“What’s cooking? Um.. K-food?” they asked.
“More like yum food!” I replied.
Well, that is a lame beginning. It sounded okay in my head though. Now let’s begin again.
I do not know where exactly I should start because Korean cuisine and I go way back. I do not even remember what my first dish was. But I will tell you of the food story mostly through pictures. I have a very few pictures because I forget about clicking (majority of the time) when food is there. That’s every foodie’s struggle!!
(Since all the pictures can not be put in between the text, I will add a video of few selected pictures at the end.)
To give a little background, the place I am from is very similar in food prep and culture to Korea. The culture of multitude of side dishes (반찬 or banchan), taste of certain food, and even some etiquettes match too.
Korean food that I love cooking:
The first meal (Korean) that I cooked all by myself was Kimchi-jjigae (김치찌개). I do not know why I decided that. It just felt so natural that time.
Later that day, I ended up making Jajangmyeon (자장면) too (which is considered as Chinese food in Korea).
Both tasted better than I had ever expected and that boosted my confidence a little bit.I continued cooking more Korean food every now and then. In fact, last year (in December), I prepared a few Korean dishes for my parents. I made Bibimbap (비빔밥), Yachae-hotteok (야채-호떡), and Kimbap (김밥).
They loved it and hence I ended up making different varieties of Kimbap every other day for an entire week. Needless to say, Bibimbap feels like a soul food now.
Korean restaurants I loved eating at:
There are a couple of places (in the city I live in) that serve Korean food, but authenticity is a big question mark. My go to place these days is a small Korean home kitchen.
It is owned by a Korean person and the taste is as authentic as it can get with ingredients that are only partly Korean. I love their Fried Chicken (치킨) and Kimchi Bokkeumbap (김치 볶음밥).
Apart from my regular place, I like the Korean food served in Taiki (Bengaluru) as well.
The most happening one was my first visit to Arirang (A Korean restaurant in Bengaluru). It’s not your fancy restaurant. It has a traditional (식당) sikdang/restaurant vibe… the ones that one would often encounter in Kdramas. As you enter Arirang, you will be welcomed by an array of BTS posters.
A good start, no one would complain on that. There are few private/family rooms and few of them are in the common dine-in area. Each table has an assortment of the usual suspects: chopsticks, spoons, tissues, a grill (for the bbq), and a call-in bell. They have a decently extensive menu as well.
The first time I went there:
The serving staff were prompt and responded almost immediately to the call-in button. They told me that the food that I was ordering would be too much, quantity-wise. But what a foodie can do? I ended up ordering more, nevertheless. Why can’t we make place for food that we want to eat!? The side dishes (반찬 or banchan) were served first. The food arrived soon after.
The dak bokkeumtang (닭볶음탕) was served on a mini stove top. It had a very familiar taste… it tasted very similar to my home chicken curry (it’s a family recipe). Nostalgia and amazement hit me together.
The mandu was good too but I have had better. But the overall experience was awesome. And the day that followed this experience was no exception- it was as memorable as it can get. That’s a story for some other day. Let’s put that on pause for now. I am off to grab a dessert! Enjoy the video.
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