Tag Archives: food

Eat your way to inner peace

I just had a refreshing simple salad and some watermelon. In the crock pot, garbanzo beans, fresh spinach, with sauteed carrots, onions and garlic are melding with tomatoes …minestrone is on the way. Aww… wonderful.

Eating is part of my spiritual path. Choosing, preparing and eating mindfully bring me in balance. When I ignore this, I swing out of balance. And the internal  bickering begins, throwing my inner peace out.

When I was in Ghana, there were times we didn’t have a lot of food or money. I was amazed that my friends there would wait for several hours for good food, rather than eat cheap cookies and crappy food. This taught me something about patience and valuing the food we eat.

Eating junk food creates a junk body and a junk mind. Is there any other way it could be?

100-word: Steaming Snack

She’s still alive but just barely. I almost walked right past her but saw the steam rising above the snow. She tried not to move when she saw me, even stopped breathing. But I pounced on her nevertheless. I didn’t need to. She would have been dead in a few minutes anyhow. But I wanted to taste the warm blood as I pulled the flesh away from the bones. I licked the blood off my claws, cleaned my whiskers, then gnawed on the bones of the lovely sparrow snack.

100-Word: Mealtime with Musa

The door opens and he strides in. Always, like a benevolent king.

“Just lentils,” I say apologetically, as he walks past.

I hear the door of his room close. A few minutes later he comes out.

“Sistah Joan…,” he steps into the doorway softly.

“Lentils?,” I offer.

“Ah, bless…”

I choose the ceramic bowl, with the glaze dripping azure and Garden-of-the-Gods red.

He takes it with two hands. He closes his eyes, and with his nose over the bowl, takes in the full essence with a deep breath. Then another.

“Ah, bless…  .” He shakes his head, “Lentils, Sistah Joan!”

 

100-Word: Chilly Toes

My feet are suddenly in agony. The floor is freezing this morning, even through my thick socks. I hop on the kitchen chair with my sweatshirt on, and yours too. I pull my knees to my chest and wiggle my toes. You bring me a steaming cup of tea with milk.

“Honey?”

“No. Well yes, just you.” It’s an old pun, but we smile anyhow.

Holding onto our cups of tea, inhaling the steam, sitting next to each other. My toes are happy. And so are we.

Greek Salad …Easy and Delicious

Greek Salad: Easy and Delicious
We are so lucky! The ingredients for Greek salads are readily available, fresh and inexpensive. We can pick up fresh heads of romaine lettuce (kept cool in the frig) at our local produce shop, along with roma tomatoes and fresh lemons for the dressing. Kalamata olives and feta cheese are plentiful and scrumptious from our grocery store’s deli. We have the for lunch on a weekend, or pack it for school. Add a pita or two and heaven awaits. (A packet of about 8 fresh today pita is 1 Riyal …30 cents!)

Fast talker

A common topic at our uni is how much junk food is offered by the vendors and consumed by the students. So, they admit to eating junk food or nothing but coffee, dates and chocolate. 

So, when one of my students was unusually tired, I asked her if she was feeling okay. She said, yes, but didn’t look it. Her friend sitting next to her say, “Teacher, she hasn’t eaten anything today.”

“What?,”I said, “Why didn’t you eat? You need to take care of yourself and eat healthy food.” I nearly wagged my finger at her, my tone was so preachy.

“No, Teacher,” they wanted to say something more but didn’t have the words. They asked other students, then finally, “She’s fasting! Special day for Muslims.”

Oh crap! I’ve done it again. 

The Day of Ashura is observed by some Muslims by fasting. 

Shop Local

Shop Local

Because it’s not easy for women to eat out easily, all of us female teachers tend to do a lot of cooking at home.

For my roommate and I, when we want produce, we just pop out to our local produce shop. That is, you first check prayer times. We get off work at 3:15, and the shops are open then until about 5 pm. They close for about 30 minutes, open then close again at around 6:30 for another 30 minutes. On weekends, don’t go at 11:30 or 2:45, either.

Then you throw on your abaya and a headscarf and walk the block and a half to the veggie shop. There’s plenty to choose from, but not always same selection. They usually have romaine lettuce heads, roma tomatoes, white onions, carrots, butternut squash, cauliflower, potatoes, gala apples, bananas and more. The prices are great, and it’s hard to spend more that about 20SAR ($7US). And our shop guys try to teach us a little Arabic, so it’s a great outing all in all.

I realize that even having to put an abaya on to go out, produce shopping here is still more convenient than most places I’ve lived in the US.

We also use the local supermarkets. They’re convenience-store-size, but carry lentils, eggs, milk, yogurt, labneh (lovely between yogurt & cream cheese), pita, digestive cookies …most of our essentials at pretty good prices.

But around every corner is a surprise. Just as I was getting sentimental about shopping locally, I got a jolt. I walked into one neighborhood shop, and there, just inside the door is a huge display, more like an altar, of Doritos and Lays potato chips. Shop local?

 

Snack Attack

I know I’m doomed anytime I go into a gas station convenience store to buy food. That’s why I use the pay-at-the-pump. But the dang card reader wasn’t reading, so I went in. $29.50 for gas and $9.23 for ‘food’.

What is it about these places that breaks down my willpower? I never buy Hostess ding-dongs at King Soopers. The Big-Grab fritos bag …does it mean the serving size or my ass? Sunflower seeds, shell on. Why? They’re a pain in the butt, a huge mess. But it seems somehow romantic or nostalgic or some other unfounded logic.  By then I’m feeling guilty. So I grab an Arizona Ice Tea. What are these things? 24 oz of high-fructose corn syrup and artificial colors. But tea’s healthy right?

It’s too late to do anything but eat and drink it all. But I gotta think of somewhere I can stop to throw out the entire bag of evidence before I get home. I’m single, but even I won’t be able to face myself tomorrow.

Loving vegetables

Fast food and processed food are gaining ground in Korea, but it’s nothing close to the U.S.  In general, Koreans still have a better appreciation of ‘good food’ as nutritious food.

This is so simple, it’s a bit embarrassing to admit.  But the Korean way of eating has taught me many easy ways to include vegetables in my eating:

  • A friend was stealthily eating a cooked, whole sweet potato on the bus for her breakfast (eating in public is frowned on here)
  • Snorkeling trip snacks were boiled new potatoes and slices of steamed pumpkin. Neither were peeled, and both were warm and delicious treats as we stood devouring them, wet and shivering.
  • For lunch, our Korean teachers usually bring small containers of a variety of foods: rice, kimchi, and other stuff, which is then shared. So, bringing a small container of broccoli, zucchini, eggplant, or sauteed veggies is a welcome addition. Broccoli requires no seasoning. Zucchini and eggplant are always great with oregano or basil or a bit of tomato/spaghetti sauce.
  • Fruit is considered dessert: apple slices, or bananas sliced into yogurt.

But, I did come up with a new one they hadn’t tried. Apple slices dipped in peanut butter!

Smuggled food

Students aren’t allowed to eat in the classroom. And teachers aren’t allowed to bring in any snacks or treats. The only exception is the occasional piece of candy they get taped to a test or assignment, and they’re under strict orders to put it away and eat it later.

So, when a student sneaks food to me, is it a ploy to let them eat in class; is it bribery or a sincere gift? Quite possibly all the above.

Here are a few recent examples…

One of my eight-year old students was at school almost 30 minutes early. Bored to bits, pacing the halls like a caged tiger, peeking his head into the strictly off-limits teacher’s room and saying “Teacher, Teacher, Hi Teacher!”. About the fifth time ‘greeting’ me, he added, “Come! Please!”

“No, (thanks!), I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

“Teacher, please! Come!” He motions that he has to something to give me.

Finally, I go to the door. He transfers from his hands to mine, a heap of somewhat worse for wear, potato chips. “For you!,” he says triumphantly.

What do I do with this ‘gift’? I stuffed the whole handful of chips directly in my mouth.  While wondering why were the chips slightly moist and not really crunchy, I made a note to myself, figure out another option for next time.

—–

The next day, I was walking out of the restroom. One of my former students, a seven-year-old girl, grabbed my hand, dashed into the restroom, pulling me with her and closed the door. Oh no, what mishap?, I wondered. She held the door closed with her body, while she wrangled a lollipop from her pants pocket. She tucked it into my hand with a quick smile, then opened the door and darted off to her class.

—-

I walked into a middle school class before the bell rang, and ‘busted’ them eating. No thanks, I said, when they offered me some. Here, you’ve got to try it! It’s a Korean snack! It’s so good! It looks like uncooked ramen noodles, broken up. (The package even has directions with a warning, don’t cook this!) Ignoring my ‘no’, they tried to stuff some in my mouth for me, insisting I’d love it. That time, I was quick enough to get away!

—

Finally, a new student joined a middle school class. The other students were griping about the class, as they had to do a pretty difficult listening test. But the new guy enjoyed the thrill of the new environment, the students, the class and maybe even the teacher. Standing in line, waiting for the bell to ring, the others whined about life or edged in front of each other to leave class a fraction of a second earlier.

The new guy was oblivious to all of that. He stood there glowing. Suddenly, he reached into his bag and produced a piece of gum, wrapped and new looking in ‘mint’ condition (haha). I accepted the gift, said thanks and mumbled that I couldn’t eat it now, but would keep it.  When I looked back at him, he had a sad look then a smile flashed. He must have thought that one piece wasn’t quite enough. He dug around and quickly produced a second piece of unscathed, beautifully wrapped gum, placed it in my hand and then smiled contently.

The bell rang, the other students left in a mob, he made a quick headbow goodbye, smiled and floated out the door and down the hall.

—-

 

 

Korean snacks

Have you ever had slices of steamed japanese squash or boiled whole baby potatoes on a picnic? That was the fare on a recent snorkeling trip. We kayaked 10 minutes to a nearby island, and saw some fish and lots of interesting seaweed while snorkeling. Then when it was time to eat, wemwere treated to these warm delicious vegetables. Brilliant! Portable, easy to eat, warm, no waste, no worries about spoiled food.

Then on a hike a couple days ago, big thick slices of tomatoes that had been earlier sprinkled with a dash of sugar and salt, and fresh cucumber. Wonderful complement to the dried squid and nuts that I packed.

Making Pajeon

On weekdays, I don’t do much cooking. I’m gone from about 10 am until 8 pm or later, so there’s not much time. And I haven’t been motivated to cook dinner either first thing in the am or later at night.

So today, Sunday, I wanted to cook! I had lots of veggies and bought the mix for  Korean veggie pancakes. I know them as ‘pajeon’. But I noticed the mix said ‘bujeon’. I found out that ‘jeon’ means pancake. ‘pa’ means green onions. ‘bu’ means leeks. There are also yachejeon, ‘yache’ means veggies.

Anyhow, you can find the recipe online. Search for Korean vegetable pancakes. Or you an buy the mix. Then just add whatever veggies you want! Usually it has either green onions, leeks or garlic chives. That’s enough! Or you can choose to add veggies like zucchini, shredded carrots and red pepper, for a nice colorful mix. I added what I had: green onions, spinach, and zucchini.

For dipping sauce, use soy sauce with some slices of the green onion. (I was lucky that the former teacher left soy sauce in the apartment!) Add sesame seeds if you like …but I didn’t because I don’t have any yet!

Here in Korea, most apartments don’t have an oven for baking. So, the other great thing about this recipe is that it works on a stovetop!

Try it. I think you’ll love it!

Quiet Christmas Eve

Pretty funny going out to dinner when you can only whisper. Most people who know me would agree that if anything, I talk too much! So, only being able to whisper a little really cramped my style!  We laughed a lot.

My friend had wanted to take me to a fancy place in Haeundae but I wasn’t up to it. So, we ate at another traditional Korean food place in Seomyeon.  Here we had some kind of kimchi bap dish. So, again it’s kimchi, but in this dish the rice is already in the broth. It’s served boiling in individual hot pots.  In this case, they give you a small bowl to spoon out bites out so you can cool it down enough to eat it. So hot, nutritious, delicious! Yummy.

It was so cold! About 20F and windy! We enjoyed our dinner, briskly walked past the Christmas displays at Lotte Department store, and then I rode the subway back home.  I found out how to operate my floor heat, so my apartment is warm and cozy!

Wonderful Amazing Korean Food

When you’re sick, there are so many wonderful, nutritious Korean foods to choose from. I’m in love with Korean Food (Korean food, saranhayeo!)

Wednesday morning on my hour break, I went into a little 24-hr Korean food place (think ‘diner’ Korean-style). I ordered 만두국 (mandu kuk), dumpling soup. (click link for photos)

Later, I picked up chicken salad cranberry croissant sandwiches from Paris Baguette. That and sweet bread filled with red bean paste and cream.

For lunch, I made myself a banana sandwich …a treat we learned from our old friend Ron in Australia.

For dinner on Thursday, I stopped at another favorite diner. On my way to teach my evening class, I had kimchi chigae. Now, like most Koreans, I think kimchi has some magical healing properties. It’s a vegetable (cabbage), fermented, with spicy red peppers…why wouldn’t it be magical! ha ha

Kimchi chigae (김치 찌개) is a stew served boiling, with kimchi, pork, green peppers, onions in a rich broth. Eat it with the side of rice, plus more kimchi and other side dishes. For 3500 won (about $3), it’s good, quick, very wonderful.

Sick in Korea

In the last 1.5 days, I picked up some kind of sore throat and cough. At home, if I was sick, I’d stay home from work for a day, rest and then return to work.

But in Korea, most people, don’t have that luxury. Me, for example. I have 6 hours of sick time every 12 months. And there’s no substitute teachers so most teachers just keep teaching when we’re sick. In the rare case when someone doesn’t teach, the other teachers have to cover the additional classes.

Students keep coming to class when they’re sick too. There doesn’t seem to be the same concept that we usually express so compassionately as, “Why did you come in? You’re so sick, you’re getting us all sick! Go home!”

In Korea, most workers need a doctor’s note that they were sick. So, if they go to the doctor, they usually go and get a vitamin drip…an intravenous (IV) injection of some combination of vitamins or nutrients?!? Antibiotics and other nearly recreational drugs are often also part of the remedy. Then, they usually return straight back to work.

Also, my students think it’s funny that we would eat chicken soup when we’re sick. Since I haven’t seen anything like Campbell’s chicken noodle soup in the local supermarkets, today I had Korean spicy seaweed ramen. Ooh, that was actually delicious and was just what I wanted (for 1000 won, or $1).

That and citron tea. The tea looks like a jar of lemon jam with lots of lemon peel slices in it. You put a spoonful or two in hot water and stir. It’s kinda like that lemon & honey or lemon & brandy remedy.

Making Kimbap and Dakboki

Today we took the subway to my friend Ae Soon’s house. We made kimbap (california rolls …Korean style) and dakboki (hard to describe …bbq sauce on chewy rice cakes). Ade knew how to make these already because he worked in a Korean restaurant in Indonesia. Ae Soon’s son hadn’t ever made it before. So he and I both made kimbap for our first time today. Very cool!

To make kimbap:

(click this picture to see more detailed photos)

You put a piece of seaweed on the kimbap or sushi mat (kimbal), and cover 2/3 of it with seasoned rice (rice with crushed sesame seeds and salt). You can put anything you want in kimbap but today we used yellow Daikon radish, egg (think egg omelette strips), oadeng (dried fish cake), imitation crab, sausage (we’d call it hot dog), cucumber, and spinach. Roll it up tightly, pausing at the last bit to moisten the end of the seaweed so it will adhere to the rest of the roll. Brush it with sesame oil to keep it moist and flavorful. Cut it into 1/2″ slices or so, and sprinkle crushed sesame seeds and eat!

…or you can buy a roll of these for about $1 from any 7-11, convenience store, mom and pop diner, or groc store, if you’re too lazy to make them or if you don’t live in Korea. ha ha



Mosque and Turkish Food in Dusil

Today, I met up with some Indonesian friends that we met at Haeundae Beach.  They invited us to join them at the free Korean language classes they attend. I took a 30 minute subway ride and met them at the Dusil station. (pronounced Du-shil ….”si” in Korean is always “shi”)

I was a bit surprised to find out that the free classes were held at a mosque! But, the classes are open to anyone and teacher is really good. She speaks only Korean so it’s like how we teach. Only problem was, the class was too advanced for me. Most of the students are Indonesian and have been in Korea for a year or two. They’re studying to take the TOPIK entrance exam to enter Korean universities this fall or next spring.

So we didn’t stay too long, but attached to the mosque is a Turkish restaurant. That was quite a find! The aroma in their was amazing. We enjoyed Lavash bread, Turkish coffee and fruit tea. Oh, I wanna go back there for more!

Taejongdae Park

Today I headed out in the heat of the day, at 3 pm, and met a friend/student. We took the subway and bus to Taejongdae Park. (About an hour traveling, $1.50).

From there we took a ferry ride (10,000 won, $9) out and around a bit, then got off at the lighthouse. Ladies prepare fresh fish and serve raw fish to visitors at ‘restaurants’ on the rocks…red and blue canvas tarps stretched over rugs.

We skipped eating but instead walked back for a couple hours along the trails, savoring the sea breeze, and shady paths.

For dinner, we went to Nampodong and had Ssamkipsal …grill pork strips and garlic at your table and eat as lettuce wraps with greens and sauces. Yummy. Then, we went for coffee on the second floor as we looked out to the street for people watching. Nampodong reminds me of Pearl St mall or Santa Monica …that kind of cool, trendy area to hang out.

My Korean friend helped me learning some Korean phrases. Our main study material was a paper menu with dozens of items. I’d cut it up into small pieces and she helped me read and understand what it all was. Really fabulously fun and helpful!

Major League Baseball Game …Korean style

Today we had our first weekday off, since I started in June. To celebrate, we organized and outing: me, a fellow teacher (Canadian) and several students met at the lobby of the school at 3:30 pm and headed to the subway for Sajik Stadium. (Maybe 30 minutes and $1 fare). The Lotte Giants (our team) was prepared to play the Kia Tigers. (Here baseball teams are corporately named/sponsored!)  (More photos.)

We bought our tickets in the general admission section for 7,000 won (about $6). Then, our group of six split up. Three headed over to HomePlus (supermarket) for food and three of us went to save seats. In about 45 minutes, the HomePlus group arrived with boxes of fried chicken, six-packs of beer, a case of water and grapes. We sat in the shade of a banner, but the temperature was around 85F as we waited for the game to start. Still, we were a pretty happy group …watching baseball beats being indoors at English class!

In addition to chicken, you can buy pizza, kebabs, and more traditional Korean cuisine like noodles. Another group of three met us there a bit later. They broke out the dried squid. You know, I have had squid many times, but chewing on dried squid legs, which hang out of your mouth, as you’re working your way through the thing …hmmm, not so much! But everyone is suprised that I don’t like it. But it’s delicious, they swear!

Singing! There are so many songs. Each player has his own song with words. This isn’t how I remember it when I watched the Rockies that someone plays the song. No, the fans just break out singing each player’s song as he comes up to bat. The one Mexican player (Garcia), gets a song that ends with the chorus of his name (Korean-style) Ga-Ra-Ci-Ya (and his name is spelled in Hangeul (korean letters)), this way!))

By far, the funniest tradition is the part where the staff passes out orange trash bags near the end of the game. Later, the fans clean up their area and put all trash in the bags, then bring the bags to one of many collection points on the way out of the stadium.

But first, the bags are inflated and twisted to be a big orange blob, then worn on your head. The bags are secured to your head, by looping the handles, one around each ear. Or, a style preferred by some men and women, is to make the bag into a big bow and wear that.

Our group included a group of very cool university students and others in their 20′s, who donned the bags and maybe still were cool??!!

Other than one inning where the Lotte Giants gave up 10 runs to the Kia Tigers, it would have been a close game. So, they lost but we cheered them on anyhow, and had a great experience.