Another Attempt at Korean Food

The only things I know about Korean food are I love to eat it and I simply don’t eat enough of it. In SF, we had our favorite Korean restaurants or fast food places, and treated ourselves at least once a week. Here in Portland, there are no Korean restaurants near us, so we have to make a short trek across town. It doesn’t take more than 15 minutes, but for some reason it feels like a hassle.

As for cooking Korean food, I almost always use this in some way. I’m addicted to the stuff. I’ve used it to make a delicious marinade for tri-tip and a dipping sauce for tofu. Recently, I tried it in a stir-fry, and it was very flavorful, with a little bit of heat and a little bit of sweetness.

Korean Hot Pepper Paste Stir-fry

• ¼ cup low-sodium chicken stock (or water)
• 2 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tbs Korean hot pepper paste
• 1 ½ tbs honey
• 1-2 tbs toasted sesame seeds
• 2 tbs fresh grated ginger
• 1 tbs finely chopped garlic
• 6 scallions, thinly sliced on diagonal
• 1 cup sliced shiitake mushroom
• 10 oz pork sirloin or tenderloin, thinly sliced
  

Make the sauce by combining the stock, soy sauce, hot pepper paste, honey and sesame seeds.

In a wok over high heat, add about 2 tbs oil. When it’s very hot add the pork, ginger and garlic. After about a minute, add the mushrooms and scallions. Continue to stir-fry until the pork is just about done (about another 2 or 3 minutes). Add the sauce and allow to heat through. The sauce should thicken slightly. Serve with white rice or soba noodles.