Maangchi

Although not Korean, I grew up in Seoul. I have been following Maangchi for many years and her recipes are always good. I have moved around a bit but her recipes are easy to adjust and she often gives ways to substitute if you can't get a hold of the necessary items. I am lucky enough now to live close to a market that is owned and run by a Korean family so I can get almost any authentic ingredient I need (along with all the treats and snacks I love :). Maangchi is great and this recipe book is a great resource especially if you limited in the ingredients you can obtain.… (mere)

This is the first Kindle book I ever purchased, and I got it when there was some kind of flash sale going on. I LOVE Asian food. All kinds, really. Be it Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Laotian, Chinese, Taiwanese, etc. I love the spices and complex flavors, and the amazing things they do with noodles and rice.

Bean paste is like… One of my go to additives. In fact, this book has introduced me to SO MANY new flavors, that I use in tons of dishes now. Bean paste I use all the time, added to stir fries or meat when I'm cooking it. I also use glass noodles for a lot of quick meals now, as well. I’ve created a bastardized version of quick-cook spaghetti and meatballs. And even though the noodles are thinner than spaghetti noodles, they are long enough that they present a decent compliment to the heavy taste of meat and sauce. Plus, the cooking time is essentially halved.

And I use potato starch all the time. Actually, potato starch is my favorite starch, because it adds this rich, savory note to anything you add it to. And while it’s not something I readily see in stores like Target or Publix, IT SHOULD BE. Potatoes are one of my favorite food groups (yes, food GROUPS), and the natural starch they give off is why you’re supposed to save a bit of the liquid you use to boil them in, to go back INTO something like mashed potatoes or soup… Anyways. If someone was going to cook and eat me, I would suggest they thicken up the broth with some potato starch. This stuff’ll make me taste that much more delicious.

Recipes I’ve thus far created.
Kimchi Fried Rice (1936)
Hand Torn Noodle Soup (324)
Black Bean Noodles (455)

And while that’s really not a lot of recipes, I wanted to be up front with the ones I HAVE tried. I will say, I would tweak some stuff for the hand-made noodles. For the most part, the recipes are pretty easy to follow, and to tweak to your specific likes. Once my current bucket of kimchi dwindles down, I intend on using this recipe book to make my own. And yes, I currently have a literal bucket of kimchi in my fridge. Cough…

In case you’re wondering if this is a good value of worth your money… The answer is a resounding yes! In cooking with only 4 recipes, I've already brought new flavors into my cooking (bean paste, potato starch, and glass noodles).I just counted, and there are 90+ recipes, anything from DIY Quick Kimshi to Rice, to Steamed Pork Buns and Fish Cakes. It's definitely worth the price, even if the Kindle version is a little clunky.

PROS:
In the index, you can double click on easy recipe to go directly to it.
This incorporates books 1, 2, and 3. That’s a lot of recipes!

CONS:
The navigation is clunky. I’m not sure if this is just a Kindle thing or what…
Sometimes there is a page break with a recipe. So, my hands covered in flour or paste, I have to finagle my elbow or a pencil to go to the next page.
Many of the recipes list the ingredients, and THEN in the directions list the amounts. This is not always conducive to quick cooking, and means you often have to peruse the recipes over and over to find the spot where you left off.… (mere)