Hello to everyone out there in cyberspace. Still on the other side of the world and slowly but surely making my way through Korean cuisine. Today I finally tried the Korean version of sushi but without fish: Kimbap.
Originally, I thought that Japanese had the whole “stuff rice and a whole bunch of other ingredients into seaweed” market cornered, but as always, the Koreans manage to provide their own twist on a Chinese or Japanese staple food. We had just received our rolls of kimbap right after our physical for immigration, so it might have been the hunger talking, but I greatly enjoyed these delightful little rolls. The rice was sticky, and the seaweed wasn’t too tough. On the inside, there was a bit of radish, cucumbers, spinach, and some sort of ham (possibly Spam), but they all combined to form a burst of savory flavor. Surprisingly the meat didn’t overpower the vegetables, but in Korea, everything is seasoned or prepared to bring out the maximum amount of flavor. So overall, it was a good experience, and it is a good preview to my more adventurous culinary outings during my time here like eating live octopus and dog soup (yeah, they serve both of those things here). Stay tuned!
Mastication Monologues 