N Tower Vlog

Seoul N Tower is a landmark in Seoul, and the N stands for 남산 (Namsan = south mountain). We took a cable car up the mountain and spent the afternoon checking out the many shops, enjoying the views, and exploring the nooks and crannies. It felt like half park, half strip mall! It was actually around $17 for the cable car tickets (17,000 won to be exact). The worst part was that we underestimated the walk from the subway station to the cable car, which was long and uphill! The best part was definitely the view! I love seeing new aspects of this city, and up there, you can see forever.

먹방 (Mukbang) Monday: Kimchi Fried Rice

볶음밥 (Bokkeumbap) is Korean Fried Rice. There are so many different varieties, but my favorite 볶음밥 is Kimchi! It is so easy, and as a new wife and a new Korean homecook, simple meals are definitely the best!



Let me know your favorite 볶음밥 (Bokkeumbap = Fried Rice) in the comments!

먹방 (Mukbang) Monday: Better Ramen

5 Improvements on Classic Ramen

These fried noodles are cheap, easy, and yummy. While a cup of noodles isn't a balanced meal, you can use these tips to make your ramen slightly more healthy and even more delicious!
1) Buy Better Ramen
Top Ramen doesn't cut it! Get yourself to an Asian market and buy real ramen. You can even pick up flavors like seafood or spicy ramen. Unfortunately, when it comes to ramen, the pricier the better.
2) Use Stock
Recently we made some beef bone broth. On that day, we happened to have ramen for lunch. Seong just scooped some broth into the ramen pot in the place of water. The result? The best ramen ever! He also used half the seasoning packet, so it had less sodium!
3) Add Veggies
We start ramen with garlic and onion sauteeing with some oil. Then add stock or water and seasoning. When it comes to a boil, add the noodles and other mix-ins, like green onions, mushrooms, or chunks of tofu! We even throw some cooked dumplings in sometimes.
4) Finish With an Egg
Right before serving, crack an egg into the pot. Don't let the yolk break, just let the boiling water cook it through.
5) Eat with Side Dishes
We love eating ramen with kimchi (of course), seaweed (cruchy and salty), and 단무지 (tanmuji = yellow picked radishes).

Do you have another "ramen method"? Leave a comment!
Check back next week for another 먹방 (Mukbang Monday)!

Bucket List + Everyday

If you look above this post, you will now see a new page: Our Bucket List!! In an effort to make the most of this year, we've made a list of the things we want to do before we leave. The list will definitly change as we hear about new things, but as we check things off, we will add links to the corresponding posts! Since we haven't done anything SUPER interesting recently, here are some very every-day things we have been doing.
I have been exploring the large shopping malls and markets around Seoul that offer specialized goods. Dongdaemun has loads and loads of fabric and jewelry, and I only had time to shop on one floor!

We recycle every Wednesday!

I'm attempting to learn 1500 Korean vocab words before 2015. I use the large built-in white board in our office room to write them out!

We drink tea and coffee. This is Honey Citron Tea, which is like jam that is mixed with hot water to make instant tea!

The on-post library is an excellent place to get movies and books. We just got some Korean cookbooks, so I hope we can incorporate more Korean food into our home cooking!

And occasionally we take walks and eat street food. In this case it was waffles shaped like fish and filled with red bean paste. Yum!

먹방 (Mukbang) Monday - Korean Pancakes!

Here is our easy-peazy method for making Korean pancakes. They are savory, so you can dip them in soy sauce or enjoy with your favorite Korean side dishes. We are not chefs, and I have never been great at following recipes. So, think of this as a glimpse into our day rather than a tutorial! If you have any tips for making Korean pancakes, leave a comment! I know my mother uses a food processor to make it easier, and her kimchi pancakes are top notch. I hope you get a chance to make and/or taste your own 전 (Jeon).

한글날 = Hangul Day!

Seong:
October 9th is 한글날 (“Hangulnal, Korean alphabet day).
In Korean, the writing system is known as 한글 (Hangul), while the language itself is called 한국어 (Hangukuh) or 조선어 (Joseonuh = North Korea and a Manju province of China near North Korea). Christina learned 한글 (Hangul) easily, but 한국어 (Hangukuh) is difficult and takes a long time to learn.
Sejong the Great made a manual for the Korean alphabet, which is called 훈민정음 (Hunminjeongeum, “The Proper Sounds for the Education of the People”). This become a name of the Korean alphabet. (Yes, 훈민정음 is a name of the Korean writing system, and the name of the book that describe how to use it and how he made the writing system). In 1840, the name 한글 became more widely used.
The preface of 훈민정음 explains why 세종대왕 (Sejong the Great) made the new writing system.

“The language of [our] people is different from that of the nation of China and thus cannot be expressed by the written language of Chinese people. Because of this reason, the cries of illiterate peasants are not properly understood by the many [in the position of privilege]. I [feel the plight of the peasants and the difficulties faced by the public servants and] am saddened by the situation.Therefore, twenty eight* [written] characters have been newly created. [My desire is] such that, each [Korean] person may become familiar [with the newly created written language of Korean] and use them daily in an intuitive way.” 

(Wikipedia) * The 훈민정음 has 28 letters, but modern 한글 has 24 letters.

한글 is a one of kind writing system which has a manual from the creator to explain its purpose.

Christina: Learning Hangul was easy for me because the rules are simple and there are few exceptions. The only exceptions are there to make everything easy to pronounce. For example, Korean must have vowels in between consonants. The English word "stress" has 3 consonants in a row, which is difficult to pronounce. In Korean, this word is pronounced "seu teu reh seu". Hangul was beautifully organized and has not changed that much. In contrast, English has a long and complex history of evolution, taking influence from old German, Latin, French, and other languages. Hangul was also thoughtfully fashioned because the consonant strokes replicate the shape of the mouth, throat, and vocal cords made while articulating the sounds. For instance, the consonant ㅁ makes the sound "m". Make that sounds and your lips make a small square! It may seem like a stretch, but that was the inspiration for Hangul. On 한글날 (Hangul Day), we tried to visit the brand new Nation Museum of Hangul. But a lot of other people had the same idea, so it was extremely crowded. Instead, we opted to just walk around the Museum grounds since it was such a beautiful day. Hopefully we can visit again soon!

먹방 (Mukbang) Monday - Korean Market Trip

Hello everyone! And welcome to "Mukbang Monday"! Seong and I decided that we need a topic to regularly blog about, so we choose food! 먹다 (MukDa) means "to eat", and 방 (Bang) means broadcasting. Therefore, 먹방 means to post pictures and videos of what you are eating. We are committing to blog about food, mostly Korean food - but no promises, each Monday! We really hope that we can stick to this to show you what culinary creations we are experiencing and producing while we are in Korea. It may be a recipe, a food review, or some pics of something we love. But it will definitely be here every Monday.
I will also be using the following hashtags on Instagram and Facebook: #mukbang #먹방 #mukbangmonday #먹방monday . I would LOVE IT if you would post what you are eating on MukBang Monday and use these hashtags with me! If you ever wanted a non-cheesy excuse to post what you eat, I am giving it to you. If you ever wanted an invitation to try your hand at Korean cuisine, I'm giving it to you!
Here we go!

This week we went to the Korean fresh produce market near our apartment. We were so psyched when we found this because it is so close to home, so no car necessary. Some produce can get quite expensive, but sometimes I just NEED a specific item. It is also very fresh, especially the fish stall (you can see some fish still moving in the video). Another type of item you can buy at this type of market is pre-made 반찬(Banchan), which are Korean side dishes. It makes it more convenient to cook Korean food if you don't have to handmake every side dish. In the video we also talk about some interesting Korean produce that is different to what we are used to in the US. Enjoy!