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Small Shops
Soondae at Hankuk Junyuk – Palisades Park
06.29.09 | Permalink | 3 Comments

There are some foods you’ve loved all your life, and some foods you came to appreciate as you got….ahem, older. Growing up, I always ate soondae (Korean blood sausage, 순대), but never with any relish. A bit bland and more loose than a regular German or Italian sausage, it was just one of those things I ate because it was around the house. I was always more fond of the cooked liver that usually comes with soondae. Now as an adult, for some reason, soondae appeals to me. I love the mild earthiness and the subtle richness. Perhaps I’m not only older, but wiser as well. MORE »
Small Shops, Spas
Edibles from King Sauna – Palisades Park
03.31.09 | Permalink | 2 Comments

This weekend I was stripped naked, poked, pulled and prodded into submission. No I didn’t spend a night in the slammer, I went to King Sauna, a Korean day spa, for a body scrub and a “relaxing” massage. My mom told me it would feel like heaven, but if that’s heaven, I’m scared what hell would be like. At one point, the massage involved my hair getting repeatedly pulled. But to be fair, my skin now feels incredibly soft and all the dry skin that had been building up on my body during the cold winter months is gone. My boyfriend says I’ve been tenderized. In addition, all the different hot tubs and saunas were pretty cool. I especially liked the cold Ice Room and walking over the hot stones in the Herbal Steam Sauna.

King Sauna has a real restaurant with an extensive menu, but after spending three hours at the spa, my mom and I decided to grab a snack from the juice bar and go home for dinner. Upon my friend Ellie’s recommendation, we got the Roasted Eggs (eggs roasted in their shells over hot stones, $2 for 3 eggs). MORE »
Small Shops
Jokbal (Pigs’ Feet) at Hankuk Jungyuk‎ – Palisades Park
03.12.09 | Permalink | 10 Comments

Yes, yes, y’all, it’s a post about jokbal (족발), pigs’ feet! If pigs’ feet make you squirm, get over it. It’s delicious. Fatty and gelatinous, it’s good eaten alone, wrapped up in a ssam, or eaten as a bar snack (anju, 안주) with some refreshing soju. Jokbal is made by boiling pigs’ feet in a stock of soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and rice wine. It’s then sliced off the bone and served, along with the smaller joint pieces for the brave few to gnaw on. It’s quite a long and tedious process, and many people don’t make jokbal at home. In the US, it’s usually sold at Hmart or Korean butcher shops. When I was little, I remember Ellie’s mom was one of the few who used to make jokbal. Not only would she make it, she would remove all the meat and roll it up and chill it, which we would then slice, dip in sehwoojut (tiny shrimp brine, 새우젓), and devour after school. No milk and cookies for us! It was good without the hassle of all the bones. Thanks Mrs. P for the tasty memories!

This weekend, I went to visit my parents in New Jersey, and I finally had some jokbal from Hankuk Jungyuk‎ (한국 정육). (Hankuk Jungyuk‎ is a butcher shop on Broad Avenue with lots of prepared foods. The space it’s in also houses Kyedong Chicken (계동치킨), which is similar, but according to my brother, inferior to Bon Chon Chicken. The front of the store actually has two signs in Korean, Kyedong Chicken on the left and Hankuk Jungyuk on the right. Since the same owner seems to own both, for all intents and purposes I’ll be referring to the place as Hankuk Jungyuk.) My mom has been talking about the jokbal there ever since they moved to Palisades Park four years ago, but I’d always been too full gorging on one thing or another to ever try it. This time though, I was ready. Bring on the feet! MORE »
Home Cooking
Happy New Year & Happy Belated Holidays – Palisades Park
01.07.09 | Permalink | 4 Comments

Happy New Year! I’m a bit late, but better late than never I say. Not sure what 2009 will bring, but as always, I’m optimistic. 2008 is so last year anyway. Bring it 2009!!! Bring it! Now on to the food.

On Thanksgiving, my family does the traditional American turkey thing, but Christmas and New Year’s is a strictly Korean affair. This year, after the Thanksgiving cooking marathon, I told my mom we should keep it simple on Christmas and just eat some samgyupssal (삼겹살, uncured pork belly) and galbi (갈비, beef ribs). Of course, my mom always cooks up a storm anyway and made a million other dishes, but as requested we ate a lot of galbi and samgypsal (pictured above). Nothing makes me more happy than samgyupsal, except maybe samgyupsal and soju. We eat so much samgyupsal at my parent’s house, that David (who doesn’t eat pork), complains that anything we eat on the table-top grill now tastes and smells like pork after we cook it. Personally, I think this is a good thing. MORE »