Korean Food Made Simple

My brother John - being related to me, and thus barking mad - is now making his own kimchi; Korean fermented cabbage, and left an enormous jar of it at mum and dad's this weekend for me to pick up. When I cracked the lid open I could hear it fizzing as the bacteria went about their work. I am a little bit afraid of Kimchi.

Last night, however, I put my fears aside and summoned up spicy beef and kimchi stew from the interwebs. Some ingredients seem exotic but you can get Yutaka Black Roasted Sesame Seeds in Sainsburys and I had mirin (a sweet rice wine) delivered from Amazon.

Good eating; prepare the beef in a slow cooker and then add the kimchi and let it integrate while you boil your rice.

See also Judy Joo on the Food Channel, and The Korean Republic of New Malden. Almost all the UK’s 10,000 Korean residents live less than five miles away from where I am sitting as I write this.