Hwachae (Korean traditional fruit punch)

Hwachae (Korean traditional fruit punch) (Korean Bapsang)

Hwachae is a Korean traditional fruit punch, which is made with various fruits and sweet drinks. There are many variations, and some are even made with edible flower petals or grains such as barley or rice cakes. Traditionally, the base drink is water sweetened with honey, syrup or sugar. These days, carbonated drinks and fruit juices are also commonly used. Hwachae made with watermelon (subak) is a summer favorite. I made it here with ginger ale, but any clear carbonated drink works well. I also added a little bit of drinking vinegar made with black raspberries (bokbunja) to add color, acidity and, of course, another layer of flavor. You can use pomegranate or cranberry juice as a substitute. Add any other fruit you like. I added some deliciously ripe honeydew. If you want to make it really fancy, add some rice cake balls, which aren’t hard to make. Play around with different fruits and drinks, and enjoy hwachae this summer. It’s easy, refreshing and full of summer flavor! 

4 servings

Ingredients:

● about 2 cups watermelon, balled or cubed
● about 1 1/2 cups honeydew, balled or cubed
● 2 cups ginger ale
● 3 tablespoons Korean drinking vinegar (or pomegranate or cranberry juice)
● pine nuts for garnish ― optional

12-16 rice cake balls (gyeongdan) ― optional (Recipe follows.)


Make the optional rice cake balls as shown below. 

Scoop out watermelon and honeydew with a melon-baller. (Or, cut into about bite size cubes.) Place them in a large bowl along with any juice from the fruit. 

Add the ginger ale and the drinking vinegar (or pomegranate or cranberry juice) to the fruits. Stir gently. Taste the drink and adjust acidity or sweetness by adding more drinking vinegar (or juice) or sugar.

Simple rice cake balls:
● 1/2 cup sweet/glutinous rice powder, chapssal garu
● 2 teaspoons sugar
● pinch of salt
● 4 tablespoons boiling hot water

Mix the rice powder, sugar and salt in a bowl. Mix in the boiling hot water with a spoon. When cool enough to handle, knead by hand until a dough is formed. 

Shape the dough into a 2-centimeter thick cylinder. Cut into (or pinch off) about 2-centimeter pieces. Roll each piece between the palms to make a small ball. 

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the rice cake balls. Cook until all the balls float. Transfer to a large bowl with cold water to cool. Drain. 

Kkaennip (perilla leaf) jeon

Kkaennip (perilla leaf) jeon (Korean Bapsang)

Kkaennip (perilla leaf) jeon is a type of jeon that’s pan-fried in egg batter, similar to jeon dishes such as hobakjeon (zucchini) and saengseonjeon (fish). It’s a variation that’s stuffed before being coated with the egg batter. The perilla leaves lend a distinct, robust flavor to the mildly flavored filling and provide an overall textural contrast. You can also stuff zucchini rounds (by cutting out the middle interior) or green chili peppers with the same filling for more variations. Enjoy it as an appetizer or side dish with any Korean meal.

Ingredients:

12 kkaennip (perilla) pieces

For the stuffing:
100 grams zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 small carrot
2 to 3 mushroom caps
1/4 small onion
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
100 grams ground beef (or pork)
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Salt (about 1/4 teaspoon) and pepper
1 tablespoon of egg batter

For the batter:
1/4 cup flour
3 large eggs, beaten
Oil for panfrying

Finely chop the zucchini. Lightly salt. Set aside for about 10 minutes. Squeeze out the liquid. 

Finely chop the carrot, mushrooms and onion. Combine all the stuffing ingredients well by hand until evenly blended. 

Wash both sides of the perilla leaves under running water, one leaf at a time. Shake off the excess water. Do not dry completely. Dredge both sides of the perilla leaves in the flour, one leaf at a time.

Place a perilla leaf on your hand. Add about a tablespoon of stuffing to the upper half of the perilla leaf. Spread evenly with a spoon. Bring the other half of the leaf over to cover the stuffing. Lightly flatten it with your hand (do this step for each leaf before the next step).

Heat a large nonstick skillet and lightly oil, using a couple of teaspoons of oil, over medium-low heat. Dip each stuffed leaf, one at a time, in the egg batter, carefully placing it in the heated skillet. You can cook a few of them at once. 

Cook each side for 2 to 3 minutes, adding a teaspoon or two of oil, until slightly golden without browning. Repeat until all the pieces are panfried. Serve warm with a dipping sauce.

Bibim guksu (spicy cold noodles)

Bibim guksu (spicy cold noodles) (Korean Bapsang)

Bibim guksu is a cold noodle dish that is usually made with thin wheat flour noodles (somyeon) or buckwheat noodles (memil guksu). The noodles are typically mixed in a sweet and sour gochujang sauce along with crisp fresh vegetables. You can toss it all together before serving, or arrange everything in a serving bowl so it can be mixed at the table. The latter allows each person to adjust the amount of sauce to his or her liking. 

As with its rice counterpart, bibimbap, this is a very versatile dish. A simple version I recall from my childhood is made only with sliced kimchi and fresh cucumbers. I added red cabbage and lettuce here to create a nice combination of colors, flavors and textures. Carrots, scallions, kkaennip (perilla leaves) or colorful bell peppers would be excellent additions as well. This spicy, cold noodle dish is perfect for warm days.

2 servings

Ingredients:

● 8 ounces buckwheat (memil guksu) or thin wheat flour noodles (somyeon)

● 1 small cucumber, julienned

● 3 to 4 red cabbage leaves, thinly sliced

● 3 to 4 lettuce leaves, thinly sliced

● 1/2 cup thinly sliced kimchi

● 1 boiled egg, cut in half 

Sauce:
● 3 tablespoons gochujang (red chili pepper paste) 

● 1 tablespoon gochugaru (red chili pepper flakes) 

● 1 teaspoon hot mustard paste (gyeoja) ― optional 

● 2 tablespoons sugar (or honey or corn syrup) 

● 2 tablespoons rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)

● 1 tablespoon soy sauce

● 1 tablespoon sesame oil

● 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

● 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

Mix all sauce ingredients, and keep it cool in the fridge. 

Prepare the vegetables, and keep them cool in the fridge, too, or in ice water (drain before using).

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Cook the noodles according to the package instructions. Drain quickly and shock in icy cold water to stop cooking. Drain and rinse in icy cold water again until the noodles are very cold. Make two one-serving size mounds. Place the mounds in a colander to drain.

Place the noodles in the middle of the serving bowl and nicely arrange the vegetables over the noodles. Top with half a boiled egg. Drop a few ice cubes so the noodles can stay cool while eating. The sauce can be served on top or separately.

Jjimdak (braised chicken)

Jjimdak (braised chicken) (Korean Bapsang)

Jjimdak (also called dakjjim) is a braised chicken dish. Andong jjimdak, which originated from the city of Andong, is a spicy version that has become very popular since the late 1990s. Braised in a sweet and savory liquid, the dish gets its spiciness from dried whole red chili peppers and fresh fiery hot green peppers called Cheongyang gochu. Unlike other braised dishes, Andong jjimdak is cooked over high heat. As such, it does not take long to cook. You can reduce or omit the hot peppers to make a non-spicy dish. 

4 servings
Ingredients:
● 1 medium size chicken cut up (about 1 kilogram) 
● 2 medium potatoes
● 1 medium carrot
● 1/2 large onion
● 3 - 4 mushroom caps (shittake, white, or baby bella)
● 2 scallions
● 3 - 4 small dried whole red chili peppers 
● 1 - 2 green chili peppers or jalapenos 
● 3 ounces starch noodles

Braising liquid:● 1 tablespoon minced garlic
● 1 teaspoon grated ginger
● 1/3 cup soy sauce
● 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
● 2 tablespoons oyster sauce (if not available, use more soy sauce)
● 2 tablespoons rice wine (or mirim)
● 1/4 teaspoon pepper
● 2 1/2 cups water 
● 2 tablespoons corn syrup or honey
● 2 teaspoons sesame oil
● 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Soak the starch noodles in warm water while preparing the other ingredients at least for 20 minutes. Drain before using.

Clean the chicken and cut into small pieces. Trim off fat. Cut the vegetables into large chunks. 

Mix all the sauce ingredients up to the water. The last three ingredients are to be added at the end of the cooking process. Set aside.

In a large pot, place the chicken pieces in a single layer. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Add dried whole red chili peppers. Bring it to a boil over high heat. Remove the foam. Cover, and cook for 15 minutes.

Add the potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and onion. Continue to boil over high heat, covered, for an additional 10 minutes until the liquid is reduced to about 1/2. This seems like a lot, but the potato and starch noodles will soak up a lot of the liquid.

Stir in the corn syrup, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Gently mix in the green chili peppers (or jalapenos), scallions and starch noodles, and continue to cook, uncovered this time, for an additional 3-4 minutes.