Maangchi's Real Korean Cooking: Authentic Korean Recipes for Home Cooks, from Bibimbap and Bulgogi to Kimchi and Classic Banchan

I'm new to Korean food, but I am an experienced cook. Our home is very open and fascinated by other cuisines and cultures and, since we lack the funds for real world travel, I often endeavor to track down truly authentic recipes to bring the fun closer to home. If you're like us, then this book is for you. If you're even interested in Korean cuisine, this will be a great start for you. The entire book is worth sitting down and reading as Maangchi put forth every effort to explain the history, culture, traditions, and even health information behind each dish. She takes the time to explain how Koreans take their meals, which is helpful because her book is organized in a way that most Americans might find confusing for not knowing any better. Everything outside the central bowl of rice, soup, or porridge is considered a "side dish", including the meat dishes, which most Americans regard as central to every meal. I would recommend not skipping all she has written in the front of the book before you begin and make a shopping trip to your local Asian market to get as many ingredients as you can from her shopping list. I tend to be well stocked in a variety of spices, condiments, and other elements, but I did have to make note to buy special items for these recipes. All this said, the recipes themselves are actually quite simple and most do not require a large list of items. The main flavorings seem to be centered around soy sauce and other soy ferments. That brings me to what I love most about her book - the FERMENTS! Several wonderful ferment recipes are provided in her book, including the soy bean paste. I plan to undertake that as soon as my soy beans are ready for harvest, but if you're not up to that (and don't want to wait up to a year to enjoy some homemade Korean food!), I recommend Wholly Doenjang products. They are the real deal, live ferments, and very flavorful. I would probably just go ahead and order their soybean paste, soy sauce, and hot pepper paste with this book. You'll be glad you did! I also recommend Red Boat fish sauce if you're not ready to take on dried anchovies or squid just yet. To me fish sauce makes a fine substitute. I hope my review is helpful, especially if you're new to Korean food. I was looking for authentic Asian and Oriental cookbooks when I came across her book. I'm glad I took the plunge, because we're in love with what I've turned out so far!

I've been a fan of Maangchi's website and YouTube channel for a couple of years. I think she is charming and down to earth, and she makes everything she does seem easy and accessible to the rest of us. I was so excited to get this cookbook, and I'm not disappointed! This book is beautiful to look at, with color photos and brightly colored pages, as well as informative and fun to read. Maangchi's Real Korean Cooking is so much more than a cookbook. It's a true primer on authentic Korean cooking and I wish I had this book when I began cooking Korean foods. A glossary of ingredients includes photos, descriptions, and food names in both English and Korean. Info on acceptable substitutes is also available when possible. Tips and techniques are dotted throughout the book, making everything guess-free. Included is also a fascinating introduction to the basics of traditional Korean meals and the culture that surrounds them. This book is also filled with color photographs of finished recipes, as well as some step by step photos. I think there are over 400 photos in all! Like many people, I prefer cookbooks with photos to entice me into trying them. Yes, it's food porn. And it's so good! The recipes are varied and include many basic Korean mainstays, as well as some unique recipes. I was particularly thrilled to find recipes for making kitchen staples such as homemade gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste) and rice liquor. I make kimchi all the time, which I learned from Maangchi's YouTube channel, but never thought about making other fermented foods and pastes. Now I will! I live on a mostly plant based diet, with occasional seafood. Many of the recipes in this cookbook include beef and pork, but plenty are meatless or include seafood. Everything is rich in vegetables and many can be easily adapted to a meat free meal. In fact, that's one of the things I appreciate about the Korean diet - plenty of vegetables at every meal. If you are a meat eater, you'll find more than enough to keep you happy, including the secret to that famous Korean fried chicken everyone loves so much. Tonight we made vegetable leaf wraps with rice and apple dipping sauce, and stir fried kale with soybean paste. These were recipes that I already had ingredients for, since I couldn't wait to try a few new dishes. The apple dipping sauce was very new to me and I really enjoyed it. Finely diced sweet apples were combined with savory soybean paste, red pepper paste, sesame oil, garlic, and scallions. I spread a small amount of this on leafy greens and rolled it around a bit of rice for bite sized packets that made my mouth burst from all the flavor! Even my granddaughter loved this one. The kale recipe was also new to me. The seasoning mixture was similar to what I use on spinach, and it was surprisingly good on the kale. Cooking unfamiliar foods can be intimidating, but "Real Korean Cooking" will give you the knowledge and confidence to create a meal that is authentic and delicious. If you are unsure about anything, her online community is there to help. I'm much more pleased with this cookbook than I expected to be. I highly recommend it!

Un libro completo sulla cucina coreana, che ti guida alla preparazione dei piatti in modo semplice. Ha una parte iniziale dedicata agli ingredienti che non possono mancare quando si vuole inizare a cucinare cibo coreano a casa con degli accorgimenti per sostituire alcuni ingredienti con altri, quando non si riesce a reperirli. Le ricette sono spiegate con dovizia e ci sono le foto dei vari step per la preparazione. Il libro é in lingua inglese.

Para quem quer se aventurar na culinária coreana eu recomendo muito esse livro, é tudo bem explicadinho. A única não muito boa foi a demora na entrega mas enfim...

This cookbook is fantastic, written by a fabulous YouTuber influencer in Korean cuisine. I am not Asian, and always loved the cuisine, but never dared to attempt any cooking of it. After watching Maangchi's cooking videos, and saw how much fun she was having, I decided to get her cookbook, and was not disappointed. The recipes and explanations are excellent, clear, and insightful. I have been cooking up a storm! It will open to you a world of flavours, colours, and techniques, and I had trouble previously boiling water! I am so grateful for this. Also, I can see that more experienced cooks/chefs will enjoy the wonderful addition of these tasty dishes to their culinary repertoire. This is a MUST-HAVE cookbook, but don't let it sit on the shelf! USE IT!

Rekommenderas om du vill laga riktig autentisk koreansk mat på ett enkelt sätt

I have now both Maangchi's cookbooks. Both are great, a lot of really tasty recipes. You find some of the recipes from internet also and a lot of her videos, but there are many more in her books. And I also want to support her by buying the books because her fantastic videos lead me cooking Korean dishes many years ago. Spicy and tasty!