ssamjang sauce. Refrigerate after use.

For chicken, rinse in water and pat dry. Trim all excess fat. Cut into bite-size pieces.

Mix marinade before mixing in the chicken.

Pan fry until cooked through, roughly 5-6 minutes on each side.

Spread ssamjang sauce, sushi rice, chicken, and garnish on a leaf of lettuce. Wrap and enjoy! :-)

Ssam means "wrapped" and jang means "paste" or "thick sauce." Together as ssamjang they mean "wrapping sauce." The etymology behind it is kind of cool, don't you think? What's even cooler? This spicy sauce will knock your socks off! I normally refer it as "my cracksauce" because after one dip you'll be hooked!

Ssamjang sauce (쌈장).

Ssamjang sauce is a great vegetable dip. Don't forget the rice because I'm not kidding when I state that it's spicy! And especially if I've made it, it'll be extra hot! I love it with cubanelles (Cuban peppers) because the sweetness out of the pepper balances with the spice. They complement each other very well. Cucumbers are also super yummy with this sauce!

I also used a cast iron grill pan to char my chicken — to add that smoky flavor. Together as a whole, with the crispiness of the radish and all the other textures, these lettuce wraps will be a huge hit in anyone's kitchen! Why not give these a try these weekend? And if snow is 'allowed' where you live (ha!), stay safe and warm. We hope you have a cozy next few days. These will surely give a little spice into your life. ♥

Love & xx's,