Traditional Ginger Cookies 매작과 Maejakgwa

Hey guys, I'm sorry that I didn't post again on Sunday. I couldn't find the time to :(

But I'm back today ant I also have some news that I want to share with you guys. But first of all I will get into the recipe.

So today I thought that I would have a post on a Korean dessert because it seems that it has been a while since I last posted a Korean dessert. So today the dessert that I am going to be introducing you to is called ginger cookies or 매작과(maejakgwa)

The cookies are a traditional Korean cookie that’s really popular. It is a variety of hahngwa, or Korean traditional confection, consisting of wheat flour, vegetable oil, cinnamon, ginger juice, jocheong, and pine nuts. It is also categorized as a form of yumilgwa. You may remember that I have also posted recipes for other traditional Korean desserts that are in the same category. You can find it here: Yugwa

The ingredients are very simple yet the flavour that you get in the end is AMAZING. The best thing about this cookie is that it’s very crunchy! So without any more talking let's get into the recipe:

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon gingerjuice
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1/2 cup water
cinnamon powder
vegetable oil

Method
1. In a large stainless steel bowl place the flour, salt, sugar, ginger juice and water and knead it for 20 minutes. OR you can use a food processor for about 2 minutes.
2.Put the cookie dough in a plastic bag and set it aside at least for 30 minutes.
3. Chop pine nuts to garnish the cookies. Set aside.
4. Take the dough out from the plastic bag and roll it out with a rolling pin, into a roughly rectangular shape (about 50 cm x 40 cm, and 2 mm – or 1/16 inch - thick).
5. Cut sheets of cookie dough into 2cm x 6cm rectangles
6. Put the leftover dough edges into a plastic bag to protect them from drying out.
7. Make 3 slits in the middle of each piece of dough.
8. Push one end of the dough through the centre slit to make a ribbon shape
9. Take the leftover dough out and spread it on the cutting board with the rolling pin. Cut it into any of your favorite shapes: triangles, squares, whatever – or use a cookie cutter.
10. Heat up vegetable oil in a wok or frying pan. *tip: Put a sample of the cookie dough into the heated oil to check if it’s the right temperature. The dough should float slowly on the surface of the heated oil.

For the syrup -->
1. Place ½ cup sugar and ½ cup water into a pot and bring to a boil over low heat for about 20 minutes. About half of the water should evaporate, so the syrup is nice and thick.
2. Turn the heat off and add 1 ts cinnamon powder and stir it well.
3. Gently toss the cookies with the syrup to lightly coat them.
4. Sprinkle with chopped pine nuts whist the syrup hasn't set.

And there you have it, a crunchy traditional Korean dessert that you can serve any time. When you have guests over or even when you feel peckish.

I hope that you guys enjoyed that recipe, because I really do absolutely LOVE it.

And now to the news that I had to share with you guys. Because I will be finished with exams after early next week I have decided that I will start a YouTube channel where I can also post up videos of the recipes that I post on this blog. I probably won't get started cooking until a few weeks later, I have't even decided on a name for the channel just yet. But When I do have it all up and running I will put a link to it all here on this blog. 

So that is it from me today. I don't think I will be posting again till the weekend after my exam on Friday. I hope that is ok with you guys. And until then please remember to stay safe, healthy and most important of all happy :)

Sweet Potato Twigim 고구마 튀김 Goguma Twigim

Hey guys, so it has been a really LONG time since I last posted up a recipe. But I have been having my MAJOR exams, and my last exams ever for high school for the past couple of weeks so I've been studying  I'm currently on a one week break from exams so I though that I might post up a couple of recipes this week. Maybe two or three.

I thought that I would keep it simple since it is my first post in a a while.

Sweet potato twigim or 고구마 튀김 (Goguma Twigim) is fried sweet potato pieces. Very much the sweet potato version of chips or fries.

Twigim is just batter-dipped items that include various vegetables, meat, seafood and kimbap - just about anything that with have batter stick to. It is the same concept as tempura, expect Korean.

The recipe is extremely easy to follow and in the end you get fluffy sweet potato encased in a crisp batter. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients 
1 lb Korean Sweet Potato
⅔ Cup Frying Mix (Batter)
½ Cup Water
¼ Cup Frying Mix (Coating)
3 Tbsp Potato Starch (or Cornstarch)
1 tsp Sugar (Optional)
⅛ Generous tsp Salt 

Method
1. Wash the sweet potato and remove any bad parts on the skin. Cut it into ¼-inch slices. You will get about 25 pieces. Korean sweet potatoes have a different taste and texture than American sweet potatoes. They are sweeter and have a firm texture. So please use Korean sweet potatoes for this recipe.
 2. Sprinkle salt evenly on top of the sweet potato slices. Set them aside what you are preparing the batter. This will help boost the sweetness of sweet potato later. Preheat your oil on medium-high.
3. Combine frying mix, cold (or ice) water, potato starch, and sugar. Mix everything together. Cold water is one of the secrets for getting crispy food. You can skip the sugar if you want.
4. Put frying mix in a plastic bag and add the sweet potatoes. Shake the bag to coat the sweet potatoes with the frying mix. This will help the batter stick to the sweet potatoes better.
5. Dip the floured sweet potatoes into the batter. Cover both side of the sweet potatoes with the batter.
6. Drop a little bit of batter into the heated oil to check if the oil is hot enough. When the batter floats right away, the oil is ready. Put the battered sweet potatoes into the hot oil. Deep-fry them on medium or medium-high, depending on your stove’s power.
7. Fry them for 5-6 minutes, or until the sweet potato slices are completely cooked, and the outside is golden brown. The easy way to check if a slice is cooked is to poke the center of it with a folk or chopstick. If your chopstick go through smoothly, it is done.
8. Place some paper towels on a tray and put the fried sweet potato slices there to cool and loose some of the grease.

And there you have it, super simple sweet potato twigim that will be ready in minutes. The fluffy centre and crisp coating is perfect to eat right now in the Autumn and Spring weather.

I hope that you guys liked that recipe, and I will try to post again on the weekend. Until then please stay healthy, safe and happy!!

Heart Egg Omelette 하트 계란말이 Heart Gyeran Mari

Hey...so I've been studying or trying to study for the past however long so I haven't been able to post a recipe yet. But here I am today. This will probably be the last time I will post in a month because my exams start in a week. Eeeekkkk

Because I have exams I am going to go with a quick but still delicious recipe. If you like Korean food you will know about their doshirak boxes (packed lunch). The dish today is usually used as a component of these lunches. Gyeran Mari (계란말이) rolled omelette, and is typically round and taste like a fried flat egg. But today I will be including vegetables in the mix, and I will also show you a quick and easy way to shape the eggs into a heart shape. This is a super easy dish to make, and kids will LOVE it.

This is super quick and easy to make, so let's get started:

Ingredients

4 Large Eggs

1 Tbsp Green Onion

½ Tbsp Carrot

¼ tsp Salt Some

Oil

Method 

1. Break eggs and stir them gently. For interesting yellow and white color swirls, do not completely mix the whites and yokes together.

2. Set aside 2-3 Tbsp of the egg mixture to be used later.

3. Finely chop green onion and carrot. This gives the dish colour.

4. Add salt into the egg mixture and mix well.

5. Add some oil in a small bowl or plate. Fold a small piece of a paper towel, and soak it in the oil.

6. Use the towel to lightly grease the pan. Cook on medium heat.

7. Drop a little bit of the egg mixture into the heated pan; if it starts to cook, the temperature for the pan is right.

8. Pour about ¼ of the egg mixture into an 8-inch pan.

9. When the surface of the egg starts to cook, begin to fold it about one inch.

10. Continue to fold it. You can use either chopsticks or a spatula.

11. Push it to the other end of the pan and add some more oil in the pan.

12. Pour the same amount of egg mixture into the pan. Fry and fold it the same way.

13. Repeat the process for the remaining egg mixture in two steps.

14. Cool it for about 1 minute before you cut it. This helps the egg keep its shape when you cut it.

15. Cut the fried egg into a half-inch thickness. And there you have it, perfectly cooked egg omelette.

And now for the heart shaped eggs:

1. Cut the egg across diagonally

2. Put the diagonal sides together and you will form a heart shape.

3. To seal the shape dip the omelette into the reserved egg mixture and cook both sides.

And there you go, a simple and cute way to serve eggs to the kids and for yourself to enjoy. I hope that you guys enjoyed that post because it has been a VERY long time since I posted and I felt bad, but exams are seriously my priority right now. But I promise that when I come back in a month I will be posting so much that you will want me to stop for a bit.

So to everyone out there, I hope that you will all stay healthy, happy and safe and wait till I post again. To anyone else with exams the best of luck to you, and remember to keep a healthy diet!!