The One Korean Dish You Have No Excuse to Not Make
Have you always wanted things to get more personal between you and Korean cuisine but the restaurant near you only offers a few overpriced options? No matter how hard you look for the products you need, they never seem to be available at the supermarket? Indeed, products like kimchi, red chili paste, etc. are unique to Korean culture; and therefore, very expensive and hard (if not impossible) to find in some parts of the world. But nothing can really stop us from becoming our own chef master in the kitchen, right?
Today, the Fever Guys Fam would like to turn your attention to a traditional Korean dish that is not only super quick and easy to make, but also extremely delicious and filling! It's name says it all—gogumabap (고구마밥)—a mix of sweet potatoes (goguma) and rice (bap). When we first tried it, we could not believe our taste receptors and stomachs could be dancing with happiness like that!
INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED:
· 1 cup of short grain rice
· 1-2 sweet potatoes (depending on their size)
· Water
Is that it? Yes, believe it or not, that is all you need! Now, onto cooking!
- Put the short grain rice in a medium-sized pot, and rinse it a couple of times until the water runs clean.
- Then, pour 2 cups of water and put the pot away for a while. Usually, the time that will take you to peel* and cut the sweet potatoes will be enough.
- Cut the sweet potatoes in cubes and add them to the pot with the rice!
- Bring the pot to a boil over medium heat. After around 10-15 minutes, open the lid and turn over the rice and the sweet potatoes in order to mix them a little.
- Close the lid again and let it simmer for another 15-20 minutes. Keep checking** until both the rice and the sweet potatoes are soft, that means they are cooked!
*Sweet potatoes are nutritious for your body as much as they are for your soul. Sweet and healthy is a combination anyone can dream of, isn’t it?! It is a personal preference but you can either peel the sweet potatoes or leave them with the skin on.
**Add more water if you feel like the rice is sticking to the bottom of the pot.
INGREDIENTS FOR THE SEASONING:
· ½ cup of chopped green onions
· ¼ cup of soy sauce
· 1 tsp of hot pepper flakes
· 1 tsp honey or sugar
· 2 Tbs of vinegar
Ta-daa! Now, after our meal is cooked, here comes the magic! To add the actual "Korean" flavor, and give the meal our final touch, we have to make the sauce.
Using the still-hot stove top, mix all of the ingredients listed in a small bowl, for the honey/sugar to melt down with the rest. You can make your own gogumabap version by getting creative and adding sesame seeds, minced garlic, parsley, etc.
(A secret tip from us: Although this is not by the recipe, personal experience shows that adding mustard to the seasoning makes the flavor even more unique.)
Serve the gogumabap in bowls and pour the sauce over it. Enjoy!
For more sweet potato deliciousness, check out Sweet Potato Love in Korea!
Written by Monica Boyadzhieva
