KOREA.... KIM chi

I love eating kim chi either as a salad on its own or as side dish with a bowl of hot piping instant noodles or fried it with rice. I remember I received few packets of kim chi from a friend  who went to Korea but dislike kim chi  and was kind enough to kept it for me. I finished all in a day!

I  jumped to excitement when our tour bus approached the venue/shop which make and sell assorted kim chi.  This shop is divided into two section cater for visitors to hands on making kim chi with a middle aged lady giving instruction.

When we entered the shop,  we were greeted with big square of plates filled with a quarter size cabbage & kim chi paste on the working table.  Did you notice the blue plastic cup? At first, all of us thought it was part of the ingredient in making kim chi until the instructor who speak in Mandarin  told us to drink the sweet milk without knowing what is the purpose.  Maybe to make us have a sweet feeling or experience making kim chi???

the instructor sharing with us about kim chi history and how to make it

essential greens...cabbage and white carrot

along our journey  from one destination to another, we noticed lots of giant size of cabbages grown in a small plot of land at back of shop/house

mixing it all together

after 10 minutes, this is the end result...

we were not allowed to taste our self made kim chi as it was collected and place into a big porcelain bowl by the helper. instead, the instuctor took out few samples of kim chi for sale at quiet expensive price and none of us bought it.

after the kim chi session, we were given opportunity to dress up in their Korean traditional costume or Hanbok, available in mostly bright colors. I chose pink, my fave color but it really look big on me and can fit 2 person of my size..  feel ashame to show you my BIG pic!

lively background + set up for photo shooting

cute colorful hanbok in a frame 

To fulfill my shopping list, I bought two small packet of kim chi at 24 hours shop and it cost me KRW2,300 =RM6.90 per packet...expensive!  Tastewise...same with the one I purchased in KL.

 

Mt Sorak....

KOREA......FOOD I had

Our trip included breakfast, lunch and dinner accompanied with kim chi and other types of banchan/side dishes. During the whole trip, we were served  pork/chicken meat either grilled or boiled in a tasty soup topped with lots of cut cabbages, carrots and big onion using hot metal pot.  Our Korean tour guide was so attentive that he made sure all of us have sufficient food on our table before having his meal. We even asked for cut chilies and light soya sauce and he obliged by serving it to all of us. Our main i.e pork/chicken meat and side dishes was replenished food from time to time by our tour guide.  Such a humble and good service! 

Day 1 - Breakfast (in-flight meal)

(top) - set of scrambled egg topped with mashed potatoes + fried sausage + grilled tomato (bottom) = set of fried flat noodles with black beans chicken

each comes with 1 piece of croissant with butter (fluffy & buttery), 1 cup of fruit yoghurt, a small portion of fresh cut fruits and 1 plastic cup mineral water  

Day 1 - Lunch

grilled marinated chicken meat with rice cake and cabbages

Day 1 - Dinner
grilled pork sirlion with mixed vegetables

Day 2 - Local buffet breakfast

Day 2 - Lunch in Everland (own pocket money)

@ 6,500 KRW per set= RM19.50
(top)= fried fish and chicken fillet...non greasy and crips
(bottom) = soup springy udon with fish skewer and fried fish fillet

Day 2 - Dinner
BBQ pork meat

Day 3 -  Western set breakfast 

Day 3 - Lunch
seafood hot pot - crab, clams, fish meat and soft beancurd

(looks yummy but no..tasted very plain)

Day 3 - Dinner

pork & vegetables hot pot

Day 4 -  Western set breakfast

Day 4 - Lunch

(top)- pork & vegetables hot pot

(bottom) -hot stone rice with vegetables and seaweed....felt warm eating hot fluffy rice

Day 4 - Dinner

(top) - kim chi and longevity noodles

(centre) - ginseng wine... very strong hint of ginseng

(bottom) korean ginseng chicken soup...

 added salt + black pepper to enhanced the herbal flavour...superb dinner

Day 5 Breakfast (same as Day 2)

Day 5 - Lunch (prior our flight back to KL)

cuttlefish, pork meat, ear fungus and mixed vegetables in a light soya soup

Eventhough the lunch & dinner are cooked in a healthy way... I meant no frying or adding garlic/onion oil but by the third day, I already drooled for Roti Canai Telur, Curry Mee, Nasi Dagang and etc. Once a Malaysian is always a Malaysian!

DESSERT

Colorful Glutinous Ball (2,000 KRW)

each ball wrapped with sweet yellow bean paste

Sweet Corn (2,000 KRW)

sticky and tasted like glutinous rice..yummy

Waffle Chocolate Ice Cream (3,500 KRW)

up next ...breath taking city view