Kimchi and Korean Pancake Cooking Class at Purple Yam

Haegeen Kim making her green radish kimchi on KIMCHI DAY at Purple Yam (usually Tuesdays)

We love to showcase Asian home cooking at Purple Yam.  Other than our own beloved cooking of the Philippines, we also serve Korean dishes from the heart of our Korean chef, Haegeen Kim, who cooks dishes she learned from her mom in Seoul.  Haegeen says that her mom was and is an intimidating presence in the kitchen often shooing them away from the kitchen when Haegeen was growing up with her siblings in Korea.  But now, that relationship has deepened into a loving relationship based on sharing little secrets that make recipes special via phone on a weekly basis.  So on Saturday, Dec. 4, when Haegeen sits down to teach you about Korean kimchi and pancakes, you will not only learn how to make them well, but she will share with you a part of her family and country.

Kimchi and Korean Pancake Cooking Class with Haegeen Kim of Purple Yam,  Sat., Dec 4, 2010, 12 noon – 4 pm

To register:

Note: this class is vegetarian-friendly Saturday, December 4, 2010, 12 noon – 4 pm Location: Purple Yam, 1314 Cortelyou Road, between Rugby and Argyle, Brooklyn Subway: Q to Cortelyou (about a 30-minute ride from Union Square) Cost: $45 (for cooking class including lunch, but excluding gratuity) Signup link: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/139223

Kim-chang day is an important culinary tradition in Korea. On this day, Koreans prepare for the cold winter season ahead by making massive amounts of spicy, warming kimchi to last their family until springtime. It is usually in November, when the cabbages and radishes are harvested (often with a light dusting of snow), and the labor of making large tubs of kimchi is shared by family and friends. Just as with Filipino adobo, every Korean declares that their mother’s kimchi is the best in the country (a point it is best not to argue).

In this vegetarian-friendly kimchi class, we will learn to make two of the most popular radish kimchies (bae-choo-kimchi and kak-doo-gi) and one brothy winter kimchi (dong-chi-mi) using materials that can be easily purchased from local grocery stores. We will also prepare two dishes that use kimchi as main ingredients: kimchi stew (kimchi-jigae) and mung bean pancake (bin-dae-duck). We will also make jaeyuk, a simple pork belly dish that is part of Haegeen Kim’s family tradition on kim-chang day. To soothe our palates after eating spicy kimchi, we will finish the meal with sweet rice flour sesame balls (kyung-dan) which are similar to Filipino espasol, and ginger-cinnamon tea (su-jung-gwa).

Please bring a small jar to take home some kimchi (if you don’t have a jar, we can provide one).

Please note: Payment is non-refundable, so be sure you can attend before you sign up. Gratuity and drinks (besides coffee and tea) are not included in the class fee. Signup will close at noon on Friday, Dec 3 (24 hours before the class), so be sure to sign up before then.

Any questions? Call Christina Newhard at 917-309-3360 or email purple.yam.nyc@gmail.com.

Short description of the dishes (vegetarian dishes are in green*):

Napa cabbage kimchi

*Bae-choo-kimchi: Napa cabbage kimchi using radish, green onion, chives, garlic, ginger, sugar and pepper powder (go-choo-garoo). We will use sea salt for this one (non-vegetarians can experiment with fish sauce instead).

Radish kimchi

Kak-doo-gi: Cubed radish kimchi with green onion, garlic, ginger, sugar and pepper powder and for salting, salted small shrimp (se-oo-jut) will be used since that is the ‘known’ way of making this kimchi.

Winter Kimchi

*Dong-chi-mi: An excellent hangover cure, various radishes and cabbages are used for this mild, brothy winter kimchi. Pepper powder or chilies can be added for spice. We will experiment with some vegetables and fruits from the farmer’s market on Cortelyou.

*Kimchi-ji-gae: A sizzling pot of stew using very fermented cabbage kimchi with either tofu + dashi broth (vegetarian) or pork belly (for meat-eaters).

Jae-yuk: Boiled pork belly in broth of fermented bean paste (du-en-jang or Korean miso sauce), ginger, onion and scallion.

Making cabbage kimchi--salting and adding pepper paste

Everything needs to be thoroughly mixed

Kimchi is salted and a little bit of starch is added to promote fermentation which is responsible for the sourness of kimchi (not vinegar as many people mistakenly assume).