Maangchi’s Real Korean Cooking: Authentic Dishes for the Home Cook

Born and raised in South Korea and now living in New York City, Maangchi is the founder of a popular Korean cooking website. In this delightful collection, she showcases the variety and breadth of Korean cooking. She begins by detailing typical Korean meals, with ever-present rice and kimchi served in a multitude of ways. She also provides comprehensive ingredient and equipment lists that help orient first timers. Recipes start with numerous types of rice—fluffy, toasted, multigrain—that serve as the building blocks of Korean-style curry rice, seaweed rice rolls, and bibimbap. Maangchi also offers an appetizing selection of noodles, including spicy, chewy cold noodles and noodles with black bean paste. Soups and stews, two of the cornerstones of Korean cuisine, are amply represented by dishes like spicy beef and vegetable soup, seafood stew, and kimchi stew with tuna. She dedicates one chapter to kimchi and pickles and another to snacks, with offerings such as spicy stuffed cucumber kimchi and fried kelp. Side dishes steal the show, including braised beef in soy sauce, stir-fried kale with soybean paste, blanched spinach with scallions and sesame, and stir-fried pork. In addition, she provides chapters on pancakes, special-occasion food, desserts, and more. Maangchi has written an essential cookbook for anyone who wants to learn to prepare authentic Korean cuisine. (May)