Budae Jjigae in Hyewha

The other day, TW and I agreed to meet at Seoul Station after his work. It was my first time to go that far alone (with my daughter). You see, we live in Siheung City so my daughter and I had to take a bus to go to the nearest subway station which is Bucheon. Luckily we didn't have to transfer. But my head spinned when we got off the train, it was so crowded. Blame it on the rush hour maybe. We had to wait for about 15mins for TW. Then we took Line 4 to go to Hyewha. He knows of a retaurant in Hyewha that serves Budae Jjigae, one of my favorite comfort foods.
Outside the station, we saw some clothing stores offering 50-80 % sale discounts. We went to check them out but didn't really find anything we want. Unfortunately it wasn't a Sunday, there's no Filipino market. I've been craving for sinigang and Chippy. ^v^
Anyways the Budae Jjigae was exactly the type I wanted. Usually they put some overfermented kimchi or some pork and beans (which I really hate), but here it was somewhat milder. Probably because of the cheese. But I loved it. We also ordered Chicken salad for S, since she really hates eating spicy food. And it was also good.
I guess it was worth the long trip. Next time I go to Hyewha, it'll be for the Market.

I'm Back

It's been some time since my last post. No, I'm not neglecting the blog. I got my hands on a lot of things since I moved to Korea. And yes I will be posting a lot about the place, the food, people and a lot more. It has been a very interesting experience for me. Expect more posts in the coming weeks.

Have you seen the iPhone Girl?

It all started on the Apple discussion forum - MacRumors.com, when a user posted pictures of an Asian (he said may be Chinese) in a cute pink factory outfit working on what looks an assembly line of iPhones. The British guy only known as markm49uk said that he found the pictures on his brand new iPhones he bought a few weeks ago. There were three pictures of this cute girl posing beside the iPhones, smiling and poses with V-signs beside an iPhone. They said that it appears that someone in the production line was having a bit of fun. The even commented on her being cute and hot and even her teeth being straight (for a factory worker). But also show concern about her getting so fired once the pictures spread into the blogosphere. Evidently, she is fast becoming so popular on the net as the "iPHONE GIRL". A website was even created for her - iphonegirl.net. There are also reports confirmong that she may be working at the Taiwan-based Foxconn and definitely not fired.

I remember about a couple of years ago, when I was looking to buy this particular Vk Mobile model. I found only one Korean dealer who's got it. Although he said that it was just the sample unit(and the only one), I found the package satisfying and very new. Everything is included -extra battery, screen film protectors, accessories, and a lot more. And even cheap too. The only weird thing was, there were already pictures from the photo gallery. They seem to be taken in a warehouse or something, one pic with a chinky-eyed guy working on a PC . I just thought the mobile dealer took the phone camera for some test shots since it was their sample unit. But I guess that's what we get from the cellphones manufactured in China. Free pictures. Though British guy got so lucky getting the cute iPhone Girl's picture.

Kimchi Jjigae

I mentioned on my other blog that I love Korean food. One of the easiest to cook is the Kimchi Jjigae (or Kimchi stew). The preparation of the kimchi itself is quite complicated to non Koreans like us. But we can always buy from the local kimchi supplier. You can get it fresh or the fully fermented kimchi meant to make this jjigae.

The main ingredient of course would be the sliced kimchi and some kimchi juice. For meat either thinly sliced pork or beef can be used though personally I like to use some pork chunks. Also slice up some tofu -firm or soft depending on how you like it, Korean ground red pepper or kochugaru, onion leeks, onion, soysauce, garlic, vegetable oil and a sliced red or green chili for some extra kick or just a garnish.

First, the meat is simply stir-fried in vegetable oil, since i'm using pork chunks I like to fry the pork until there are some brown crusts around the edges. Then you can add the onion, garlic, kimchi and stir-fry for about 2 or 3 mins. Add some water (ratio would be like 2cups of kimchi to 3 1/2 cups of water) or some beef stock, bring to a rolling boil then simmer for a few minutes.

Add the kimchi juice enhance the flavor, the tofu, red pepper, soysauce and leeks. If you like it to be a little bit more zesty add the sliced chili now or just use it for garnish. Return to boil and simmer for two more minutes.

Kimchi Jjigae should always be served hot with a steaming cup of rice.

On another note, Kimchi jjigae cooked in a stonepot is guaranteed to taste better.

Starbucks at SM Bicutan

An appointment brought me a little farther to the south. As I've got more than an hour to spare, I decided to go to the nearby SM Bicutan to kill the time. I thought a cup of hot Caramel Macchiato would be a perfect company on this rainy day. I've already gone to all three levels of the mall looking for that familiar sight but still no sign of it. When I inquired the friendly customer service girl, she said (with empathy all over her face! )there's NO STARBUCKS around, or any other coffee shop for that matter. Another CS girl told me that there is however Pancake House at the main mall. I don't see the point but hey she tried to help.

I ended up going to the French Baker though. I ordered Four Seasons and Peach Danish which I can't decide whether it is too sour or too sweet. The lady server is very nice and accomodating though. I guess in this part of the metro, there is still good customer service.

Couple or Trouble?

A1 Sauce and Heineken Beer
These two items are the best inventions of humankind. You can never go wrong with the beer plus a good piece of steak with the A1 will satisfy all your meat cravings. Just tune in to your fave sports channel (or in my case- DVD marathon) and you're good to go.
Two nights ago, our stomachs grumbled at 2AM. We wanted good comfort food but the only things open at that time are the fastfoods around the neighborhood. So we went a little bold to try the nearby 'redlight district' for some eats. So there it is, a stone's throw from the busy business district a 24 hour bar/cafe that serves really, really good food. We ordered some steak, grilled prawns and an all time favorite- Sinigang na Hipon. We had heineken beer and a bitter & sour cranberry juice. The prices are considerably reasonable but the drinks are a bit pricey.

Since it is located in the middle of redlight district, most of the customers are foreigners with local girls as their dates. Mostly Europeans and girls with very bad English and squeaky voices. Our meal would have been ruined if not for the 50s and 60s background music with James Dean, Elvis, and other 50s pictures everywhere. Just try not to look at the picture of that disgustingly fat and overweight lady by the stairs after eating.