• DKennedy on July 20, 2022

  A birthday gift (Korean themed basket) from my cookbook group. This book has made it to my favorites shelf! A wonderful read, it has taught me a lot. And the recipes I have tried have become staples (eg. soup base).

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Vegetable broth

  • DKennedy on July 28, 2022

    Wonderful. Actually great as a soup in addition to being a base for soups.

• Angry penne pasta

  • TrishaCP on March 24, 2022

    We really liked this dish. I omitted the fresh chile only because I forgot about it (one of those nights), but it was plenty spicy without it. I think I was expecting some sweetness from the gochujang, but there wasn’t any, probably due to the tomatoes.

  • jenburkholder on January 17, 2022

    Very tasty and super simple. I threw some basil into the blender with the sauce. The gochujang adds a lot and makes the sauce a lot more interesting than a standard arrabiata.

• Spicy crunchy garlic tofu (Kkanpoong tofu)

  • TrishaCP on January 01, 2022

    This tastes great- I especially love adding garlic and onion powder to the dredge for the tofu. I completely agree that there is too much starch in the sauce. I would definitely reduce it by half.

  • meginyeg on March 02, 2022

    We really enjoyed this. My sauce ended up a bit thick but it was still tasty. We will make this again.

  • patioweather on April 02, 2022

    This tofu was crunchy and amazing. Going in our regular line up.

  • christineakiyoshi on January 03, 2022

    Have had this twice. Second time reduced the brown rice syrup a little. Used potato starch one time and cornstarch another. It is really delicious and the family said it was the best meal over the holiday.

  • cbk15 on June 08, 2022

    Loved this recipe, super easy for weeknights and delicious. I used frozen and thawed firm tofu for an extra meaty texture along with a combo of starches (Corn, Tapioca, and Arrowroot) as I was out of potato starch.

  • jenburkholder on November 23, 2021

    Very tasty. I ran out of potato starch and subbed in part cornstarch - still worked great. Sauce was a little thick (sticky!), could cut down the starch in that.

  • alysekstokes on November 13, 2021

    Big flavorsl with great texture. It's key to make sure you're using potato start (not potato flour), but it brings a really beautiful crunch to the dish. The crunch does fade upon reheating, but the sauce has a ton of flavor and it holds up nicely. Make sure to press/dry the tofu well. I wrapped my tofu in a tea towel and pressed for about half an hour. Drying it helps it crisp up well and really cuts down on the splatter. I also found it important to use a very flavorful garlic powder—make sure it smells pungent and intense from the jar!

• Lemon and coriander blueberry muffins

  • MVitek on June 04, 2022

    Remarkably fluffy for a vegan muffin, but it needs a crumb topping for some texture contrast. It made 12 regular size muffins.

• Braised potatoes (Gamja jorim 감자조림)

  • patioweather on March 07, 2022

    We had a feast and this was everyone's favorite dish. Someone called it "stupid good."

  • jenburkholder on May 02, 2022

    Excellent. Made just according to the recipe, then kept snagging bites the whole evening. Had with the tofu cakes from the same book, rice, and an improvised kale muchim. Definite repeat.

• Korean glass noodles (Japchae 잡채)

  • mpo on January 07, 2023

    This was good but I’m not sure every vegetable needed to be cooked separately when they have the same cooking time. I’d make again but figure out how to cut down on prep and cook time.

  • jenburkholder on June 25, 2022

    This was a good but ultimately fairly standard japchae. I did enjoy the additional quantity of vegetables relative to the average. Topped with bulgogi soy curls.

• Rice cake arrabbiata (Tteokbokki)

  • jenburkholder on July 08, 2022

    Very nice. Tastes like home cooking. The sauté times are too short, though. We added more zucchini and omitted cabbage.

• Tofu cakes (Dooboo jeon 두부전)

  • jenburkholder on May 02, 2022

    Good! We sauteed the shiitakes and carrots, because throwing them in raw seemed weird, and that was a good choice. Texture is soft but not unpleasantly so, and they cooked up pretty and golden. Served with a mayo-spiked gochujang sauce, and the slightly rich sauce worked well with the fairly ascetic fritters (an oxymoron?). Also made kale muchim, rice, and gamja jorim. Would make again.

• Battered squash (Hobbahk jeon 호박전 )

  • jenburkholder on August 16, 2022

    Fine, but every time I fry in potato starch I’m reminded of why I usually avoid doing so - likes to form a skin, rather than getting crisp. Mild, sweet pancakes with home-grown zucchini.

• Omma’s Korean BBQ sauce

  • jenburkholder on November 10, 2021

    Tasty. Marinated and cooked some soy curls in it, made a nice topping for a bowl of bibimbap.

• Silken tofu stew (Soondooboo chigae 순두부찌개)

  • jenburkholder on January 09, 2022

    Decent, but not my favorite, sundubujjigae. I used sun tofu (i.e. not cartons of silken) and just one tube for half a recipe. Fine starter recipe but nothing to distinguish it.

• Fermented soybean stew (Spicy doenjang chigae 된장찌개)

  • jenburkholder on October 25, 2021

    Good. Added the tofu later, as I find it tends to break up if you add it too soon. Doesn't taste much different from any other doenjang jjigae, but the sautéing of the gochugaru at the outset was nice.

• Spicy soy sauce dressing

  • jenburkholder on January 14, 2022

    Really tasty dressing. Definitely some nontraditional ingredients in there, but the whole tastes lovely.

• Braised tofu (Dooboo jorim 두부조림)

  • jenburkholder on January 14, 2022

    Excellent dubu jorim. Was worried that the vegetables on top wouldn’t cook through, but they did. Will make again.

• Potato stew (Gamja tang 감자탕)

  • Acarroll on September 28, 2022

    This was a salt bomb, with no salt added. I could only eat a few bites before tossing.

• Cucumber kimchi

  • alysekstokes on November 13, 2021

    I used Kirby cucumbers for this, and they held up well. This was not my favorite cucumber kimchi, as I found the final product a bit too sweet. I would try again with less/no sweetener added.

• Korean-style toast

  • avogel on May 21, 2022

    Definitely an involved process for a sandwich but worth it! Love the combination of textures and balance of savory and sweet here.

• Korean BBQ black bean burgers

  • antimony on March 14, 2023

    This was a seriously involved recipe for black bean burgers, but they were really excellent. Honestly: I will definitely make the slaw and the caramelized onions again, but I might just make them to go with store-bought burgers.