Sunday Dinner Week #18: Kim Chee Beef Stew with Namul

Hilo's such a rainy old town/ I listen to the rain falling down. . .

While the west side of Hawaii is dry, Hilo's been under some kind of gigantic rain cloud for days. We've been pummeled by water, so it's a perfect Sunday to stay in bed and sleep, except that it's been raining for so long that things feel damp in the house. Not so good when you want to be dry and toasty. Still, it's soup weather, so I called my mom to bring some of her kim chee beef stew. My mom is the queen of making soup for the masses and she usually has something in her freezer: luau stew, minestrone, kim chee stew, etc.
 
Mom was bringing stew so I challenged Ken to make Korean style vegetables, or namul for our sides. That gave me the afternoon to nap while Ken perfected his knife skills and immersed himself in vinegar and garlic.

Mililani's Kim Chee Beef Stew

Braise stew meat with chopped round onions and garlic.
Put in water to cover and let it simmer until the meat is tender and adjust flavoring before adding the other ingredients.
Add 1 small bottle of kim chee with the juice, 1 can sliced bamboo shoots, 1 daikon, cubed, 3 carrots, cubed, 3 potatoes, cubed, 2 heaping T. ko choo jang, kimchee base (kimuchi no moto) to taste, red pepper flakes, red pepper powder, let it simmer.

Half an hour before you serve, add in zucchini, chopped mustard cabbage and kabocha pumpkin, skin on. Simmer and serve. As with other stews, it tastes better the next day, so make large batches.

Wakame (seaweed)

Soak dried wakame in water. When it gets soft, drain water, then add vinegar, sugar, roasted sesame seeds and sesame oil to taste.

Bean sprouts

Pull little roots off. Blanch in boiling water for about 5 minutes. Drain and add garlic, sesame oil, sesame seeds and green onions. Saute for a couple of minutes.

Carrot and Daikon

Use Japanese grater to grate the carrots and daikon (white turnip). Sprinkle with salt and let it sit for 10 minutes. Rinse. Squeeze out the excess water. Toss with vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, and roasted sesame seeds (see the pattern emerging?).

Cucumber kim chee simplified

Cut up cucumbers, sprinkle with salt and let it sit for 10 minutes. Rinse. Squeeze out the moisture. Toss with garlic, ko choo jang, vinegar and sesame oil. For spicier cucumber, add more ko choo jang and red pepper flakes. 

So that no one accuses me of not making anything for Sunday dinner, I made dessert: Chocolate honey bun cake.

Chocolate honey bun cake with macadamia nuts

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 13x9" pan. I use a dark non-stick pan, so I put the oven on 325.

1 box of chocolate cake

1 8 oz. container sour cream

2/3 cup butter, melted

4 eggs

1/2 cup water

Mix the above ingredients in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, mix the following:

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup chopped mac nuts

1/3 cup chocolate chips

2 tsp. cinnamon

Pour half of the cake batter in pan, then sprinkle the sugar mixture and cover it with the rest of the cake mixture. Bake in the oven for 48 to 54 minutes. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then frost with your favorite chocolate frosting while it's still warm. I like to poke the cake with the fork so the frosting melts into the cake. If I have extra mac nuts, I like to sprinkle that on top of the cake too.

Have a great week!