Post Type ArchivesRecipes

Classic Kimbap (Beef Bulgogi and/or Kimchi)

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Colourful kimbap

Kimbap is your Korean PB&J -for you Americans, or your jambon-beurre -for you French people. When I studied abroad in Seoul for a few months, Kimbap were the n°1 choice for lunch if not eating at the cafeteria.

It consists in a rice roll, not unlike the Japanese makis, filled with a rainbow mix of veggies (either quickly cooked or pickled) and optionally some meat or fish.

Both the filling and the rice seasoning vastly differ though. The rice is seasoned with sesame oil instead of vinegar and sugar, which creates a different flavour profile. As for the filling, you can get so many different kinds in Korea ! I’d say the most popular are probably the bulgogi kimbap, the spam kimbap, and the tuna kimbap. I also remember fondly a spicy pork gimbap -heaven in a roll.

Just like for the Bibimbap, I know what you might think. Essentially, rice with lots of veggies ? Ok, boring !

But what a mistake, again ! The tastes are super-balanced, bold, and complex : the savoury, obviously ; the sweet, with the bulgogi, carrots and slightly sugary radishes ; the tang, with two kinds of pickles ; the egg, for this soft flavour and creamy texture ; and an earthy flavour from the burdock. Everything must be seasoned right, with much umami from the soy sauce, the sesame oil and the beautiful amount of garlic.

The beauty of this dish, as in the bibimbap and the japchae, lies in the process of cooking each ingredient separately, which allows each flavour to shine when you taste the final product. In a mouthful, you will get the very specific taste of garlicky, sesamey spinach, as well as the distinct taste of bulgogi beef, for example. Kimbap is definitely one of my favourite dishes, ever.

Classic Kimbap (Beef Bulgogi and/or Kimchi)- Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

Some specific ingredients for this dish are basic will probably require you to visit a Korean store (especially for the pickled radish and pickled burdock) :

  • If you’re in Paris :
    • for my Korean items, I’m sure to find them (especially gochujang) at the K-mart near Opera (there are several others K-marts, check on Google) ;
    • you can also go to Tang Frères in the 13th (they have other stores in Paris but be careful, some are small, this one is large) or Paris Store in the 10th ;
  • If you’re in France :
  • For my foreign friends : I bet you can easily find some Asian shops around you or online, but if you can’t, message me with your location and I will try to find it for you !

Cooking – Advice & key points

  • Don’t get intimidated by the rolling process. Simply keep in mind the following tips, and it will be a breeze !
    • Put your nori sheet shiny side down. The matte side will grip the rice more easily ;
    • Center your filling and don’t overfill ! This way, it should be quite easy to bring together the two edges of the rice rectangle ;
    • See my video recipe to check out how to roll the gimbap ;
    • To cut your gimbap easily, just pour some sesame oil all over your kitchen knife. Also wipe your knife with a wet towel to remove any excess starch, that will prevent you from cutting neat bite-sized pieces.
  • I must admit it is quite time consuming to prep Kimbap. It’s worth it, though. I recommend making a large batch of fillings ; you can make fresh rice over a few days to use it up !
  • You could skip pickled pickled burdock and/or egg, but I wouldn’t recommend skipping any other ingredient to get the traditional kimbap flavour.
  • Of course, if you want to have fun with your fillings, feel free to ! I’ve seen many different Kimbap versions with ingredients such as salad, cheese, fish cakes, cucumber…

Got everything you need ? Let’s roll !

Italian Ricotta & Lemon Cake

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I’m not a dessert girl. I haven’t ordered a dessert at a restaurant in ages !

That hasn’t always been the case, though. When I was a child, desserts were all I wanted to bake. I made crepes, waffles, cakes, cupcakes, and I even remember a frangipane galette I was quite proud of.

I couldn’t and still can’t resist a moist cake. I remember my mother’s yoghurt cake fondly ; thanks to the yoghurt and a beautiful half yoghurt cup of oil, it was always a dream in terms of texture.

This ricotta cake kind of relies on the same assets : dairy products, and a beautiful amount of butter !

You’ll love to bring this simple but beautiful, sugar-dust cake to a friends’ house, or simply to leave it on your countertop for a few days to be enjoyed as an afternoon snack, with a good cup of tea ! You’ll feel all English and dignified.

Italian Ricotta & Lemon Cake – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

  • It is important to beat the ricotta for a few minutes, ideally using a hand mixer with the whip part attached.  This will incorporate some air to the cheese, making the texture much fluffier. Try to spend a good 4 to 5 minutes on this step !
  • I used goat ricotta, which I recommend here, as it brings a flavour twist compared to cow ricotta. You can of course use cow ricotta instead !
  • I used a vanilla pod which is an option to favour when you can, as the taste will be both stronger and more delicate. Since it’s a bit expensive though, and considering that the main star here is lemon, don’t worry if using vanilla extract or vanilla sugar ; it will work just fine.

Cooking & Serving your Italian Ricotta & Lemon Cake

  • Bake at 180°C for around 50 mn. A small knife or a toothpick should come out clean from the cake.
  • You can serve it with sour or whipped cream and a few berries if you wish.
  • You can keep it on the countertop for 3 days, or in the fridge a few more days (remove it from the fridge at least 30mn before eating !)

Pesto Sandwich (Veggie or Parma Ham version)

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Less is more. This statement could be what describes best the Italian cooking philosophy ; or maybe even what describes good cooking, being one of the mottos of a great many number of Michelin-starred chefs -hello, Dominique Crenn, Alain Passard, Daniel Humm, etc.

If you focus on each ingredient, both in terms of quality and how they enhance one another, you don’t need many to make a dish shine.

Here, I’m giving you an almost-no-recipe dish ; pesto sandwiches. You need 4 main ingredients :

  • a good bread : here, I had frozen Focaccia on hand, but choose your freshest, locally baked bread ;
  • a tasty pesto, ideally homemade (check out my pesto recipe) or at least from the refrigerated section ;
  • in-season, quality tomatoes, such as Beef Heart tomatoes, Crimean Black tomatoes, or Green Zebra tomatoes ;
  • some decent Mozarella. If buying from the supermarket, you can choose Mozzarella di Bufala, made out of buffalo milk instead of cow’s milk for the Mozzarella Fior di Latte ; its texture is creamy and soft, more delicate than the Fior di Latte which is on the firmer side ;
  • optionally, add some aged Provolone or any other aged, dry Italian cheese (maybe simply Pecorino or Parmigiano). When you’re making the Veggie Version in particular, it adds a sharp and tangy flavor that creates some depth of flavour without using charcuterie ;
  • optionally, too, add some Parma ham slices from your local Italian deli ! I think I personally prefer the veggie version (yes, it came as a surprise), as the taste is more legible and less oily.

Don’t forget to season your tomatoes with salt (and pepper if you please !) and to drizzle them with a good olive oil !

I’m really embarassed to call this a recipe because there’s not much not it. Once you know the ingredients, you simply assemble them. That’s it.

Let’s dig into it !

If you’re into sandwiches like I am, check out my Tunisian-inspired tuna sandwich, or my Raclette sandwich, and many others here !

French Stuffed Tomatoes

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Stuffed tomatoes with veal and pork mince

When we visit my companion’s family, in summer, I secretly hope they bake certain dishes. There’s his mother’s crazy tasty Poule au Pot ; his father’s decadent Eggplant Parmigiana ; and his mother’s Stuffed Tomatoes.

Stuffed tomatoes are a French basic that most families love to cook, be it for their own household or some guests. Simple, cheap and delicious, it’s a crowd-pleaser ; you can whip it up extra-quickly if you simply buy your seasoned meat stuffing from the butcher’s, put it in tomatoes and call it a day. You can also go the longer route -but still quite short- by making you own seasoned meat, which is what I like to do !

After looking long and hard for the original recipe, trust me on this : there is no such thing. Every family has its own, proud stuffing recipe. Hell, no one even does the same thing with their tomatoes ; some put it in their stuffing, some cook their rice in the tomatoes juices, and some set it aside for further use !

I’ll give you here my version of the French Stuffed Tomatoes, which remains quite classic and simple, except that I chose to cook the tomatoes’ pulp to make a tasty sauce. The overall result was wonderfully juicy, with a true tomato-ey taste enhanced by a flavourful pork and veal mixture. The meaty taste is balanced by all the fresh herbs used, and the addition of a healthy dose of vinegar !

French Stuffed Tomatoes – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

  • I recommend you to buy large tomatoes ! This way, one per person is enough. I’d recommend some large Beefheart tomatoes, which are flavourful and hold themselves well while cooking.
  • Don’t worry if your tomatoes are small, simply plan for 2 per person instead of 1.
  • Try to buy some fatty minced pork, since the veal mince is really lean ! I’ve had some bad surprises when my minced pork was based on parts that were quite lean.
  • You can definitely use minced beef (not too lean), or pork only if you feel like it. I’d recommend against chicken as it’s too lean, hence drier (unless it’s chicken thighs).
  • Don’t be afraid to season your filling well. 1 tablespoon ain’t too much for such a large amount !

Cooking & Serving your French Stuffed Tomatoes

  • Bake at 180°C for 30-35mn. The tomatoes’ caps should be slightly wrinkled (see picture).
  • I recommend serving these tomatoes with basmati rice, and several spoonfuls of the concentrated tomato & meat juices that you’ll have in your baking dish ! Yum !!

For more classic French dishes, you can check my Asparagus Quiche Lorraine, my Traditional Beef Bourguignon or my Moules Marinières.

Egg & Chorizo Breakfast Burrito

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Egg & Chorizo breakfast burrito

I know, this is my upteenth egg sandwich. But this is my n°1 egg recipe.

Yes, my friends. Better than the tamago sandwich, and better than the gilgeori toast.

This egg & chorizo wrap is a humble masterpiece. Quick, easy, incredibly flavourful ; I am really proud of this not-so-authentic recipe.

It is inspired by the classic Huevos con Chorizo, that are traditionally served with corn tortillas and a bit of hot sauce. I wanted something portable and easy to eat though -and I felt like adding just a bit of red bell pepper. Yes, I also used large wheat tortillas, and basic Western melting cheese. But it honestly worked so well ; no regrets here !

Just picture it. Moist, slightly runny scrambled eggs paired with juicy, spicy Mexican chorizo. Add a bit of cooked onion and red bell pepper for the texture and slightly sweet taste it brings. Drop the cilantro and hot sauce. Roll this beauty and toast it slightly. Dang, I’m craving one just now.

Egg & Chorizo Breakfast Burrito – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

  • Mexican chorizo : Don’t confuse Mexican chorizo with Spanish chorizo. A Mexican-type chorizo is seasoned raw meat (often within a sausage) and is usually cooked like ground meat, removed from its casing.  This is the kind you want here ! Spanish chorizo, on the other hand, is a dried cured sausage that you cannot crumble. Its texture is different and it wouldn’t be as delicious here.
  • If you’re in Île-de-France, you can find the tastiest Colombian chorizos (which are Mexican-style chorizos) from El man de los chorizos. I had a Colombian friend recommend it to me (thanks Tatiana, if you read me !) and I understand why. Mine is the spicy one.
  • Eggs : Do not overcook them ! If you leave them in the pan while you make your wraps, they’ll carry on cooking. Plus, they’ll cook again when you grill those wraps. The eggs should still be slightly runny when you turn off the heat.
  • Do not overfill your wraps, or you’ll have trouble rolling them.
  • These burritos freeze well ! For freezing purposes :
    • Be careful not to roll your tortilla until the egg mixture reaches room temp, or your tortilla will get soggy. Then, simply roll your burrito and put it in aluminium foil, and off to the freezer.
    • You can defrost it either by thawing it in the fridge overnight and grilling it in a pan when defrosted, or in the microwave 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Salt and pepper : Use enough of them ! In simple recipes such as this one, you cannot be lacking in the seasoning department.
  • For my vegetarian friends, I would use 10 eggs, replace the cooking oil with 30g of butter, and add pan-fried mushrooms with smoked salt and a drop of soy sauce along with wilted, garlicky spinach.
  • Also, if you want to make this Breakfast burrito a Lunch or Dinner burrito, of course you can -and should- but know that you have to eat 2 per person instead of 1 if you’re using 18cm tortillas.

Let’s wrap !

Fish & Broccoli au gratin

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Baked fish and broccoli with a sorrel sauce

Fish mistakes sadly happen too often. I call it fish mistake when you’re served some sad, dry white fish. You wish you’d chosen more wisely. You can even think you don’t really like fish after all.

Wrong. You’ve just been served poorly cooked fish ! Fish & broccoli au gratin is a fish recipe you want to eat. This if for my people who think they don’t like fish. This is even for people who think they don’t like broccoli -my partner is one of them, and he adored this recipe.

This gratin is everything but dry, thanks to the lip-smacking butter, shallots and fish stock sauce. I’ve also added a bit of cheddar on top before baking, just a small amount to make it brown -this recipe remains quite healthy, not to worry !

The sorrel addition makes a real difference, with a powerful yet delicate lemony flavour. Besides, I didn’t have any here, but do add a bit of fresh lemon juice and a few basil leaves at the very last minute for a fresher taste that compliments the depth of flavour that sorrel brings.

Fish & broccoli au gratin – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & what to keep in mind

  • You can choose any white fish you fancy here. I used whiting because that’s what my fishmongers’ had on hand, but you could also pick cod or hake for example.
  • If you cannot find sorrel, simply add more lemon juice at the end of the cooking, along with the basil leaves. Also, feel free to experiment with other herbs if you’d like !

Off to your kitchen now !

Korean Spicy Pork (Jeyuk bokkeum)

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Spicy stir-fried pork with gochujang sauce over rice

My, my. Just thinking of this dish makes my mouth water !

Jeyuk bokkeum is my companion’s absolute favourite in Korean restaurants -and it would be mine if not for Kimchi Jigae. It consists in very thinly sliced pork marinated in a beautiful, bright red sauce, and served with rice. It is as simple as it is tasty.

This version is a pan-fried one, where I add veggies ; along with the meat, they release all their delicious juices, resulting in a tasty red sauce that drips over your rice. However, you could also prepare this dish barbecue-style if you own a table barbecue, for a smokier taste ; if so, you shouldn’t include veggies, or very little, as they’d release too much moisture. I’ll make a barbecue version someday !

All the flavours come from the rather simple Gochujang (red pepper paste) and Gochugaru (red pepper flakes) marinade. Don’t forget to add loads of garlic, and to balance this savoury sauce with a bit of sugar  The sesame oil also makes a world of difference. In the end, you get a spicy, savoury, sweet, tangy sauce full of depth ; thanks to the vegetables, some delicate vegetal flavours offset the meaty ones.

Besides, as the meat is paper-thin, you only need to marinate it around 30 minutes. This dish is definitely a weeknight one -provided you’re OK with spending a small hour in the kitchen. I guarantee anyone who can take a bit of heat will ask for seconds.

Bon appétit !

Korean Spicy Pork – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

  • Pork:
    • I like to use a mix of pork belly, with its delicious fatiness, bringing in lots of flavour, and pork shoulder, which is leaner, for a meatier texture. Definitely feel free to use one or the other, depending on your personal preference and your meat availability !
    • You can buy your pork pre-sliced at the fresh or frozen section of your Asian grocery store, if the store is large enough.
    • If you cannot find it, it’s ok ; you can easily slice the meat paper-thin at home ! You will only need to freeze your cut around 1 hour (maybe more, depending on its size) to make it easier to cut. It should be quite solid, but not rock-solid. I often do this even if I can get frozen pre-sliced meat, simply because it is easier for me to check the meat’s quality when I buy it from by butcher.
  • I find it important to cut your meat paper-thin ; the texture is more pleasant, as well as the taste, which might be a tad too bold with large pieces.
  • The remaining ingredients are either basic Asian pantry items or produce you can easily find at the grocery store.
  • This dish is spicy, but not crazy spicy. If you want to lower the heat, reduce the Gochugaru amount -or even remove it altogether.

How to eat Korean Spicy Pork

  • You can eat it like on the picture, over a bowl of rice, or with rice on the side. I like to pour the pork over the rice so get all the delicious juices directly on top of my rice.
  • You can also, of course, wrap your pork in lettuce leaves, with some rice, Ssamjang and a bit of kimchi !

If you enjoy Asian rice bowls, check out this Teriyaki Don, this Mushroom Donburi, this Miso Eggplant Butadon, or my Vietnamese Oyakodon !

Let’s dig into it !

Japanese Egg Sandwich (Tamago Sando)

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Tamago sando (Japanese egg sandwich)

I love egg sandwiches, I already said this much. This one is special, possibly the best-ever, or at least in my top three.

In Seoul, I must have bought dozens of tamago sandos at the 7-Eleven inside my university campus, especially around or past midnight, after a night out. And it was not a drunken decision, oh no ! It was one the very expected, high points of the whole night out. I remember the pleasure of slipping between my sheets with one (or two !!) tamago sandos and eating them in peace, silently, careful not to make any noise so as not to wake my roomate up. This is honestly a memory of sheer bliss.

It’s been complicated to try and replicate this sandwich, but as I experimented, I think I’ve gotten as close as it gets to the real thing. The key is in the soft, pillow-like bread, and the mayonnaise you use, which needs to have some tang, but to be sweet too.

My tamago sando is a bit more generous than the 7-Eleven version though, with thicker bread slices and more filling than in the 7-Eleven versions. Feel free to adjust it to your liking !

Korean Breakfast Sandwich (Gilgeori Toast) – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

  • You also can’t make a Tamago Sando without milk bread. This sandwich is characterized by its softness and fluffiness -that’s what makes it unique and oh-so-comforting. In order to find some milk bread, you can visit an Asian store or a Japanese or Korean bakery if you have one near your location.
  • Either buy Kewpie mayonnaise, or make your own adjusted mayonnaise, adjusting the classic recipe with 2 tbsp vinegar, 1 tbsp sugar and 1 pinch MSG, before adding the oil.
  • You can add toppings on your egg salad to give this sandwich a brighter or fresher taste, such as pickled onions, or scallions. You do you !

Let’s dig into it !

If you’re into authentic Japanese food, check out my Japanese Kare Raisu, or my Teriyaki don !

Ultimate Veggie Couscous

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I was trying a friend’s couscous the other day ; he got the vegetarian one. I tasted it, and I thought ; that’s not a vegetarian couscous. That’s just a couscous without meat ! It felt bland, lacking depth and taste.

I was not happy with it, and I felt driven by the challenge of making an actual vegetarian couscous. One that would in no way pale in comparison with the traditional couscous.

I’m so glad I did, as there seems to be a real void in terms of veggie couscous offering. Granted, my version takes some work ; but a classic couscous does too, doesn’t it ?

The Ultimate Veggie Couscous needed a meat replacement, as I didn’t feel you could rely on veggies only in terms of texture and in comparison with the Classic Couscous experience. For me, the tastiest couscous is Lamb Couscous, so I picked Jackfruit, which is close to the lamb’s usual texture in the classic couscous once cooked and shredded. To give it some taste, I worked on a broth reduction, elevated by mustard, harissa, vinegar, honey and a bit of liquid smoke. But I did not neglect the veggies themselves, and treated them like meat, browining them in a pan with butter and oil. I also relied on some flavour boosters such as msg, or kelp for my broth, which helped me bringing the depth I needed.

If you haven’t eaten a good couscous in a long time because you’ve turned vegetarian or vegan, do try this version (if you’re willing to spend a few hours in the kitchen, that is !)

Ultimate Veggie Couscous- Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

  • Ras el-hanout : This is one of the two king spices in any Algerian kitchen. You can usually find it quite easily. You might find two kinds of ras el-hanout : a yellow one, and a red one. I use the yellow one. The yellow ras el-hanout is rich in turmeric, which gives it its yellow color, while the red gets its color from the dominant spice in the blend, the sweet chili pepper, which gives it a slightly spicier flavor.
  • Couscous : How couscous is traditionally cooked is one of the main reasons why this dish is so tasty. It takes a bit of work and patience, but you need to steam your couscous two to three times. Two is enough in my view ; three will take your couscous up a notch in terms of softness. Besides, do take your time when separating couscous grains (see video) ! I recommend using medium-sized couscous ; this is mine and my mother’s favourite.
  • Cilantro, beldi lemon, msg, kelp : You can skip those items if you don’t feel like including them or don’t have them. I wouldn’t recommend skipping the liquid smoke though, which adds a really interesting smoky flavour that elevates the dish.

Let’s make some couscous !!