Thing you do not see in the USA.

 The power of Korea...

Sold in the toy section at a amusement park.

Public safety robot and yes he moved his arms up and down.

Toilet paper roll by the bathroom entrance.

Self pour beer.

You go out to cook your dinner.

Creepy little dolls with man parts.

Stay sexy my friends.

Intresting Korean Pictures

I saw this and it made me think of Robin Williams, he will be missed.

It has been crazy busy here. School has started, new routines and still trying to make it in a new country. There have been so many amazing experiences here like going to temples, learning the culture.

Now to some of the better pictures...

We went on a walking tour of the older parts of Seoul. We also got to sit behind the bench of the Korean Supreme Court.

This is a exhibition at the Childrens Museum.

Some kind of leap frog game Korean kids play.

I have a lot more to put up here so a new post in a few days.

Pancakes

A pancake recipe that is good.
Ingredients-
2 Cups Flour
1/3 Cup Sugar
1tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 Tbl Cinnamon
1 Egg
2 Cups Milk
3 Tbl melted Butter
1 Tbl Vanilla


Directions-
1. Whisk dry ingredients into a mediem mixing bowl. Whisk wet ingredients into a mediem mixing bowl.
2. Combine bowls and whisk until mixed.
3. In a large frying pan over medium heat, using a 1/3 cup measuring cup add batter. Cook 2-3 minutes, you will see bubbles form on the cake flip when most of cake has bubbles. Cook 1-2 minutes on the other side...enjoy!

Vatos Urban Tacos

Tacos in Korea!!

We just had our 11th wedding anniversary (I do have a frickin amazing wife!!!) and for dinner I searched "fun places to eat in Seoul." The most popular place to pop up was "Vatos Urban Tacos", in Itaewon, a part of Seoul with a much more Western feel to it. The joint was packed (I took this as a good sign) so we found the host stand and were told an hour wait. Karen wanted a "big ass" margarita she had the "Grow a pear" (so many jokes here, did I mention I love my wife!), as we approached the bar two seats opened up next to a couple of guys in the military and had a fun conversation with them. So far the people we have meet here are kind and so helpful with anything you need. Once a group of us where looking for a subway station and we were lost(no big surprise there) and Megan asked this older man for directions. Well he didn't give us directions... he walked us to the subway station a good 10-15 minute walk and it was hot(like hot, salsa HOT!)this is how the Korean people are, this is everyday that we are embraced by kindness. Ok, back to Vatos, we started out with some chips and salsa the red was a little more spicy then the green. The green was more like a chimichurri sauce.  

CHECK OUT THOSE CHIPS!!!

We came here for the tacos, Karen ordered three of the Chili Lime Shrimp(see above picture with her big ass margarita) fried shrimp with red onion, pico, cilantro and a lime-cilantro sour cream. I was starving so I ordered two of each of the following Carnitas taco with cilantro, onion and hot sauce. Galbi short rib(Korean BBQ) taco with Asian slaw and last but not least the Chimichurri chicken tacos with salsa and lettuce. Karen liked hers and my favorite was the Galbi taco. As with many of the portions over here they were small (ok maybe normal compared to the US) Overall, we were very pleased with the food and experience of Vatos Urban Tacos and I will go back for more. BY the way, I love my wife!

One funny sign... (Karen is amazing!)

Bacon and Chive Hushpuppies

Who doesn't like hush puppies? Buford T. Justice doesn't that's who or he just doesn't have time for them. Anyone under 35 probable has no idea what I'm talking about, just one of the best movies ever. Smokey and the Bandit, you need to see it.

Ingredients-
4 Slices of bacon cooked and crumbled
1 Cup Yellow Cornmeal not stone ground
1/2 Cup Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
1 Egg
3/4 Cup Whole Milk
3/4 Cup Chives thin slice
4-6 Cups Vegetable Oil

Directions-
1. In a medium sauce pot over high heat add oil until it's about 1/2 to 2/3 full. Heat until 315-320 degrees.
2. In a mixing bowl whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and pepper.
3. In a small mixing bowl whisk egg and milk together. Add to flour, add bacon and chives and mix until just incorporated.
4. Using a tablespoon sccop mixture and add 5-7 hush puppies to oil cook for 2-3 per side, cook until golden brown add any sauce you like we used ranch...enjoy!

Korea

This sign cracked me up.

Well, when you need to find one or do you go to the original.

There is a trend here that younger couples wear the same clothes or matching outfits.

 The guy might have his own matching purse or carry his girlfriend's purse.

Let's all remember to be...

The street we live on

Watermelon here is super expensive, that is $18,800(on sale from $21,800) won or $18.80 US currency for a watermelon. I don't know why it cost so much or why it baffles me that a watermelon can cost $18 (another idea to learn!). We live by Gachon University it is a medical school. The main street by us, Bokjeong-ro, is about a mile and a half long and filled with stores, markets, coffee shops and two french bakeries. The first time Murphy and I walked around was at 4:00am, after our first night here. We have done a lot of walking around at weird times(2:00am, 4:30am,5:30am) getting over the jet lag.The names of restaurants are kind of funny like Donky Chicken, Pork Fork, Pizza School, Momma's Burgers, Thunder Chicken or our favorite Johnson(yes it is just Johnson). The one thing I don't know, if there are more coffee shops or pubs? There are 1-2 coffee shops on each block on each side of the street and half the restaurants call themselves pubs. There are 6-7 markets on our little street, they all carry the same things but price really varies. It was a little overwhelming at first with everything being new and not knowing what anything says or the funny looks we had at 2:00 in the morning, father and son walking down the street. We have been here a week now, we still find all sorts of new various and sundry items and it is starting to feel a little like home.

1st Trip to the food market

Our first produce finds....delish!

We explored the Garak Market (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garak_Market) today on a typical balmy day as it is monsoon season right now. All I have to say is wow! The pictures we took do not do it justice, it was HUGE! We hopped on the subway(an adventure of it's own) five stops and one train change later we where at the market. As lost Americans we went the wrong way and wandered around the block(which was two downtown Denver blocks put together) and in the gate for restaurants or grocery stores, bought a flat of grapes. We dodged big trucks and stumbled our way to the smaller stalls. As a chef in a new setting, seeing all of the produce was overwhelming! Items I knew and somethings I had no clue, but what really caught my eye, were all the different mushrooms. We'd look at one stall and there would be 5-7 different mushrooms the next stall would have 3-4 different kinds,some I worked with (thanks to the big budget at Vi and the chefs there!) and others no clue. Karen, was impressed and excited about the garlic. 6-7 20lb bags of pealed garlic. The smell was intoxicating! We bought a 1-1/2lb bag then the ladies ground it for you. The prices where  cheap! In the above picture 3kg(1kg=2.2lb) of potatoes 2 dollars, 2kg mushrooms 2 dollars the garlic was 5 dollars and is going to be worth every penny. We spent 25 dollars on everything on the table(Murphy told me not to forget about the carrots), they are the size of my wrist and about 6-8 inches long and again 2kg 2 dollars. I will be going back there at least once a week for all our produce and we didn't even find the meat section! Below is a slide show of our adventure!

Steak Sandwich

A pretty quick sandwich to make, we are all about the quick meals right now. The kitchen is all packed so we will be eating sandwiches and other non-cooking meals. Packing is a little over whelming at times having piles of things you think you need to ship and think you might need over there. All it really comes down to is how much stuff do you really need, in the last ten days we have gone to Goodwill with a car load of stuff eight times. There is another box already filling up right now to donate, it feels good getting rid of this stuff we once thought was important but never really needed. Anyways I will stop rambling and end with a simple statement, this sandwich rocks.
Ingredients-
1 Red Onion cut into strips.
1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 Cup Spreadable Cheese, I used Boursin you can use what ever you like.
2 Lb Beef Strip steak(or tenderloin) cut into strips 1/2 inch wide 2 inches long
4 Buns I used Ciabatta Bread
1 Tbl Oil

Lemon Garlic Aioli-
1/2 Cup Mayo
2 Lemons squeezed
1 Tbl Diced Garlic

Directions-
1. In a medium mixing bowl add mayo and garlic, juice one lemon and mix. Taste it you may need to add the other lemon or half of it. It should have a good lemon and garlic taste adjust it so you like it.
2. In a large saute over medium heat add oil, once hot add onion and saute for 5-6 minutes then add the balsamic mix it up well and cook for 4-6 more minutes.
3. In a medium saute pan over medium heat add 1 TBL oil once hot add beef and saute for5-7 minutes.
4. Spread cheese on the bun add beef, onions and drizzle aioli over the beef and onion...enjoy!

Watermelon Gazpacho

Ingredients-
1 Large seedless Watermelon
1 20oz can of Diced Pineapple
1/2 Cantaloupe
17-20 Fresh Mint Leaves
1 12oz can of Ginger Ale

Directions-
1. Remove rinds from the watermelon and cantaloupe, de-seed the cantaloupe and 1/2 inch dice. Cut the watermelon in half, the first half 1 inch dice this half will be blended. The other half 1/2 inch dice and put aside.
2. In a blender add the pineapple juice and half the ginger ale(you may need to do this in batches) and the mint. Add the watermelon and blend. This is my little blender I had to use.

3. Ok this maybe the former drunk in me but if you added some rum right here and made this a drink it would be awesome. Pour watermelon juice to a large bowl add the cantaloupe and the pineapple and let it sit in the fridge for two hours... enjoy!

Flank Steak

There is nothing better then firing up the grill letting it get hot, cleaning it. Then bringing out your meat and seeing that you are out of gas for the grill. Nothing makes my day like running out of propane, it's kind of like going to the store to get stuff for dinner and forgetting the one item that makes that meal great.

Ingredients-
Flank Steak whatever size you want
Sides I did rice, baked potatoes and a veggie mixture that had onions, peppers and broccoli.

Marinade-
1 Cup Soy Sauce
1/4 Cup Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 Cup Red Wine
1 Lemon Juiced
1 Tbl Salt and Pepper
1 Tbl Thyme
1 Tbl Marjoram Leaves

Directions-
1. Put all marinade ingredients into a large mixing bowl add flank steak and let it sit in the fridge for 3-4 hours.
2. Fire up the grill(if it has gas) cook on both sides until internal temp. is 135 degrees for a rare steak.
3. If out of gas turn on oven to 325 degrees cook until internal temp. is 135.
4. Boil and strain the marinade for a sauce... enjoy

Street Tacos

I have not been posting much lately! We have one month until we move to South Korea. Things are starting to get crazy, last minute things to buy and ship. Putting your stuff in categories like stuff to take, stuff to ship, stuff to store and stuff for Goodwill. This just feels crazy weird to me... at least we are purging a lot of things(and keeping Goodwill well stocked) it's crazy the amount of stuff you can accumulate, that at one point you thought you needed. This process really makes us think about what we want and what we need. Ok, off the soap box, this is an easy 20 minute meal that tastes awesome we make this at work 2-3 times a week. During this insane time here at home we are all about simple meals (especially if it is all in one tortilla!).

Ingredients-
Flour or Corn Tortillas
1 Medium Onion diced
1 1/2 Cup White Rice
1 Jalapeno sliced
1/4 Cup Cilantro
1-2 Tbl Cumin
1 Lb Beef(I used tenderloin use what you have or what is on sale)
2 Tbl Oil
1 Lb Cheddar Cheese

Directions-
1. Cook rice as directed but add the cumin to the water (This flavors the rice throughly).
2. Cut beef into strips 1/2 inch wide 2 inches long.
3. In a large saute pan over medium heat add oil. Once the oil is hot add onion, jalapeno, beef and cilantro. Cook for 5-7 minutes add salt and pepper to taste.
4. In a medium saute pan over medium low heat warm up you tortillas if using corn add a little bit of oil to the pan.
5. Once rice is done, add rice to tortilla add beef and onion mixture and cheese...enjoy

Beef Sliders

I love sliders just about any kind of them, so at work I had to come up with a special so I made sliders.

Ingredients-
2 Lb Ground Beef 80-20
Slider buns(I used Hawaiian sweet rolls)
1 Tbl Oil
What ever you want to top them with, the ones in the picture have bacon and cheddar the other is blue cheese.

Directions-
1. Make 16 equal sized balls around 2oz. Press the balls flat so that they are about a half inch thick.
2. In a large saute pan over medium high heat add oil let it heat up so that it swirls around the pan like water would. Place 5-8 patty's in the pan cook 2-3 minutes a side, cook all the patty's.
3. Plate the with what ever you like add some sides... enjoy!

Stuffed Portabella Mushroom

My wife is still on a vegetarian kick. I made mine with ground beef.

Ingredients-
4 Portabella Mushrooms de-stem and the ribs scraped off
1 Cup Quinoa cooked as directed
12-15 Asparagus stalks 1/4 inch dice
1 Medium Shallot diced
1 Tbl Fresh Tarragon minced
1 Tbl Garlic minced
1 4oz Package of Goat Cheese crumbled
2 Tbl Butter

Directions-
1. Cook the quinoa as directed with water or chicken stalk add the tarragon at the start.
2. In a medium saute pan over medium heat add butter, garlic, shallots and asparagus and cook for 5-6 minutes. Put mixture in to a medium mixing bowl. Turn on oven to 350 degrees.
3. When the quinoa is finished drain any extra water and add to mixing bowl with the veggies. Add the goat cheese and mix together.
4. Evenly add the quinoa to the portabellas and put on a sheet tray and put into the oven for 18-20 minutes. Garnish with what ever you like I did tomatoes and avocado, I used up the rest of the asparagus as a side...enjoy!

Tocabe Pictures

 This is the stuffed taco.

The ribs and yes I shared them.

My friend Jesus at work does all kinds of food animals for Sunday brunch, here is a turtle.

My first restaurant review: Tocabe

     

       It is a good thing my father is a bodyman(he fixes cars) because my wife drives by touch. When she touches something with her car she has gone too far!  She dropped her car  off last week to get it fixed and the rental car made it thought without a dent. Car repaired...it was dinner time and he lives by this restaurant we saw on Diners, Drive- ins and Dives. Tocabe an American Indian Eatery, (www.tocabe.com) the first thing that catches your eye when you walk in are three large hands carved out of wood, they represent the three villages of the Osage Nation: Pawhuska, Hominy, and Greyhorse. It has a warm, friendly and open sitting area, it is set up like those two other burrito restaurants that start with a "Q" and "C" minus the chain store feel. The staff was awesome! One guy came around and explained the menu to us, he even had my hungry(and very grumpy) son excited to order. My wife had the vegetarian Indian taco which consisted of Indian fried bread(like a giant sopapia) black beans, veggies, toppings and mild salsa on the side(yes she is a wimp). I had the Indian taco with the shredded bison, chili beans...ok I could keep going on with what else I had on it but the bison was the star of the show. It melted in my mouth and the flavor was out of this world I could of eaten my weight in the bison it was that good.

        We finished eating and were completely satisfied! Then out came the bison ribs someone else ordered and my eyes made me hungry again! They looked amazing it had a slight charred look and came with a homemade berry barbecue sauce and fry bread. I was watching, ok I was drooling over, the lady that ordered them, as she took her first bite it looked like she went to another planet. Her husband even asked if it was really that good and could he have a bite? She said yes it was that good and no he could not have a bite. So now we have to go there again just to have the ribs and see if they are worth getting a divorce over.

       I had some pictures but they where all blurry and did not do the ambinace or food justice. So when we go again I will post some for you guys. If you have not tried Tocabe run don't walk to get there you will not be disappointed http://tocabe.com/locations.php, the staff and the food make it a great night. My eight year old loved it and said "Daddy you need to learn to cook this stuff." I will leave it to them you don't want to mess with perfection.

Banana Fosters Pancakes

A perfect Sunday morning feast!
At work this week we made banana fosters all week as a dessert with vanilla ice cream(this did not suck!). I love this as a breakfast with pancakes or french toast. The bananas soak up the sugar and evolve into that perfect consistency. I have played with this using plantains which are great and a heartier texture. They take a little longer to cook.
 I tried four different pancake recipes but I didn't really like any of them enough to post it here, so just use what ever pancake batter you like. I am still seeking that perfect pancake recipe... Let me know if you have a great one!
I also wrote this as a one person per serving.

Ingredients-
1/2 Banana sliced
3 Tbl Butter
2 Tbl Brown Sugar
1oz Rum
Pancake batter

Directions-
1. Make your pancakes and hold them in the oven at 170 degrees.
2. In a medium saute pan over medium heat add butter, once melted add your brown sugar and cook for  60-90 seconds. Plate up your pancakes.
3. Add bananas and cook for 45 seconds flip over bananas and cook for 30 more seconds.
4. Add rum and flambe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1QcTtMrkpE here is a video to help. Once the flame goes out pour bananas and sauce over the pancakes ...enjoy!

Pan Seared Striped Bass

I paired this with some sauted yellow squash, zuccini and a baker. You can add what ever sides you like, my wife wanted a suace but it didn't stop her from eating all of this.
Ingredients-
4 Bass Fillets
3 Tbl Butter
1/4 Cup White Wine
1 Pinch of each Salt, Pepper and Herb De Provence

Directions-
1. Heat medium saute pan over medium high heat and add butter, once melted add bass skin side down. Add salt, pepper and herbs and cook for 4-5 minutes. Before you flip it add wine, flip it over and let it cook for 3-4 more minutes, turn it back over and give it another minute or so...enjoy!

Strawberry and Blueberry Grilled Cheese with White Cheddar

A server brought this idea to work and the first thing we thought was why white cheddar? I thought brie would play so well with the berries. So we made one with brie and it was just ok, so we tried the cheddar and it was so much better. I was a little disappointed in the brie but the cheddar nailed it.

Ingredients-
1 1Lb package Strawberries tops cut off and quartered
1 6oz pack blueberries
1Lb shredded White Cheddar
2 Tbl Balsamic Vinegar
3 Tbl Sugar
2 Tbl Olive Oil

Directions-
1. In a medium saute pan over medium heat add strawberries, balsamic and sugar and saute for 8-10 minutes. Taste it and make sure you like it add more sugar if you like it really sweet.Turn on oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium saute pan over medium heat add olive oil and blueberries saute for 4-6 minutes or until you see little blue spots in the oil this means your berries are cooked.
3. On one piece of bread butter one side or use mayo, add your blueberries and as much cheddar as you like. Put it in the over until the cheese is gooey, take out of oven. Butter and add strawberries to the other piece of bread, don't add a lot of strawberries because the bread gets soggy.
4. In a large saute pan over medium heat add your piece of blueberry bread and your strawberry bread, cook for a minute or so. Add the strawberry bread to the other piece and remove from heat and plate it with what ever sides you like... enjoy!

Green Chili and Apple Pork Chops with Roasted Brussel Sprouts

I had to use up some pork porterhouse chops at work and they where huge 12oz of awesomeness. I thought a apple and green chili on top would add some different elements to it, a little sweet and spicy.

Ingredients-
3 Apples peeled, cored and sliced
4 Tbl Butter
1 Tbl Cinnamon
1 Tbl Brown Sugar
1 4oz Can Green Chilies diced
4 Pork Chops
1 Lb Brussels Sprouts
1/2 Cup Oil
1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar

Directions-
1. Add butter to medium saute pan over medium high heat, once hot and butter is melted add apples, brown sugar and cinnamon. Saute until apples are soft 7-9 minutes add green chilies cook for 2-3 more minutes.
2. Turn oven to 350. Clean and cut sprouts in half put into mixing bowl add oil and balsamic and toss. Pour onto a sheet tray and put into oven and cook for 10-15 minutes.
3. Turn on grill and grill chops until reach internal temp reaches 135-145 degrees.
4. Plate as shown in picture… enjoy!