Booya-ko!

As you know I am a David Chang and Momofuku groupie.  How could I not be when he is a 30 year old chef nominated for his 3rd James Beard award? He's got talent and a kick-ass personality! 

Steve and I are headed to NYC soon to celebrate our anniversary.  As he has never been to one of Momofuku's establishments, and he loves the Momofuku cookbook, I thought it would be amazing to score a reservation because i know he is dying to eat at one of the restaurants. I am lucky enough to have dined at Momofuko's Noodle and Ssam Bar.  The minute Steve told me we were going to NYC, I made a reservation to Ma Peche (but deep down inside my heart was set at dining at Chang's dining empire, Ko. ) 

Ko is like a semi-exlusive dining club that seats only 14 patrons. Seats are released seven days in advance through their webiste. The system begins accepting reservations at ten o'clock in the morning and without exception all seats are gone in matter of seconds.  It is an egalitarian system, but actually getting a seat requires as much luck as winning the mega millions lottery. No joke! 

This morning was my chance to log in and see what sort of luck will be on our side. Momofuku does mean lucky peach!  As expected, someone beat me to my first time choice selected, and then to my second time choice selected, but my third time choice... BooYa!  

We got in.  I quickly plug in my payment info and the reservation is confirmed.  

It was the most stressful dinner reservation I have ever made in my life, yet so rewarding when it worked.  It reminded me of sitting in front of Facebook constantly hitting the refresh button to get rewarded a "same night" table at Next in Chicago for the childhood menu. 

You have to understand, these are not your typical restaurants. These are the most popular eateries in the country; places my foodie friends drool over.   Places where you spend more time scoring a reservation than picking out an anniversary gift. Is that me? I think so!  Whether it's the chef's reputation or the mystique of exclusivity, these are the countries hardest eateries to score a seat.  Some people try for months or years to get in. So I am grateful and feel very lucky to be able to celebrate my anniversary with Steve at Ko. 

The only thing I am bummed out about, is that due to the size of the restaurant and respect to the other 12 diners, there is no photography allowed. Don't you worry, I will have a full report for you! Hopefully, the luck will continue and I will get to see Chang in action....fingers crossed! 

marinated hanger steak ssam with red kimchi puree & ginger scallion

Happy, Girl meets Grill, Friday! 

I know it's been awhile, but I have a special dish for you today; the famous Momofuku's ssam lettuce wrap!  If you have been keepin' up with my recent posts, I made an anniversary dinner themed with my favorite Momofuku recipes. The marinated hanger steak ssam with red kimchi puree & ginger scallion sauce is my favorite steak dinner ever; it's mighty delicious! Many of the recipes from the Momofuku cookbook are a bit too complicated, requiring a lot of time and special ingredients, this one is well within any home cooks reach. 

If you can't purchase a cut of hanger steak, substitute with a NY strip or flank steak. The marinade for the steak is a bath of wonderful flavors- apple juice, soy sauce, onion, garlic, and sesame oil.  

It's yum-a-lious! 

recipe from Momofuku cookbook 

ingredients

1 1/2 pounds hangar (skirt or flank steak) 

2 cups apple juice ( David Chang uses Mott's)

1/2 cup of  usukuchi (light soy sauce)

1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced

5-6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil 

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 

ginger scallion sauce 

2 bunch scallions, thinly sliced (green and white parts) 

1/2 cup fresh ginger, minced

1/4 cup grape seed oil or neutral oil 

1 1/2 teaspoon usukuchi (light soy sauce) 

3/4 teaspoon sherry vinegar

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 

1 cup red kimchi

2 large heads bibb lettuce, leaves separated and washed

3 cups cooked white rice

preparation

In a freezer or storage zip lock bag, combine apple juice, soy sauce, onion, garlic, and sesame oil. Seal and shake to combine. Add the steaks, seal or cover tightly and marinate in the refrigerator ideally for 24 hours if not marinate for 40 minutes at room temperature

While the meat marinates, combine the scallions, ginger, oil, vinegar, salt in a bowl. Make sure to let the flavors sit for 20 minutes. The sauce can be refrigerated up to a couple days. 

In a food processor, process the kimchi into a puree. 

Prepare your grill to high. Remove the steaks from the marinade and grill for 6 to 10 minutes depending on the thickness of the cut. when they are ready, remove the steaks to a platter and let them rest for at least 5 minutes.  Slice against the grain on a 15-30 angle to the cutting board into 1/4 inch thick slices. 

serve the steak with the kimchi puree, ginger scallion sauce, rice and lettuce wraps for wrapping. 

pan roasted asparagus poached egg & miso butter

I love miso butter.  It's so good, I lick it from the spoon like it's cake frosting.  Call me crazy or a complete fatty, but it's the bomb.  The butter is so amazing I want to dish it with everything!  Have you tried my Miso Glazed Cod? 
My last post stated, I prepared a Momofuku themed anniversary dinner, it's one of my favorite spots in NYC.  David Chang's cookbook is outrageous and confrontational,  is not for everyone but I love his approach and every dish it. I don't mind the labor intensive dishes and the obscure ingredients, it becomes a scavenger hunt and educational trip for me at Joong Boog Market.     
If you aren't willing to step out of your comfort and experience his blunt attitude along with some 
f-bombs, sorry you can't hang Momofuku style. I enjoy his voice in the cookbook, I feel he is coaching me, a home cook, through his techniques.  I will always make poached eggs the Momofuku way, slow poached! 
Back to the pan roasted asparagus, it's a great side dish or can fill any vegetarian's belly! 
Try this recipe over the weekend, can't wait to hear your feedback! 

a recipe from Momofuku cookbook 

ingredients

1/2 cup shiro (white) miso 
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature 
1/2 pound of thin to medium asparagus 
kosher salt
2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar
4 slow poached eggs
Freshly ground pepper

preparation 

Miso Butter

combine the miso with 5 tablespoons of butter in a small bowl and beat with a wooden spoon until well mixed. Make sure the butter is one color and not a streaky mess. Reserve until needed; you can refrigerate it, well wrapped, for up to a few weeks!! 

Snap off the woodier bottom inch of each asparagus stalk.  use a vegetable peeler to shave away the tougher outer layer from each stalk, but don't get carried away: you probably won't need to peel the stalks more than 2 or so inches up from the trimmed end. 

Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter in a wide skillet to over medium high heat. Line a plate with paper towels for draining the asparagus. when the butters sends up the first wisp of smoke, put the asparagus in the pan.  (Do not overcrowd pan; cook in batches if necessary, draining each one, and refreshing the butter if the butter from the first batch smells scorched.)
When the asparagus start to take on some color, 2-3 minutes, season them with a generous pinch of salt and turn the heat down to medium. Turn them with a spoon or spatula so they can color on the second side, another few minutes. When the asparagus are nicely browned and tender (but not exactly soft), transfer them to a the paper towels to drain. 

While the asparagus is cooking, heat the sherry vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat. After half a minute, add the miso butter, turn the heat to low, and stir to warm it through.  When the butter has loosened slightly-it should still have a certain viscosity to it and shouldn't be melted-remove from the pan from the burner and put it in a warm spot

Season the cooked asparagus with another pinch of salt if needed. Smear a quarter if the warmed miso butter into a thickish puddle in the middle of each plate. Divide the asparagus among the plated and top each with an egg. Finish each dish with a few turn of black pepper and serve at once. 

Slow Poached Eggs

ingredients

large eggs

preparation 

Fill your biggest, deepest pot with water and put in on the stove over the lowest possible heat. 

use something to keep the eggs from sitting on the bottom of the pot, where the temperature will be highest.  If you've got a cake rack or a steamer rack, use it.  If not, improvise: ad doughnut of aluminum foil or a few chopsticks scattered helter skelter across the bottom of pan will usually do the trick, but you know what you've got lying around. Be resourceful. 

use an instant read thermometer to monitor the temperature in the pot- if it's too hot, add cold water or an ice cube. Once the water is between 140 degrees and 145 degrees, add the eggs to the pot. Let them bathe for 40 to 45 minutes, checking the temperature regularly with the thermometer.

You can use the eggs immediately or store them in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. ( If you are planning to store them, chill them until cold in an ice-water bath) If you refrigerate the eggs, warm them under piping hot tap water for 1 minute before using

To serve the eggs, crack them one at a time into a smaller saucer. The thin white will not and should not be firm or solid, tip the dish to pour off and discard the loosest part of white, then slide the egg onto the dish it's destined for 

3 Year Anniversary Dinner

Steve and I have been married 3 years!! Wow, times flies by! Since we are going to NYC to celebrate our anniversary, we wanted to with celebrate a low-key night.  I decided to theme our dinner after one of my favorite spots in NYC, Momofuku.  It was the perfect, interactive, and shared menu date night! 

It was delicious!!!