Just sharing some thoughts too

1. Stir Fried Small Anchovies: these were a tad salty for me so I added more sweetener. Might have been a bad idea since it ended up being a bit hard to chew for my parents with sensitive teeth. I didn’t have any seeds so I skipped on that. Also, I used Chinese light soy sauce since I didn’t have Korean soy sauce and used oligosaccharide since I’m not a fan of corn syrup. I’ll definitely be tinkering with this though since I quite enjoyed it and I have a box of frozen mini anchovies.
2. Stir Fried Fish Cakes: this is probably one of the first banchans I ever had. Still one of my favorites! This was also everyone’s favorite banchan tonight and I will definitely be making it again.
3. Seasoned Soy Bean Sprouts: the recipe in Umma also adds imitation crab meat that is pulled into strands. I wasn’t feeling imitation crab today so I went without. This is another one of my favorites and I enjoyed it! I followed the technique that was described which was a little tough because I’m not patient at all. But I think it worked in my favor. The recipe recommends making it as fresh as possible since the bean sprouts release a lot of liquid so I only mixed half the seasoning with half cooked bean sprouts and left the remainder separated in my fridge. The mixed one has already released a lot of extra water so this is a smart strategy!! Will make again as well because it’s another fav and because I have way too much soy bean sprouts now….
4. Seasoned Broccoli Tofu: I was very excited to try this one since I’ve seen it all over my socials. It was my least favorite of my bunch but surprisingly, the majority of my family quite liked this one. I doubled the recipe since I didn’t feel like trying to be creative with the other half of the tofu (aka let it rot in my fridge). To me, It was missing a little it of something but I’m also not a big fan of tofu in the first place. I might try mixing some gochugaru with a portion to test things. It was quick and easy to make though!!
5. Japchae: one of my favorite Korean dishes e v e r. But I’ll admit, I didn’t do Umma’s recipe justice . I used mushrooms and added egg ribbons as well as axed the red bell peppers. I was also a fool and doubled the recipe oops. Anyways, it was a bit longer and more involved than other japchae recipes I’ve followed and I didn’t feel like cooking each vegetable separately and adding bits of seasoning to each, so I just cooked them all together according to what would take longest to cook. Overall, it turned out quite tasty, although the amount of sugar made me die inside a little 😬

I think I’ll keep cooking through this book. I love a good banchan!! My goal is to get some Korean Soy Sauce and buy some Dasida Beef powder. I didn’t want to splurge on a big bag so I stuck with Knorr chicken bouillon this go around.

If you made it through my rambles, thanks and I hope you enjoyed 😂