Goodbye Korea, Hello America!

After two years of this crazy adventure, Danny and I are finally heading home.  I have more to share in the future of our adventure, so this won't be the last you hear from us, but for now we're saying goodbye!  Goodbye to Korea, goodbye to Andong, goodbye to teaching, goodbye to friends, goodbye to delicious food, goodbye to the craziness, and goodbye to the wonderful people of Korea!  We've had great times and hard times but overall these two years have been awesome.  I know as we get back into the American way there will be a lot about this place that we will miss, but there's no time to be sad when we have another adventure starting!  I hope you all have enjoyed reading about our stories and experiences as much as I have enjoyed writing them.  Take care, and see you from home sweet home, the land of the free, the promiseland, the best country in the... AMERICA!  WOOP WOOP, here we come!

Kimchi for Breakfast's 100th POST! Woop WOOP!

Today is the 100th post of this ol' blog and we're celebrating!  At first I wasn't really sure about starting a blog, and I really only did it to update our family, but after 100 posts I can say that now I really enjoy it.  Danny and I never really thought we would make it this far, but here we are... we survived 711 days of this crazy Korean life, and Kimchi for Breakfast is all about that journey!

To celebrate post #100, we are doing a GIVEAWAY!  We are giving away 2 prizes next week to 2 randomly chosen people! 

Yes, that's right you could be the lucky owner of a Bibimbacon shirt ...get it bibimbap...bibimBACON...get it? (Made by yours truly and will come in the size of your choice)...

Or of an original "Korea" artwork done by yours truly (you'll see the final one next week)...

Here's how you enter: 

Step 1:  I want to spread the news of this blog, so to enter you have to leave a comment at the end of this post in the "comments section".  Let us know what's the craziest food you've ever eaten (Korean or otherwise) OR just say hi...either is ok.

Step 2:  In addition to leaving a comment, you need to post on Twitter or Facebook that you just registered for this giveaway.  (Please copy and paste the following words: I just register for a free GIVEAWAY on Kimchi for Breakfast, http://www.katyanddanny.blogspot.com/, and you should too!  Go and check it out!)

 Step 3:  If you would like to have more then one entry, you can leave additional comments below, but then you also must specifically tell 2 people about our blog.  It's as simple as THAT!

I'm hoping in doing that, Kimchi for Breakfast will spread across the globe, and then Danny and I will be offered Travel Channel jobs, and then we will be bbillionaires, and then we will be the most loved couple in all the world, and then we will help find a cure to cancer, and then we will be able to live off our riches and die happy, in love and full of delicious food!  Whoa, I got a little out of hand there...sorry.

The winners will be announced next week so make sure and check back to see if you are the lucky winner!  Good luck to you all and spread the word!

How to make Jjimdak... it's Andong FAMOUS!

If we mention to anyone who knows a little about Korea that we live in Andong, usually people say "Oh, the jjimdak place!"  Danny and I laugh because people from Andong say that it is "famous" for about a thousand different things, but it actually is really famous for jjimdak.  Jjimdak is one of my favorite Korean foods and I was really excited when friends, Sara and Heelak, wanted to try to make it.  I will have to tweak the recipe a little to make it just perfect, but we are on the right track.

So for your eating pleasure, here is how to make the one and only ANDONG JJIMDAK!! (said with an echo ; )  I am not a expert when it comes to Korean food by any means and when I cook I do "a little of this and a little of that" so sorry if this isn't as specific as you would like.  I will add a specific recipe at the bottom you can try, but here are the general directions for now...

Ingredients you need:  "glass noodles" or starch noodles, soy sauce, pear and vinegar marinade (you can get this at a Asian grocery store, but I think you can omit this if you have to), corn or rice syrup, sesame oil, carrots, potatoes, red and/or green chili peppers (dried or fresh), LOTS of garlic, what I can only call HUGE scallions (maybe leeks?), white onion, chicken (you choose boneless or not), water, salt, and pepper.

Step 1:  If you get bone-in chicken you need to soak it in the marinade and remove the skin.  Koreans think the bone adds a lot of flavor, which is true, but I'm sure you could do this boneless and save yourself the time of picking the bones out while eating.

Me and Heelak "de-skinning"



Step 2: Cut up all your vegetables. 

We had lots of helpers, so it went quick.  Cut your potatoes and carrots into 1/4 inch thick rounds.  Then cut up your scallions into longer strips and your white onion into chunks.  Now can you take some heat?  Cut as much red and/or green chili pepper that you want... in Andong we have to ask for it "tol mepgay" which means "less spicy" because I can take some heat, but full-strength Andong Jjimdak is ridiculous!

And cut up a RIDICULOUS amount of garlic.  Seriously, I cut up like 20 cloves... so I guess this isn't really a "first date" kinda meal ; )

Step 3: Soak your glass noodles in water.  We've had jjimdak that has tdoek (Korean rice cake) in it and that was an awesome addition but you traditionally there is only glass noodles in it.

Step 4:  Combine all the ingredients for the amazing jjimdak sauce!  Put together soy sauce, sesame oil, corn syrup, lots of cloves of garlic, scallions, red chili pepper and start it a boilin'.  You want the sauce to get thicker so you gotta boil it for a little while.  *** Taste the sauce and make sure it has a good flavor...some like it a bit sweeter so if that's the case you can add a little brown sugar at this point.

Step 5:  While sauce is boiling, boil the chicken as well.  Don't cook the chicken fully, but just boil it enough to get all that "foam" stuff to come off the chicken.  Skim the foam off the top and pour out the chicken water.  (Reserve a little just in case you need some for the sauce.)

Step 6:  Combine the partially cooked chicken and the sauce together and continue to boil it.  (side note: take out the garlic cloves from the sauce.)  Keep it going for a maybe 10 minutes so the chicken soaks up all the amazing soy sauce, garlic, chili goodness.

Step 7:  After a few minutes add the vegetables, glass noodles, and minced garlic.  Boil all the ingredients together till the potatoes, carrots and onions are cooked through.  Pour your completed dish of jjimdak into a large bowl or platter and ENJOY!  (As you can see our jjimdak was a little lighter then the true Andong version, but I think we just needed a little bit more sauce to make it right.)

**Some tips to make your Jjimdak seem really authentic:  this amazing dish usually has a side of pickled radish that helps with cutting the heat in between bites and a bowl for your discarded bones if you use bone-in chicken.  Also, since the noodles seem never ending, it's really helpful to have a pair of scissors at hand so you can cut the noodles where need be.

There you go!  Go out and make yourself a famous dish that will make you fall in love with Korean food like we did.  But know that no matter how perfectly you make jjimdak at home, you still gotta come to Andong to try it on the "famous" Andong Jjimdak street... the smell of garlic wafting through the air and restaurant owners beckoning you inside is a cool site not to be missed : )

WAIT, here's some exciting NEWS!!!  Next week will be my 100 post for this blog and I'm really excited!  I honestly didn't think I would make it this far in posting and Kimchi for Breakfast has really been a surprisingly fun way for us to share our adventure here in Korea.  To celebrate that we stuck with it, Danny and I are going to be doing a GIVEAWAY next week!  It's a secret prize so make sure and check it out.  See you next week!

Here's a link for the completed Jjimdak recipe: 

Maangchi Jjimdak Recipe

(I will try to post the official one that we used, but it's all in Korean as of now so we have to have it translated.  Anyways, enjoy!)

Happy New Years and Happy 30th!!!

HAPPY NEW YEARS!  This year seems like it has flown by in a lot of ways and a lot has happened.  Danny and I lived in Korea, taught hundreds of Korean kids, traveled to Japan, Malaysia, and the US, ate countless bowls of rice and kimchi, and so much more.  Well, it's New Years, 2012, and it's time to celebrate!  This an exciting start to the year and a big day for Danny and I in many ways: 1) Danny and I are celebrating our 4th wedding anniversary... oh yeah!  2) In exactly 2 months we will be on a plane home...woop WOOP! 3) It's our sister-in-law, Melissa's, birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEL!) and 4) Danny and I will both celebrate our 30th birthday!!!

"Wait, wait, wait..." some of you might be thinking.  "How can we be turning 30 when we were born in April and October of 1983?!"  It's all due to the interesting system of Korean birthdays.  Let me explain... when a baby is born in Korea, they are already considered 1 year old.  The time a baby spends in the womb is considered part of their age, that is why they count that year. (Different but not too confusing yet, right?)  Here's where it gets really confusing... So Koreans all turn one year older on New Years Day instead of their individual birthday, so if you have a baby on December 31st, that baby is one year old.  Then the next day, New Years Day, that same baby will turn 2 with all the other babies born in that same year.  That means that a baby can be considered 2 years old when it is literally only 2 DAYS OLD! Crazy, huh?!  Hence the fact that Danny and I are 28 in western age and 30 in Korean age.  How old are you in Korean age?

Because of that crazy system, Danny and I both turned 30 Korean age along with all the other people born in 1983 as the clock rang in the new year.  Since it was such a big year, Danny and I decided to do it up right with a lot of good times and good people.

This past week, to celebrate our anniversary, my amazing husband took me to Seoul to see the sights.  We ate some awesome food, saw some cool art, and just enjoyed the city... even though it was FREEZING!  One of the highlights was going to the Seoul Museum of art.  An awesome photography exhibit of aerial photography was going on by Yann Arthus-Bertrand and I was loving it.  (It's there till March if you can make it.)

We also ate the best burgers I have had in Korea, and it is in the Top 10 of burgers in my life at the Smokey Saloon in Itaewon.  I'm usually not a huge fan of going to Itaewon since there are so many other great places to go in Seoul, but hitting up this burger joint and then going across the alley to a All That Jazz to see some live music is a place I wish I would have found a looonnngg time ago.

We haven't gotten to see any live music (besides the horrible death cymbal, and that's more like torture then music) so seeing a Korean sing old time jazz was a huge highlight.  All thanks to Danny's college friend, JP and Da Yeong!

After a great few days in Seoul, we rang in the New Year with some friends from our church in Daegu.  In an upcoming post I will tell you more about the hilarious Korea scavenger hunt we went on, but for now I will just give some highlights of the night. 

2012... Oh Yeah!

We ran all over Andong, went bowling, sang some No Rae Bang, at lots of great food, and literally filled our entire apartment with sleeping bodies.

We didn't know if it would be possible, but Danny and I fit 11 people in our tiny apartment for a weekend and nobody ended up smothered!  Good times! 

You can see 7 out of the 11 we had spend the night!

Over all it was a great vacation week and I'm sad that it's over.  Danny and I have many things to look forward to in the coming months, so I'm not too broken up, although I could use a few more sleep in days if you know what I mean : )

Well I hope you all have a fantastic start to your 2012, the year of the dragon, as well and take every opportunity you have to share lots of adventures with you best friend too!  No Regrets... 2012!!!

P.S.  Did I mention that I married an amazing guy 4 years ago?  Some of you might gag, but I'm going to say it anyways... I love you soooooooooo much Buddy, and I can't wait to see what adventures we will have in the next 4 or 40 more years!   You are the guy I can never get enough of, and I hope you know I love you with all my heart!

Have yourself a very Merry Christmas!

Here's just a little video of my cutest students ever to wish you a MERRY CHRISTMAS!  About a month ago I started teaching 4 year old's English three times a week and this past week we were working on Christmas words.  They are so cute, I hope you enjoy!

And here's a little song for you...

Danny and I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and hope you remember the real reason for the season!

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.
~ Luke 2: 10-12

Christmas done the "creative" way...

I must say that I am in the Christmas spirit this year!  Even though it hasn't snowed here in Andong yet (tear) and they don't really decorate quite like America, I'm excited for Christmas to come.  I'm especially excited for the decorations that we put up last week, mainly our tree.  You can't buy Christmas trees here in Korea so you have to be creative.  Last year we used what some might call a branch for our Christmas tree, but this year we thought we'd try something different...

Last year's tree (I still love that Charlie
Brown branch!)

AND NOW...

This year's tree. (In case you can't guess, that is
our mirror under all that goodness.)

Our tree is constructed out of felt and staples.  Not bad if I do say so myself : )  Before we decided on the crafty version, I walked around our neighborhood and briefly considered cutting down a tree from the yard across the street, but then I thought "tis' the season not to commit a crime"... thus our felt tree was born.

Who needs to spend a ton of money on decorations this season?  Not us!  I hope if you are away from home this holiday season, you too find a way to get some Christmas cheer.  Have a very Merry Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving x 4!

Last year Danny and I got to celebrate Thanksgiving, but sadly it never included turkey.  However, this year we got to not only celebrate Thanksgiving Day but celebrate it 4 times and ALL included turkey!  AWESOME. 

At Thanksgiving #2... Dong Shin Church

Our first Turkey Day was spent with fellow "Andong-ians".  Thanks to our friend Erin, we started the season off right.  It's amazing how when its the holiday season, if you fit 20 people into a 300 square ft. apartment, it's not overcrowded but instead just nice and cozy :)

The next event was sponsored by our English church in Daegu, Dong Shin.  The food was organized and provided by the church and allowed over 200 lonely or hungry "waygookins" (foreigners) to enjoy a great turkey dinner.  One of the highlights, besides the food, was the replay of Danny's winning turkey call that got him the championship prize of 6 bagels last year.  The call might not exactly sound like a turkey to you, but if you've seen Arrested Development you will understand the genius of his interpretation.  Gobble, gobble.

Probably the last Thanksgiving where we'll see
kimbap and chopsticks :)

The third and fourth events were crazily enough on the same day.  You might think stuffing yourself silly two times in a row is overkill, but I say that it's just a warm-up for me. 

 

We started the day at our friend's, Taylor and Lindsey's, house and were truley impressed by the spread that presented itself.  In Korea, people may not have a grand dining room or huge table to eat around, but just being with good friends can give you a taste of home.  I think I was most impressed that day by the way Lindsey fit a huge turkey in her little oven and had about a centimeter to spare.  Impressive work for sure.

Around 4 pm we headed out to our 4th and final Thanksgiving feast to our friend's, Sarah and Pete's, house.  I have to admit that I was extremely excited for this one, not only because great people would be there, but Sarah and Pete are in the military and that meant that amazing AMERICAN delicacies would be there too.  This was the only meal that didn't have to special order a turkey... it's amazing what you can get from the wonderful world of the Commisary on the Daegu Military Base! Maybe some people wouldn't call green bean cassarole and delicacy, but here in Korea green beans and French's Onion Strips are hard to come by.  Oh it was good.  Highlights of the dinner were turkey (OF COURSE), sweet potatoe cassarole (Mmmmm...), green bean cassarole (are you kidding me?!), and Grandma Wilson's rum cake (I was pretty excited that it turned out... and that it had lots of rum in it ;)

That's right... #4.

All 4 Thanksgiving Days ended up great, but because of that, unfortunately I think that it will meal many an hour spent in the gym to recover... and I think the turkey coma might still be affecting us because man, Danny and I are tired!  (Or maybe it's just the psycho kids we've had all week... can you say A.D.D?)

The final Turkey Day at Sarah and Pete's magical home!
(It's just like America!)

Whether you were away from America or in the Land of the Free, I hope it was a great day of being thankful!  HAPPY TURKEY DAY!  Gobble, Gobble.