Amidst coronavirus, I’m sticking to what I – and a lot of other people – love most: cooking and baking. One challenge I’ve presented to myself is to make a dish (or dishes) of international cuisines every week, learn some words from the language, and e-visit some of the country’s landmarks. Some of these dishes will be more complex than others, based on what ingredients I have available in the house.
I must make a confession. I am hooked on Airbnb’s online international food classes.
My recent pleasure has been that of Host Wan Jeong’s “Korean Food Revolution”, where we made two comfort food dishes: bibimbap and gyeran-guk. Wan Jeong – a freelance food writer and cookbook author – was so kind and inviting. She’s also a great admirer of that famous Italian chef Massimo Bottura, who starred in Netflix’s Chef’s Table series and a number of other cooking projects.
Prior to this cooking class, my only exposure to Korean food came through a friend’s birthday party at a Korean fried chicken restaurant in my hometown. That said, since I’m not a huge fan of fried chicken, I didn’t really get an authentic taste of Korean culture. I have become increasingly familiar with Japanese, Thai, Chinese, and Indonesian forms of cooking but I thought that Korea had a lot to offer that I wanted to learn more about. What better way to learn about a country than to start with its soul (AKA comfort food)?
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