Oct 31, 2017

Korean Seasoned Spinach~ Sigeumchi Namul 시금치 나물

Today, I am sharing the Korean seasoned spinach that I always made as banchan. It is one of the most common banchan that will appear on Korean's table. Sigeumchi namul is normally made of blanched spinach seasoned with soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame seeds, minced garlic and chopped spring onions. There are few types of spinach available and any type of it is alright to use for making Siguemchi namul, not necessary has to be Korean spinach. There are also other type of seasoned spinach side dish such as Sigeumchi namul with gochujang and Sigeumchi namul with mashed tofu that I made before. I will share those recipes next time when I make again.


Ingredients:

Spinach (about 300gram)
Cold or ice water

For the seasoning:
Soy sauce - 1.5 tablespoon 
Sesame oil - 1 tablespoon 
Sesame seeds - 1 teaspoon 
Minced garlic - 1-2 clove
Chopped spring onion - 1 stalk


How to cook:

Step 1
Wash and clean off the root, usually the whole plant can be eaten including stems and roots. However I gotten a Chinese spinach, so I need to separate the leaf from stems, then remove the outer layer of fiber on stems and discard only the root edge. 


Step 2
Bring the water to boil in a pot. Once the water is boiling, blanch the spinach until wilted. Usually took about a minute or less.


Step 3
Remove the spinach immediately and soak in cold water, rinse off the water and again soak the spinach in another round of cold water to make the spinach chill. 
Note: I use cold water from water purifier. If you don't have water purifier with cold water function, you may need to prepare the cold water ahead before cooking (if prefer) or just rinse it thru running tap water until it is cool down. 


Step 4
Gently squeeze out the excess water using your fist.


Step 5
In a bowl, prepare the seasoning~ 1.5 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, sesame seeds and chopped spring onion. Place the blanched spinach into the bowl and mix well. and it is ready to serve.



It can be store in fridge in airtight container for up to a day if not consume. We normally prefer make fresh and eat immediately. Beside eaten as a banchan (side dish), sigeumchi namul is use to make bibimbap too! You may also check my bibimbap recipe in the blog.

Oct 24, 2017

Last day in Busan~ Compose Coffee 컴포즈 커피

Last day in Busan. Early this morning, after sent off relatives to Gimhae Airport, instead of take taxi home, I suggest to take Busan Metro so I could take a glance of some the districts (outskirts of Busan) that I never visit before. Begin from Gimhae Airport, we first take the LRT where we able to see the view from train window for several numbers of station. Until we transit at Daejeo for Metro Line 3 and metro (train) started to go underground all the way until we reach Yeonsan metro station. 

After arrived Yeonsan station, I quickly grab my last a-coffee-a-day in Busan before head home. This is another 2,500 won caffe latte from another Busan coffee chain named Compose Coffee 컴포즈커피. Established around the same time as when cheap and affordable take-out coffee culture started in 2015. This branch that I get my compose coffee is in Yeonsan. Up to today they have around 150+ chains all over Korea and continue to expand. Can't believe a month long break in Busan end just in a blink of eyes. I am glad that I've been travelled a lot, see a lot and eat a lot again during this trip.










Oct 23, 2017

Texas street, Busan

In Choryang-dong, opposite the Busan Station, there is this "Texas Street" known as red light district, just one street away from Busan Chinatown. During the 1940-50s, this area was setup up as an entertainment area to cater the needs of Americans soldiers and foreign ship crews. During the day time, it seems like a normal commercial district that serve foreigners and foreign sailors. However, at night after shop closed, it turn into night life districts with nightclubs and hostess bars open. I was told that this area has a lot of local Busan Russian population, therefore the business are cater for the Russians as well. You may tell from the signboards as it has Russian word on it. Not recommended to visit Texas street alone at night, especially for ladies, since it is a "red-light district". However day time is fine to visit around just like what we did. As we are here on Monday, which is a common rest day for the Korean businesses. Majority of the shops are closed and not operating. Including Chinatown.













Second time visit~ Gamcheon Culture Village, Busan 감천문화마을

Our last 2 stops of go round Busan in 1 day is Gamcheon Culture Village. This is my second time visit here, 3 years ago I visited Gamcheon together with my family during our family trip to Korea. The village has changed a little compared to first visit. Those main attractions such as Prince and the Fox still remain the same. Just like 3 years ago's visit, this time also I didn't manage to go further explore every corner of the village. Still, I am happy to be back to Gamcheon again for the beautiful sea view from highest point of the village.