Korea Life and Cultures

Both the MR and Munchkin *LOVE* squid. When we go to a Chinese restaurant, Munchin is not like other kids. He doesn't ask for jja-jang-myun at all and will instead ask for jjam-bbong AKA the noodles with ojinguh. =P

We took advantage of the long weekend and headed out to Santa Monica Beach yesterday. We acted like total tourists and rented bicycles and zipped up and down the beach. If you haven't done this with your child yet, you must!

Munchkin had a blast! Next time, we will take his bike with us though since the rental was kinda old and rickety. I kept thinking that the training wheels were going to fall off any second. hehe.

Anyhow, after our day at the beach we headed to K-town to stock up on groceries.



They had *gook-san* squid so I bought 3! Two for the ojinguh bokeum and one for the ojinguh gook.



Start off by gutting your squids and on the stove bring a large pot of water to a boil.



While the water is boiling, get your veggies ready. I used 1/2 onion, 1/2 carrot, 1/2 squash, 5 mushrooms, 1 red pepper, and 1 green pepper.



Once the water is boiling, throw in all the ojinguhs in there and just sift it around flipping it over and making sure it's almost all done.



Rinse all the squid under cool water and then start cleaning it.



I like to take off all the skin and I will also cut off all the ends of the tentacles and take off all the suction thingies. Grossed out yet? ;)



After it's all cleaned, cut it up into pieces using a knife and cutting board.



In a little bowl mix together the following: 3TB of red pepper paste, 2TB red pepper powder, 1TB minced garlic, 1TB corn syrup, 1 TB cooking wine, 1TB honey powder, 3TB sugar, 2TB gook ganjang, 1TB soy sauce, 1 TB sesame seeds, 1 TB sesame oil and a dash of pepper.

Whew! That seems like a lot of stuff, huh?



I defrosted some dduk as well!



Get your skillet ready. Splash some oil and add a tablespoon of minced garlic.

Saute all the veggies except the mushrooms first.



Throw in about half the sauce and keep mixing!



After the veggies look about half done...



Throw in the squid (I used roughly 2 squids), the dduk, and mushrooms.



Add in the remaining sauce and keep mixing!



Throw in some green onions...



Get everything thoroughly mixed and cook it together for about 5-10 minutes.



And you're ready to serve!



Munchkin can normally eat this as is, but the new gochujang is a bit spicy so he takes a bowl of water and washes it off himself as he eats. Yes, there is no denying that my kid is Korean. =)

I hope everyone is having a fantastic Memorial Day Weekend! Don't forget to take a moment and give tribute to all the soldiers who gave up their lives for us.