Wed 31 Jan 2007
Jang jo rim is one of my all time favorite Korean side dishes. Delicate quails eggs simmered alond with brisket and green chili peppers in a pungent soy broth. Lazily, I would simply buy them in the refrigerated section from the grocery store or from the banchan ajuma in the market. But now, here in Western Washington I’m outta luck. “Oh, no, no, no.” The lady maning the deli at Pal-do wor-du replies when I ask her if he has any (she does sell ddok boggie though, for 5 FREEKIN BUCKS. Ouch!). So I am left to figure it out on my own. Pulling from all the resourses I have, my korean kitchen (who got a shout out on the xanga site the other day), my poorly written Korean published cookbooks, and my American publsihed Korean cookbook I had a rough idea of what to do.
But sometimes a rough idea isn’t enough. Especially if a cuisine is unfamilar. Ok so I don’t have that excuse, but Korean cooking techniques are still a little unclear to me. Once I replaced tofu for beef in ddok guk (rice cake soup) and was greeted with cheers of “Ohhhh, Fusion Style,” when I related the success to my coworker. Korean cuisine still appears to have a set of procedure standards that must be met for a dish to be called by its name.
And here is where the sad story starts. I bought brisket, a half pound, I cut it into smaller pieces, soaked it in water,
boiled it with pepper and green onions to make the broth,
then simmered it in a half cup of soy sauce, 5 Tablespoons of sugar and 2 cups of beef broth,
but my brisket came out too chewy, almost like one of those all rubber superballs. Seriously I could’ve chucked the thing against the floor and it would have ricocheted around the kitchen for a good half an hour. You are a liar, Mrs. Korean Cooking Made Easy. This recipe was not easy at all and the complete lack of depth from your recipe is laughable. For example, I am told to boil the quaild eggs for 4 minutes. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? Do I put the eggs in cold water (as you would when making regular hard boiled eggs), bring it to a boil, turn off the heat and let it stand for 4 minutes, or do I bring a pot of water to a boil then add the quails eggs and let them boil for 4 minutes! HELP.
(Just a quick side note. If any of you out there are considering writing a cookbook please read the Recipe Writer’s Handbook before you start. Your readers will thank you for it. I am seriously considering writing these Korean publishers and offering my services FOR FREE, to edit these cookbooks for more concise instructions!)
So I am prepared to try again. Instead of brisket I have purchased a lovely half pound of flank steak which I plan to simmer in a quarter cup of soysauce, 2 cups of beef both and 5 Tablespoons of sugar for 1 hour. Then I will add a couple tablespoons honey, sliced ginger, cooked quails eggs, and peppers.
A mere few months ago I would have been able to take my jang jorim to class and ask my co-teachers what I did wrong, but now my only hope is my Grandmother’s friend Ms. Chang, and you. What do you think? Any suggestions?
January 31st, 2007 at 3:34 pm
I always found the beef in that dish stringy and chewy anyway.
My instinct is telling me–braising. What do you think?
Ooh! Ooh! Jokbal and quail eggs! Pigs’ feet and eggs! Redneck and sophisticated.
You know, one thing that I always thought would be funny was to roast a chicken and stuff whole hard boiled eggs in the cavity. It would be a disturbing sight at the dinner table.
January 31st, 2007 at 6:57 pm
I like this recipe! I add a bit more sugar though….
http://korean.allfoodrecipe.com/016464.shtml
February 1st, 2007 at 7:31 pm
I agree with zenkimchi that the beef is slightly chewy anyway. Wasn’t my recipe good enough?
Can I really get a free service if I ever publish my cook book?
By the way, your meat seems a bit chunky, I think you need to tear it more thinly with your hands.
February 1st, 2007 at 8:30 pm
I didn’t use your exact recipe, i guess I should have! Am I to tear the meat before soaking it?
And yes, I’d be happy to edit your cookbook, anytime.
February 1st, 2007 at 11:49 pm
You should tear the meat after boiling it in the broth, but before simmering it with the sauce. You can use a knife to help with the tearing.
February 2nd, 2007 at 7:09 pm
Thank you, Mary! Thank you for validating that it isn’t just me who can’t follow some of these very poorly written Korean recipes! I guess it is just lack of familiarity with Korean cooking techniques, but I get so frustrated when recipes don’t turn out. I would caution you to be very careful when choosing Korean cookbooks. I have a few that I like but I’ve had to pick and choose recipes from all of them because some of the recipes were way out there. I’ve never had good luck with the jang jorim but I didn’t try Sue’s recipe and we all know she’s the diva of Korean cooking! :o)
February 3rd, 2007 at 10:56 am
How long did you simmer the beef? Brisket is a cut that needs to simmer for three hours, usually, in order to become tender. Your photos make the finished dish look so lovely — what a shame the taste wasn’t what you’d hoped for!
February 6th, 2007 at 4:54 pm
I’ve never found this to be tender from my mother’s or grandmother’s way of making it. I recall enjoying tearing pieces of it off the main “cube” of meat and eating it that way.
February 6th, 2007 at 8:31 pm
As Lydia said above, you need to simmer for many hours (vague direction?) until the meat gets tender. The crock pot would be perfect for this dish.
February 8th, 2007 at 11:25 pm
To cook quail eggs slide them gently into boiling acidualated and salted water for 2-3 minutes for fully cooked eggs, 1.5 minutes for soft boiled. To peel them drop them into ice water with a few drops of vinegar ( the acid will soften the shell).
For the brisket, I agree with Dan and Lydia, brisket takes FOREVER to cook, but if you are patient it will be well worth it. It also doesn’t hurt to leave some of the fat on the brisket, it will break down as you cook it and add a lot of flavor to the broth.
cheers
February 10th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Zen, a chicken stuffed with quails eggs sounds like some horrible Halloween or April fools dinner, Ew. But the pigs trotters? Soft boiled. Mmmmm
Thanks for the recipe ChicMuse, you can never have too many resources.
Sue, thanks for clearing that up. Tearing the meat before adding to the sauce was a step that was missing in my recipe.
Beloved, I am glad to know you have this problem too. I get so frustrated with these books sometimes for assuming that their readers know all these little steps or tricks as the person who wrote the book. Because I don’t, and prefer it when it is S-P-E-L-L-E-D O-U-T
Linda, I didn’t simmer it too long and that may have been my mistake, maybe only a half an hour or so. Next time I plan for at least an hour.
Thanks bmp200. If chewy is the way it is to be, then I did it right!
Dan, I used my le cruset Dutch oven, but a crock pot is a great idea, especially if one wanted to make this dish in large amounts.
Jacob, thank you for clearing up the quail egg mystery. I asked my chef about it, he said I could do it either way (dropping the eggs in after the water boils or starting it from a cold boil). Didn’t know about the vinegar trick. Will it flavor the egg at all?
November 11th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
I just made this following a very good recipe. I think the key in not getting rubbery meat is to cook it for a long time, like two hours!
I do understand your pain about cookbooks. I hope that my recipes are easy to follow and always appreciate feedback! Please try making this again, if you are up for it.