K is for:

February has been a month rife with challenges and changes.  There have been a lot of unexpected things come up, and I can safely say that, although it is technically the shortest month, it has been the longest I can remember.  One thing did remain constant, however: vegetarianism.  It might, in fact, be the only thing that remained consistent this month.

Some really amazing things did happen this month, though.  I finally got a job!  A big thrill and a huge relief I can assure you.

It's perhaps a little ironic that I chose 2015 to be the year where I would make changes every month since this might be the year of uncontrollable changes.

But enough about that.  It's time to talk about Kimchi.

(not even the kimchi is the same though, if I'm honest.  If I could only find some good kimchi!)

So, the best recipe from this past week just so happened to be one of my all time favorites when I lived in Korea.  It's simple, it's delicious, it's savory and just a little spicy, it's buttery and cheesy.  It's Kimchi Fried Rice!!

Here's what you need:

Delicious pieces of the puzzle.

• Kimchi
• Salt and Pepper
• Rice
• Eggs
• Butter
• Sugar
• An onion
• Garlic
• (olive oil is pictured because I thought about using it and then remembered that I'd better not.  It's better with butter.  But what isn't, right Gram?!)

This is the recipe, just plus an egg, given to me by one of the coolest individuals I met in Korea, and maybe anyone who lives in Korea.  She's like a 117th degree black belt in Taekwondo and taught the sport in Africa, in the blazing sun, to kids.   On top of a litany of ridiculous skills, she just so happens to be a ninja at making kimchi fried rice.  It was the first thing I made in my apartment (except for magic spaghetti. . . but that's another story)

Here's how you do it!

Cut the Kimchi--this particular kimchi was very raw and very...cabbage-y.  I know that kimchi is cabbage, but this was like salad bar raw cabbage and felt very different than kimchi I used in Korea.  It also had carrots. . .and none of the limp leafy bits.  Doesn't matter.  Cut up your kimchi for optimum kimchi flavor!

Slice your onion-and cry--If you're anything like me, you have a dedicated set of onion chopping goggles that are as important to your culinary tool set as your kitchen scissors.  It might not be the sexiest thing in the world to wear goggles while chopping onions, but who are we kidding.

Slice your mushrooms--I used baby bellas here, but regular button mushrooms work really well, too.

Chop your garlic--you could use already minced garlic if you want, but you're already wearing onion goggles, so garlic fingers aren't really going to hurt you too much.

Fry up your onions and garlic in butter.  When they are nice and brown, add your mushrooms.

You literally need three tools in the kitchen: goggles, scissors and chopsticks.  That's it!

Set those savory fried veggies aside.  Re-butter your pan and start frying your kimchi!

This particular kimchi was very juicy.  I simmered it for a bit and then drained it off to add to the rice later.

Don't forget to add a pinch of sugar to your frying kimchi!  It helps take a little bit of the edge off and mellows it out really nicely.

A note about rice:  I used a rice maker.  Full disclosure: I never made rice one time while I lived in Korea.  Not once.  They have these amazing microwavable bowls full of sticky rice that steam up in 2 minutes and end up perfectly cooked.  These things were basically free and consistently delicious.  They do exist here, but they are not even close to being free, so I decided to try my luck with the rice maker.

So photogenic!

I still need practice making rice.  Mine was a little underdone.

After the kimchi has a chance to cook a little, add in the onion/mushroom/garlic mix!  And the rice!

The kimchi will change from bright red to orange when it's cooked.  And it smells incredible!

 Stir it all together.  If you need to add a little more butter, no one is going to be mad at you about that.

Looks like a mess, tastes delicious!

Fry up a sunny side up egg to go on top.  When you break the yolk it will go into the rice and finish cooking and it adds incredible flavor to the whole dish.

Salt and pepper the egg as needed.

When you are satisfied that there is no longer a single grain of rice that remains white, dish it into a bowl and cover with a little cheese and the egg.

YAY!

And that's it for Kimchi Fried Rice!

If you have never tried kimchi, I can honestly say that cooked kimchi is a great way to approach it.  Kimchi has a long list of health benefits, and although it can be a little difficult to get used to, with any access to it at all I can promise you will begin to crave it.
My first year in Korea I was a little skittish of it.  I tried it cooked and fell in love.  After my first year I ate kimchi every single day.  Kimchi and eggs, kimchi in soup, kimchi with ramen, kimchi pancakes (ooh!  That might be the next recipe!) kimchi with everything, and I miss it like crazy.


February is almost over and I really hope that you guys tried out a few new things this month, whether vegetarian or giving up fried foods, or whatever you wanted to try.  I was certainly not able to post as much as I wanted but I was very happy with how the vegetarian challenge went this month.  I tried a lot of new things and they were all really delicious.

Gluten free month is next month!  (Why did I choose to deprive myself of a nice chicken sandwich for two whole months!?!)
I can't say that I'm sad that a giant juicy steak is gluten free.  It might be what happens March 1st.  ^^

Anyone have any awesome gluten-free recipes they would like to share?  I don't have any experience with it, actually, so it's going to take a lot of prep.  But, it should be a lot of fun!

Thank you for reading!  And good luck the rest of the month!