The Cooking Mission... Marches On!

You may think I've forgotten all my Korean cooking dreams, but you see I've been very hard at work over here in Korea land cooking! Why have there been no pictures to prove my words? The reason? Well.... I've had a few foodie failures! Yes, it's true, I think it's due to my cooking sins; I must have upset the Korean food gods by putting pumpkin and mushrooms in Kimchi Jiggae and pumpkins in my Spicy Mackerel Stew.. Pumpkin is my weakness, like honey is for Pooh Bear or Spandex for Superman.I've been having trouble following recipes because I always want to add different ingredients than those that are in the original recipe! And alas, my past few attempts I got over greedy and tried to add too many different ingredients, conflicting flavors, and well it turned out like poo. So maybe I'll go back to the basics next week? BUT it's sooooo hard!!!.. Repeat to self... FOLLOW THE RECIPE, INGE! ::inge, continues to mutter these four words over and over to herself, while slapping herself every time she reaches for the pumpkin.::After many failures and recipes mess ups.. I tried to make my favorite soup Soon-dubu Jjigae (A spicy Tofu stew) about 3 times and ickers! It just didn't come out right! I could have been because of the above problem of never wanting to follow the recipe. Why it just takes so long to read instructions. There are many better things to be done, like not reading the recipe, but alas my dinners were not tasty and after a while of nasty dinners I had to get it together, and Snap out of it! And thank goodness to the Lord above, I did! I figured out what my Soon-dubu Stew problem was. You see, I was trying to cook a Korean Soondubu Jjigae, when my soul longed for an exotic Thai Soon Dubu. So one morning at 7 am, just one hour before I was headed off to work, I came into my apartment from a morning walk and opened up my refrigerator and like a vision from Heaven, a recipe started to spill into my head. I started pulling out, ginger, garlic, jalapenos, shrimp, soft tofu, coconut oil, lime, cilantro, eggs, lime.... AND you guessed it, Pumpkin! and somehow in just 20 minutes I chopped, fried, mixed, stewed, and sprinkled until a dish that tasted so like Heaven that I was tears while eating breakfast! I scribbled the recipe down in Inge code, meaning it's short and confusing (because I hate both reading and writing directions, such waste of time). So one day, when I have my own restaurant, I can cook you this Heaven-sent dish! Please look below.. And wipe the drool off you keyboard, drool ruins electronics. I have experience ;)Ciao for now! My next week's cooking challenge? Kamja Tang! (potato and pork back stew) People say it's devilishly time consuming, but I got this right? Perhaps I'll substitute pumpkin for potatoes! Yum! And then my skin will turn even orange--ER. I swear, I've got to stop eating all these carrots and pumpkins, my eyes are loving me, but my skin, well, it practically glows in the dark! Which come to think of it could actually be fantastic! In that case, tomorrow's breakfast will totally be pumpkin eggs, carrot juice, and coffee with carrot milk and, and....hmmm.... carrots and gravy or perhaps sunny side up carrots?. But you see any way you flip carrots, they will always be sunny side up. Oh aren't they fabulous?!?!.. Ok, I'll shut up now :) Have a lovely day!  

The Self-Portrait Madness Escalates! #5

Wow! Is all I have to say. Wow!

This is only portrait #5 and I can't believe how many things have started to come my way since my friend Mandolyn and I have started this challenge. Let me explain, or try to. This story may be a wee bit difficult to understand, and long! I had trouble believing myself, but bear with me if you have the energy or brew some coffee! Brew it extra strong with some delicious milk to obtain the maximum focus ;)I had probably the craziest, most unexpected Saturday in quite some time. Like I said last week, I had no clue where my next self-portrait would come from, but then it just fell into my lap! So you see remember that fear challenge list I made? The one about the different things I wanted to do before saying goodbye to Korealand? Yes that one! Well on that list I wrote that I wanted to do a fashion shoot and collaborate on the photography shoot with another artist (fashion designer, make-up artist, etc).This past weekend that goal was accomplished! After I made the list, I decided to go meet and to talk to the owner of my absolutely favorite clothing store in all of Korealand in Hongdae called Gyahaha . I wanted to how she felt about  collaborating on a fashion shoot together.This store is amazing! It is full of beautiful colorful clothes, designed or bought by the owner Yeon Ja. She travels all over the world selecting clothes, fabrics and Jewelry for Gyahaha (Ladies in Korea let me know if you need directions because they carry some Western sizes and jewelry) .So about 3 or 4 weeks ago we met, Yeon Ja, Hyun Mi, and myself, had a lovely chat and decided that we wanted to work together! They told me that it was actually the perfect timing for a shoot because Gyahaha is about to launch their new summer line and they were looking for a photographer to do a fashion shoot, and I walk in their door. I like their style of clothes and they liked my style of photography. Ah-sah! I just love when the stars align!So we planned for a photo shoot for this past weekend and then we all started planning the shoot's concepts and looking for models, foreign and Korean. All was going well, and I couldn't be more happy to work with them.., but on Tuesday this tale took an unexpected twist. I get an email from Hyun Mi last Tuesday discussing the logistics of the weekend, our concepts, the timing, the models, and then she casually mentions that ever since they met me that they though I would be perfect to model their clothes. And they hoped that I would be one of the models for the shoot... Ha? What?!? ::at this point in the email, I spit out 1/2 of my morning juice dousing my computer my desk with orange juice while I simultaneously choked on the other 1/2 of my juice and it went down all sorts of wrong pipes that I didn't even know I had. It was a mess:: But you see, ladies that... I'm the photographer.. yes?? uhhh.. how? mmm. errr.  And then the idea came to me. Like a light from Heaven, the voice of God most probably.  ;)  You know what?!? You can do this. I've been doing self-portraits for the past month, why not? Weird, but doable.. So I pitched this idea to them, and they agreed! Wow.. Crazy right? Model and Photographer for a fashion shoot. Really, is that even possible? But wait there is more craziness to ensue, yes I know, how? You will believe it when you see it!So Saturday day morning the Gyahaha team, and I set out in the wee hours of the morning about 3am to go to a piece of farmland about 3 hours east from here, but not before grabbing some delicious Soon Dubu to fill our bellies. Off we went in search of perfect farmland. It took more time then expect, and people kept telling us that we couldn't take pictures here or there, but then we finally found a beautiful location free from all those pesky rule-following people. And so the shoot began. And yes I did model and photograph, I must say it was an experience switching from photographer to model and then back again. It's a little rough having to try to switch from model face to creative brain and then back again, but a good challenge. I would set up the tripod, arranged the scene, then the ever so lovely Hyun Mi would click the shutter for me or tell me when my face looked dumb. She was an amazing help! So I guess these may not be a purest of self portraits but.... It was pretty close :) Here's one of the semi-self portraits from Saturday...Well we shot all day! But the weather was amazing, and we an awesome time! About 4pm we packed up all the clothes and props and headed home, well almost, we first decided that all of our hard work deserved good food so we ate. I just love how Koreans never let you go hungry. They are my kind of people.After filling our tummies with Korean BBQ and marinated raw beef&pears, yum!, we had to rush back to Seoul because they had another in fashion shoot in the studio at 7pm. As soon as we jumped into the van, we all passed out from exhaustion. It was about 6pm.,  and we were on the way to my house, and the studio called Yeon Ja, by the tone of conversation, I knew something was wrong. I heard my name spoken in the conversation a few times, but everything was in Korean. I could only pick up a few words. She gets off the phone and then there was just silence in the car for about 10 minutes..No translation was provided. hmmmm... now I was curious.  What was going on?So being the noisy, annoying American that I am, I started to poke about the studio shoot, and I asked if I could go and watch it.. Then Hyun Mi tells that was the studio on the phone, their model was very sick, and that the studio stylist saw my self-portraits and asked Yeon Ja if I would be interested in modeling for the shoot?. ::at this point if I had had been drinking any sort of liquid, i would have spewed it all of over the car and its inhabitants:: hahaha! Really? Are you serious? Not twice in a day when I've never modeled a day in my life. You guys must be super confused.. I'm supposed to be on the OTHER side of the camera.. you know the PHOTOGRAPHER!, remember?But Yeon Ja hadn't mentioned it to me because she knew I had already worked all day and thought I was probably exhausted, and this would be asking too much. After thinking about it for hmm... 5 sec I decided the sure, I was tired, but how could I pass up the opportunity? I mean I had already wanted to go to the studio to watch the madness and now I could join it! Ah-sah! I wonder what they would make me do?.. hmmm...Come to find out, they didn't make me do much, but they sure did a whole lot to me.. A few times they had to give me electric shock therap so that I didn't fall asleep on them, and by the look of my hair you can tell. It looked like I stuck my finger in the socket. Look at the pictures! It was sheer madness. So much so that the shoot lasted for about 9 hours. I got home at 6 the next morning.The Photographer Kim Suk Jun, Hair & Make-up by Ji Hye, and the set stylist who was super cool with such a personality, name: Hyun Na! And thanks to Hyun Mi and Yeon Ja for keeping me company and feeding me kimbap and juice so I wouldn't fall asleep in drool all over their pretty clothes ^^Such a crazy Saturday, and I know the lunacy will continue. I can't wait! I am a truly blessed  :)

Only 5 little months left.....

Can you believe that it is the second to the last day of March and that spring will be gracing it's lovely face on South Korea very soon? Yet, what is much more crazy is that I only have 5 months (really 4.5 months) left in Korealand! I can't believe it. I have been here for over 1.5 years and now I only have 4.5 months to go! Part of me can't wait to bust a move and leave the land of fermentation and urbanization in the dust as I head for some tiny, whole-in-the-wall countryside town, where I'll know my next door neighbors by name, speak the local language and run to the sounds of birds and crickets. But then there is that other part of me that has started tallying and making lists of all the things that I have left to learn and all the places yet to go and most importantly all  of the food left to try.So in my haste to fill up the next 4~5 months with as much learning as possible before I head of to...??? (I'm thinking I might close my eyes and pin the tail on the world map and see where the pin gets stuck. No dart throwing for me, I would for sure miss the map, or hit Russia dead center, because you see, my throwing capabilities are probably on par with how good Richard Simmons is at straightening his hair. So I prefer the pinning proposition, that way I'll be sure to aim somewhere in the world that is both warm and tropical. Join me for Christmas in the tropics anyone? ) But back on task. So one of my goals before I pack my backpack? Learn to cook Korean food.I have decided that every Wednesday night I am going to cook at least 1 Korean dish that I don't know how to make yet. So tonight, which was a Wednesday. What was in order? Cucumber Kimchi and Seaweed Salad.. Yes, yes they sound terribly gross and disgustingly healthy, but really all Korean food sounds this way. So don't worry about the name, just taste it and your mouth will thank you and do a happy dance, and then you will know why I have been able to live in this arctic zone for the past 1.5 years.And of course, here are a few pictures to prove the validity of my cooking mission :)

Here are the links to the recipes if you want to taste the amazingness.Cucumber Kimchi ~~> Tip : I added a splash of sesame oil to finish the Cucumber Kimchi, the oil really takes the kimchi to the next level by mellowing the spices a bit and nuttifying the dish. http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/oisobagi-kimchiSeaweed or Seaplant Salad ~~> Tip: I added julienned cucumbers and carrots, and quartered cherry tomatoes for an extra burst of flavor... http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/miyuk-gukAnd Finally here is the list of the Korean foods that I am determined to learn to cook before I leave.. (all the √ ones I have completed) These shall be conquered with the help of the Korean cooking master of www.maangchi.comYes, yes, I admit that almost all of these foods sound really weird and icky, but just wait until you taste them, then you will stop all your wasteful doubting.1) Kimchi (√cucumber, √cabbage, and spinach)2) KongNamul Banchan (Bean Sprout stir fry)3) Yuk Gae Jang (Spicy Beef Stew) Probably my new favorite soup!4) Kamja Tang (Pork Back and Potato Stew)5) Dak Dori Tang (Spicy Chicken Stew)6) Kimchi Jjigae (Kimchi Stew)7) Seaweed Salad √8) Sauteed Seaplant9) Soondubu Jjigae (Spicy Soft Tofu Stew)10) O jing-go Chae Mu Chim (Seasoned dried Squid) So delicious you don't even know!11) Panfried Tofu12) Spicy Mackerel StewLet the cooking begin!