Yook Ke Jang Korean Spicy Beef and Scallion soup

Cold days and warm, spicy soup are a great combination. A good question to ask yourself when you first encounter a bowl of soup sporting an orange/red colored liquid: where did that color come from. If the answer is red chili peppers, the experience may be a good bit different, than if it is, say, from tomatoes.

On my way to class recently, I stopped at a favorite Korean restaurant - Arisu, in Georgetown, DC. I was wet and cold, so naturally I thought soup. I settled on a traditional spicy beef and scallion soup - Yook Ke Jang (in researching the soup after the fact, I found at least one other spelling Yukgaejang - but the recipe appears to be basically the same - boiled brisket (water and onion), vegetables including scallions, a Korean mountain fern (gossari) and bean sprouts, garlic and a boatload of chili powder. The soup I had, also had shiitake mushrooms and glass noodles.

The color is rich, and aroma of spice hits you well before being rounded out by the beef and vegetables. The meat was tender if a little bland - I'm not sure that isn't how it should be, however I did find a recipe that marinated the beef with a chili paste:

http://www.chow.com/recipes/11335

so, of course, I will try it and report back. I also found this wonderful step by step video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ViCgcNEYLQ

It is about eight minutes long but will get the soup in your bowls if you follow along.

One interesting ingredient - gossari - is a mountain fern - apparently available in Korean markets. I'll report back on my findings there too. We have a local Korean market here in Rockville, MD - Kam Sam so I am hoping to find all necessary ingredients. The soup was served with rice, kim che and a pickled carrot and sprout salad - a deep spoon and chopsticks were necessary to get through this meal!

Cookbooks

What to do with leftover turkey? Last night I made turkey chili. It was chock full of spice and kidney beans and tomatoes and, oh yeah, as much leftover turkey as I could push into the pot. Even so, it was definitely more about the tomato and spices than the turkey - this time the protein was mainly for texture. Quite frankly, I was more than ok with that.

Since I was remiss in my duties and did not take a photo of said chili, I will move on. I have started collecting soup cookbooks as well as recipes, and thought I would mention one of my favorites. There are so many cookbooks out there - where do you start to find one that works for you. For me it was easy - I had James Peterson's "Glorious French Food" and loved his writing style. He provides clear, insightful instruction in french cooking technique, and then shows how each approach can be applied in various recipes.

"Splendid Soups - Recipes and Master Techniques for Making the World's Best Soups" works the same way. A good bit of time is spent on the basics and the basis of good soup making - stock. The photographs are excellent, and he provides lots of ideas for variations. The chapters are logical, and I have yet to use one of his concepts in a recipe with negative results.

http://www.amazon.com/Splendid-Soups-Recipes-Master-Techniques/dp/0471391360/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259683241&sr=1-9

Our Thanksgiving day soup was from this book. Smoke Scented Broth with Herbs and Ravioli. Definitely a winner - ham hocks are simmered with vegetables and herbs to create a smoky, salty broth. After the soup is strained, 24 cloves of garlic are added to the broth, simmering to infuse a roasty garlic flavor. Finally, tomatoes, herbs and raviolis (I used spicy meat ravioli) are added just before serving. The result is a rich, warm, mahogany colored soup that fills the senses and definitely requires seconds.

What's your favorite soup cookbook? Why?