Fried Pike Mackerel (like in my header picture!)

Please see the header picture for this dish. It is a simple and flavorful dish. I like to take small nibbles of this as a snack or eat it with rice as a meal.

Fried Pike Mackerel
Savor. Devour.

Materials:

· 1 tbsp ground lemongrass (I coarsely chop up lemongrass stalks and put them in food processor to puree them. They store up to a month in a ziplock bag in the freezer)

· 2 tsp salt

· 1 tsp chili powder

· ½ lime or lemon (if you want a sweeter taste, use ½ a small Valencia orange)

· 2 pike mackerels

Procedures:

· Mix the lemongrass, salt, and chili powder. This is the seasoning. Set aside.

· Clean the mackerel (Get rid of the fins and tail. Clean the scales. Wash a few times under running water.)

· Cut three or four ½ cm deep horizontal cuts down the fish (see header picture).

· Rub the seasoning well into the fish and let marinade for at least 15 minutes and up to a few hours (if you marinade for that long, cover it and put it in the fridge).

· In a hot pan with two tbsp oil over medium-high heat, add the fish and cook for 2 - 3 minutes on each side, until crispy. Turn the heat down low and let fry for 6 - 8 minutes more on each side, depending on the fish size. The fish should be a deep brown and crispy when finished.

· Serve with the lemon, and squeeze as desired while eating.

Korean Seafood and Chives Pancake

This dish is like a Korean sibling to the Vietnamese bánh xèo. When I want more dough and less crispiness, I definitely turn to this dish.

Korean Seafood and Chives Pancake
Savor. Devour.

Materials:

· 1 bunch chives, washed and cut into 1” sections

· ½ medium onion, thinly sliced

· ½ medium carrot, julienned

· ½ bag assorted seafood (you can substitute other seafood here if that is all you have in your fridge, e.g. scallops, mussels (out of shell), shrimp, etc…)

· Batter: 1 cup cold water, 1 egg, ½ cup Korean pancake mix, ¾ cup Korean frying mix, a pinch of salt, 1 tsp black pepper. Mix until homogenized. I recommend running the batter through a sieve and beating the clumps through.

· Sauce: 4 tbsp soy sauce and 2 tbsp red vinegar (I added this sauce because I like the blend of flavors; I admit I don’t know the original sauce that is supposed to accompany this dish)

Procedures:

· Add all ingredients into the batter and mix well. Make sure everything is coated in batter.

· In a nonstick pan, add 1 tbsp oil (I recommend canola or any oil that gets really hot, not olive oil), and let it get hot. Place one ladle full of mix into the pan and fry until golden. I like my pancake crispy but not too crunchy.

· In a plate, put a folded paper towel to soak the excess oil and place the finished pancakes on top.

· Repeat until the pancake mix is finished. Enjoy with the sauce.