Tofu "Bulgogi" and Kimchi Fried Rice {vegetarian}

This is one of those posts where I confess that I have no fascinating story to share with you that relates to the dish I am about to describe. Escapades involving rice, Korean food, tofu, and runny fried eggs neither lurk in my past nor are buried deep in my unconscious.

It's just a good dish, and that is all.

Nontraditional Naengmyeon: Spicy Cold Korean Noodles and the Gonchu Giveaway Winner

Necessity has driven us all to do it at some point in our cooking careers, but I am really not a fan of that whole "kitchen sink" school of making dinner. You know, that thing where you just sort of take every little odd and end in your fridge and throw it in a pot and call it Kitchen Sink Pasta or Kitchen Sink Soup or Kitchen Kink Surprise.

Kitchen Sink Mess is more like it.

That said, I did have to employ a bit of that approach here, as I wanted cold Korean noodles (like the ones I had at the Korean American Festival) but I was not equipped to make the real, authentic thing - my most egregious substitution in this dish is Japanese soba noodles instead of Korean buckwheat noodles. I think it worked, though, because I stuck to a theme and didn't just toss any random thing into the pot. This is truly a simple and refreshing dish with huge flavor, and it was just the thing Poppa Trix and I needed on a sweltering hot night.

Hansik: A Korean Pop Up Restaurant Experience with Chef Akira Back at the Summer Fancy Food Show, My Two-Year Blogoversary, & a Giveaway

Above: Me, chilling in the kitchen space of Hansik with Chef Akira Back (far right)and his staff

Below: A Korean treat wonderland in the Korea Pavilion

I am, at long last, back from my self-imposed two week blogging respite/hiatus ... and I come bearing gifts! There, that got your attention. But I am getting ahead of myself.

Now, I certainly wouldn't want to bore you with every last excruciating detail of the past two weeks, so I'll skip to the good stuff: I went as a member of the press (both as a food journalist and as a blogger ... so many personas, so little time) to the Summer Fancy Food Show in Washington, D.C., where I was faced with a dizzying array of foods from 2,400 exhibitors hailing from 80-plus countries. And I had to try to taste it all! The horror.

Korean American Fest: Colors, Music, and Fab, Fab Food

Yes, yes, I know this is a food blog, but the traditional costumes at the recent Korean American Festival - held in downtown Baltimore on a broiling hot September Sunday - were just too gorgeous, too colorful, and too darn pink for me to resist.

Spicy Korean Tacos, L.A. Taco Truck Style, for the International Incident Taco Party

I have never been to Los Angeles (*gasp*) but if I ever do find myself there, I know the very first thing I want to eat. Hmmm ... will I race to Mr. Chow's? Run to Mario Batali's Mozza? Skip to Matsuhisa?  No, no and no: What I really and truly long to do is taste one of Chef Roy Choi's Korean/Mexican fusion tacos. I envy the Angelenos who get to enjoy the amazing creations that come out of his Kogi Korean BBQ  taco truck. How could these things not be amazing?

Daytime Drinking: Soju & a Movie

 

 Above: A very strong drink

Below: Daytime Drinking movie poster

Back in December, a rep from Eleven Arts contacted me to see if I wanted to review the South Korean independent film Daytime Drinking, to coincide with its New Orleans premier. I was a bit bemused, as film reviewing is something I've done in my other life as a journalist, but not as a blogger.  I've only ever blogged about food and drink. But, given that the film was clearly about something near and dear to my heart - booze - I thought it would be fun.