Birthdays

Korean Style Chopsticks

So I may have taped Korean-style chopsticks all over my room mate's walls for her birthday...

As part of my cultural education here on the global floor, I learned that Koreans do not use the same type of silly wood chopsticks as the rest of their Asian neighbors. Instead, they use a shorter, stainless steel version. 
I have 2 Korean room mates in my apartment. Both from Seoul, both from traditional Korean families. As I had mentioned in a previous post, there is a lot of cross-cultural education going on in our little hole in the wall that we call home. Getting to the point here, one of my room mates remembered to bring her chopsticks from Korea, one forgot. Over Korean dinner one night, these funny little chopsticks came into conversation and how much the girls here missed their utensils from back home. Sounds funny, yes. But what if someone told you that instead of eating with a soup spoon you had to use a ladle? So for her birthday, I found 10 sets of Korean chopsticks on Amazon and taped them all over her walls. There was a lot of excited clapping and laughter :)

That is all for now, and I leave you with some popular Korean music (even though American tunes are most common there)

C.N. Blue - I'm a Loner (that's the translation)

Perks of Living on the International Floor

Chances are, you don't live with a bunch of Korean girls. Unless you're Korean.  Even so, I have the privilege of living with a very culinarily (if that's even a word) talented group of girls. What is the delicious looking food above you may ask? If I knew how to say/write it in Korean I would. Here's the American English summary of it...rice, pork, tofu, kimchee, amazing soup, marinated and shredded beef. Go find a Korean restaurant near you. Go. Get on Google and look for one. I'll even do it for you. Google map it. 

After a nearly silent dinner consuming the delicious plethora of food featured above, we made up for the quiet time with hours of cultural conversation after dinner.  It is certainly a life altering experience to hear about the world from a perspective halfway around the world. Never had I heard the topic of North Korea taken so lightly.  While I can vividly recall the change of leadership from Kim Jung Il to his son and the bit of fear it struck in me, the girl merely laugh. Their logic? If the North could even manage to bomb a Southern city like Seoul, the two countries' capitals are so close to one another that both would be destroyed. I found this interesting. Topics that are not so terribly controversial here however are not taken lightly to the traditional Korean. Yep, you guessed it. Sex. Because discussion of the topic is so taboo "many don't know how to even use a condom" - says my room mate. Teenage pregnancy is a commonality because the lack of education on the subject. My impression however, is that things are changing.  As more of the younger generation of Koreans travel, experience more of the world, "westernize" if you will, they appear to deviate from the traditional ways of their elders.  While some may view this as a form of rebellion, it can be seen in a more positive way as well. Traditions are preserved, while the common culture and thought process changes. Something to ponder...

And now for some tunes to accompany... Jason Mraz - Life is Wonderful

Fried Rice that even my Korean roomie LOVES

Today I received the ultimate reassurance in my cooking skills.  My Korean room mate loves my fried rice. Win.

She wants the recipe, but in all honesty I just threw some of her leftover rice in a pan and went from there. (Don't tell!)
Here's a basic summary of what's in it.

• Salmon (4oz?) that was marinated in soy sauce, Sriracha, and curry powder
• A cup of so of leftover jasmine rice
• Half a bag of frozen Asian mix veggies
• Coconut oil (so it didn't stick to the pan)

Cooked the salmon to about medium rare, set aside. Threw the veggies in the pan with the rest of the marinade the fish was in to make sure they had some flavor, added the salmon back in with the rice, some more coconut oil, and cooked until the salmon was all done! Added more soy sauce/curry/Sriracha as needed. Hello dinner for the week!

For best results, add some love and listen to some Snarky Puppy while you cook :) Bon Appétit, Enjoy, Guten Appetit, 즐겨 (korean for "enjoy")