Gochujang Chicken

This recipe is an experiment wherein an air fryer recipe never made it into the air fryer.   As readers of this blog probably know, my beautiful Angel and I recently bought an air fryer.  I am intrigued by air fryers, because I have basically given up on a deep fryer.  I did not want to deal with the leftover oil.  When one adds the negative health aspects of deep fried food, that made it easy for me to move on from a deep fryer or event the cooking process.  When I recipe called for deep frying, I would broil it or grill it.  

Last Christmas, I got an air-fryer cookbook.  There are a lot of interesting recipes in that book, including one for Gochujang Chicken. The Gochujang sauce got my attention. I wanted to make that sauce.  However, the recipe in the book called for the use of chicken wing sections.  I had bone-in thighs.  While I could have thrown those thighs into the air-fryer, I needed the cooking times for bone-in thighs in an air fryer.  After looking around the internet, I just decided to cook the thighs in a conventional oven. 

Overall, the recipe worked very well.  I was able to get the skin crisp, the heat from the sauce was present, and, there were chicken thighs, which are perhaps the best part of the bird.  This is the type of experimentation that I hope to do more in the future!

GOCHUJANG CHICKEN

Sauce recipe from Urvashi Pitre, Every Day Easy Air Fryer, pg. 69

Serves 4

Ingredients (for the chicken):

1 pound of chicken thighs, with skin and bone

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon gochugaru

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Ingredients (for the sauce):

3 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chile paste)

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon agave nector or honey

Directions:

1.  Make the sauce. In a small bowl, combine the gochujang, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, sugar and agave, set aside. 

2.  Cook the chicken.  Place the chicken skin side down and cook at 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 8 minutes.  Spread some of the sauce on the chicken and flip the thighs.  Spread more of the sauce on the skin and underneath the skin.  Continue cooking for about 6 minutes more or until the chicken is browned with crispy skin and with an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove from the heat, let rest for about five minutes, and serve immediately.

ENJOY!

Ojingeo Bokkeum (Korean Spicy Stir Fried Squid)

It has been a few weeks since I completed my personal culinary challenge to cook a main course based upon South Korean cuisine.  That was part of my Around the World in 80 Dishes challenge.  I focused my cooking on seafood as part of South Korean cuisine, with a grilled squid recipe, followed by a fresh oyster recipe and the main course of grilled fish.  The seafood dishes were very delicious.  

I was particularly intrigued with the use of the South Korean ground chiles (Gochugaru) and South Korean chile paste (Gochujang).  As someone who loves chiles and the heat, it seems only natural that I would be drawn to South Korean cuisine.  I recognize that not every South Korean dish is spicy, but there appears to be a fair share of dishes that utilize chiles for a good kick.  Those are the dishes that I want to explore. 

So, when I wanted to find another South Korean dish to make, I just chose a protein -- in this case, squid -- and searched "spicy South Korean squid."  I eventually found this dish, Ojungeo Bokkeum or Korean Spicy Stir Fried Squid.  This dish is similar to Olingeo Gui or spicy grilled squid. Rather than grilling the squid, one uses a wok to quickly fry the squid in the spicy marinade.  

I made a couple of adjustments from the recipe that I found.  First, I decided to keep the one inch strips of squid intact, because I felt that the rolling up of the squid during the cooking process would "create" small tubular versions of the squid.  Second, I sliced the onion thinner than what was called for in the recipe. I wanted the dish to focus more on the squid than the onion.  Two inch strips of scallions (which was what was called for in the original recipe) did not seem right.  I thinly sliced the scallions and sauteed them up in the manner called for in the recipe. In so doing, the scallions still figured into to the flavor of the dish, but the thinly sliced scallions allowed for the squid to be front and center in the dish. 

In the end, there is one thing that I can say with absolute certainty ... I want to use Gochargaru and Gochujang in every dish.

OJINGEO BOKKUM (KOREAN SPICY STIR FRIED SQUID)

Recipe adapted from from Kimchi Mom

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced ginger

1 tablespoon Gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/4 cup Gochujang (Korean red pepper paste)

1 pound squid, cleaned

2 tablespoons cooking oil

5 scallions, sliced thinly

1 green chile pepper, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds

1 stalk of a scallion, thinly sliced (optional, for garnish)

Directions:

1.  Prepare the sauce.  In a medium sized bowl, mix together the garlic, ginger, Gochargaru, soy sauce and Gochujang.  

2.  Prepare the squid.  Rinse the squid.  Cut the bodies lengthwise along the ridge.  Flatten it out so that the interior wall of the body is face up on the cutting board.  Scrape off the interior.  Lightly score a diamond pattern on the squid.  To do this, first score a set of parallel lines (about 1/2 inch apart).  Score a second set of lines crosswise at about 30 degrees to the first set of line. Cut the squid length wise in 1 inch strips.  Repeat until all of the squid is cut.  

3.  Marinade the squid.  Add the cut squid bodies and tentacles to the sauce and toss to ensure that all of the pieces are evenly coated.  Let it rest for about 20 minutes.  

4.  Cook the dish.  Heat the cooking oil in a non-stick skillet over medium high heat.  Add the green onions and pepper and saute until the onions start to wilt.  Add the marinated squid and cook until done, about 1 1/2 minutes or 2 minutes.  The squid will turn opaque and curl up, and the diamond pattern will be more apparent.  Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sesame oil.  Garnish with sesame seeds and green onions. 

ENJOY!

Around the World in 80 Dishes: South Korea

I always thought that when I got to that part of my Around the World in 80 Dishes personal culinary challenge -- the part in which I would a main course from South Korean cuisine -- that I would be making Bulgogi or Galbi.  It makes a lot of sense, especially given my carnivore ways. The thin slices of ribeye that make Bulgogi or the ribs that comprise Galbi seem right up my alley. However, this personal culinary challenge took a completely different turn.

This personal culinary challenge will focus on seafood.  This focus seems appropriate for a country with 1,499 miles of coastline.  With the Sea of Japan to the east (also known as the East Sea) and the Yellow Sea to the west, there is a wide variety of fish available. The fish include mackerel, sardine, anchovies, herring, sea bream, salmon and trout. One can also find clams, oysters and squid in both seas. Thus, it comes as no surprise that the records show that, as far back as the 12th century A.D., commoners ate a diet that consisted primarily of seafood that included shrimp, clams, and fish. 

Dried seafood is very popular in South Korea, with anchovies, corvina and croaker being the fish of choice for such preparations.  South Koreans also dry squid and cuttlefish. Historically, the drying of fish and other seafood was to ensure that these foods would be available during the winter. I did not have enough time to prepare dried seafood and, even if I did, I am not sure that would satisfy the challenge to prepare a main course of South Korean cuisine.  

APPETIZER

The South Korean challenge began with a search for a recipe for grilled squid.  I had a hankering to eat the cephalopods.  As I searched the Intenret, I came across a recipe for Ojingeo Gui from Korean Bapsaeng.  The article described how squid -- or ojingeo -- is "an essential and versatile ingredient in Korean cooking."  Another site, Maangchi, observed that the recipe was a staple in Korean bars.  (I presumed that all references were to South Korea, as opposed to North Korea.)

This recipe marks the first time that I have worked with two quintessential South Korean ingredients.  The first is gochujang, which is a savory and spicy, fermented red chile paste,  The second is gochugaru, which are Korean red chile pepper flakes. 

While the recipe looked very good, and it tasted very good too, I decided that the grilled squid dish was not enough for a main challenge.

OLINGEO GUI (SPICY GRILLED SQUID)

Recipe from Korean Bapsang

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1-1/2 pounds of squid

6 to 8 perillla leaves (kkaennoip) or spring mix, arugula, lettce, etc.

1/2 lemon

2 tablespoons chopped scallion

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon finely grated ginger

1 tablespoon Korean red chile pepper flakes (gochugaru)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice wine

1 tablespoon sugar

3 tablespoons Korean red chili pepper paste (gochujang)

2 tablespoons Korean corn syrup (oligodang) or sugar

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Pinch pepper

1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds

Directions:

1. Clean the squid.  If using whole squid, clean by carefully pulling the tentacles until the innards slip out of the body.  Use your fingers to reach inside the tube to remove any remaining parts.  Cut the tentacles from the head just below the eyes. Remove the beak from the center of the tentacles.  Discard everything except the body and tentacles. Rinse the squids under cold running water and drain.

2.  Prepare the marinade.  In a bowl large enough to hold the squid, combine the marinade ingredients and stir well.  Add the squids and coat evenly with the marinade, and then marinate in the fridge for about 30 minutes.  

3.  Grill the squid.  Heat a lightly oiled grill or a frying pan until very hot.  Add the squids and sear quickly until the squids curl up and turn opaque, about a minute depending upon the size of the squid.  Flip and cook another minute.  Base with the sauce if you like.  Remove the squid.  You can pour the remaining squid into the pan, bring to a boil, and use as an extra sauce.

4.  Serve the dish.  Plate the squid on the sliced leaves and any other vegetables of your choice.  Drizzle with lemon juice and garnish with a slice of lemon.

APPETIZER

Having come to the conclusion that I needed more than grilled squid for this challenge, I continued to look for recipes.  The next one that caught my attention was a recipe for seasoned fresh oysters, which is known as Gul Muchim.  This is a raw oyster recipe, but it is not just any recipe.  The oysters are bathed in a sauce of garlic, green onions, soy sauce, and sesame oil.  This was also a very good recipe, but, it too was not what I would consider to be a main course dish. 

GULMUCHIM (SEASONED FRESH OYSTERS)

Recipe from Maangchu

Serves 2

Ingredients:

4 ounces fresh, cleaned, shucked oysters

1 garlic clove, minced

1 green onion, chopped

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon hot pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 teaspoons sesame seeds

Directions:

1.  Combine ingredients.  Combine oysters, garlic, green onion, soy sauce, hot pepper flakes, sugar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds in a bowl and mix well with a wooden spoon.

2.  Plate the dish.  Transfer the oysters to a dish and serve with rice.

MAIN COURSE

The main course for my personal challenge is Saengseon Gui (or Saengsun Gui), which is whole grilled fish.  The word Saengseon means fresh fish, and, as one could expect, it could be any whole fish pulled out of the water.  Many recipes call for mackerel, which can be found in both the Yellow Sea and the East Sea.  I saw whole mackerel in my local grocery store, but the smallest fish was three and one-half pounds and rather costly. That got me to thinking, grilled fish recipes can be made with both saltwater and freshwater fish. The store also had black bass, a freshwater fish, that was both smaller and cheaper.

Interestingly, there are black bass in South Korea.  The fish imported from Louisiana to South Korea and were introduced into three lakes around the peninsula by the government.  The government did all of this without performing any studies and, apparently without any planning.  During the rainy season, water was pumped out of those lakes to make room for the expected rainfall accumulation.  When the water was pumped out, so were black bass fry, who found a new home in the rivers of South Korea.  Soon the black bass, along with the bluegill (who were introduced into Korean waters a few years earlier) came to dominate the local river system.

It is said that South Koreans hate the black bass and, whenever they catch the fish, they leave it on the shore to die. I don't know if that is true, but it got me to thinking about how best to deal with invasive species. For example, the Asian carp is menacing the rivers in the United States. Yet, Andrew Zimmern -- a chef and the host of Bizarre Foods -- suggested a response ... eat it. The human appetite, when marshaled in the right way, can be the best check for the growth of an invasive species.

So, for this challenge, I have prepared Saengseon Gui using whole black sea bass.  I grilled the sea bass and filleted it for dinner and the presentation.  The bass produced two nice-sized fillets, which were perfect for my beautiful Angel and myself.  

SAENGSEON GUI (GRILLED FISH)

Recipe adapted from  Bap Story

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 whole fish 

Sea salt

1 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)

Directions:

1.  Prepare the fish.  Cur crosswise slashes on the skin side of each piece.  Pat the fish dry with a paper towel.  Drizzle lemon juice over the fish.  Season all sides liberally with salt.  Set aside for 20 minutes.  Remove any visible traces of salt before cooking.  

2.  Grill the fish. Clean and lightly oil the grill.  Preheat the grill over medium high heat.  Place the fish on the grill, skin side down.  Cook until the bottom edges are golden brown and the flesh turns opaque, about 2 minutes.  Flip and cook the other side for another minute or two.

3.  Finish the dish.  Carefully remove the head.  Remove one fillet using a spoon and fork along the spine and plate it.  Then remove the spine, leaving the other fillet, which can be plated.

*          *          *

This personal culinary challenge took me on a different road than previous ones. While the main course may perhaps been the easiest one to prepare, the entire journey -- beginning with the Olingeo Gui and continuing with Gul Muchim -- allowed me to experience different methods of preparing seafood in South Korea.  It is time to move onto the next challenge and to see path lies ahead for me.  Until next time ...

ENJOY!