Allie's Bulgogi Lunch

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Aim high in your career but stay humble in your heart. ~ Korean Proverb

Allie invited Helen and I to her place for lunch. It's her way of thanking both of us for helping her move to her new place earlier. Since she is Korean, she showed us how Bulgogi is eaten the right way ... using hands. :-)

Bulgogi is a popular Korean beef dish, a kind of Korean barbecue. It is made from marinated steak that is cut into thin strips before cooking. Bulgogi is a specialty dish served when guests visit or eaten in restaurants. The dish is also often served to non-Koreans as a first taste of Korean cuisine.

Instead of barbequing it, Allie pan fried the sliced beef strips. She pan fried it with lots of slices onions, green onions and garlic. The cooking smelt good.

Koreans loves kimchi and have that as a side dish in almost every meal. So, Allie made two types of kimchis. The traditional kimchi (fermented cabbage) was made by her mother-in-law. Even the cabbage was grown on their own. Many Korean households made their own kimchis and I was told that many households too have a separate fridge just to store the kimchis! I will try to ask Allie to show me how to make them once her batch is finished.

Did you know that early forms of kimchi consisted mainly of salted greens as chili peppers and were introduced to Korea only in the 16th century by Portuguese traders coming from Japan? The introduction of cabbage in making kimchi probably did not occur until the 19th century before that, kimchi was made from indigenous vegetables.

Allie made another type of kimchi from cucumber and carrot. I have never tried this type before. Taste a lot like the cabbage kimchi but it a lot more crunchier. I like it.

She also bought some dumplings and fried them for the kids. She fried it so well ... looks yummy right?

Thanks a lot Allie for the lunch.