Recipe Review: Dak Gui (a Korean dish) from the cookbook Eating Korean by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee

"There are very few things in the world that

taste better than charred meat cooked over a

roaring fire on a summer night."

                                                                - Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee

Introduction: Girl meets boy. Boy is Korean. Girl is not Korean. Boy makes girl eat lots of rice. Girl gets used to it. They marry. Girl needs to learn to cook Korean food.

Inspiration: I'm going to break from my traditional book reviews in favor of culture hour, where I show you how I've slooooooowly begun to integrate Korean dishes into my life beginning with a good Korean marinade.

I'm a white American. Although I spent what I call "my formative years" in Memphis, Tennessee, other than an increase of the importance of barbecue in my life, my taste buds have always been pretty typical of white Americans: bland. Meeting EunSung changed my life in many ways but one of the biggest can be summed up in just one simple word: FLAVOR.

If you know my husband, you know that he loves food. In fact, recently I've joked that my mom typically describes EunSung by saying something like, "You would just love my son-in-law. I've never met anyone who loves food as much as he does!" EunSung grins when he hears this because he knows it is true. Food is his family's love language and it's a language that I'm learning in more than one way. Dak Gui is one of those go-to recipes for me. It's simple enough that when I first started venturing into Korean-cooking-land it boosted my confidence. My hope is that by showing you the steps, you will feel inspired to try this out.

The following recipe comes from Eating Korean by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee. I very much treasure this cookbook because Lee makes the recipes simple enough where I do not feel daunted and she also integrates her personal stories and family photographs every few pages to make the cookbook feel like a bit of a memoir. Food is a big part of culture and her recipes and stories have helped me to feel more connected to my husband's food culture. She also includes a "Where to Get Korean Groceries" section in the back of the book as well as a pronunciation guide, a key to special Korean occasions, and many other fun tidbits.

Dak Gui (Grilled Chicken) - a Korean recipe

Ingredients: 

• Roughly 5 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or breasts if you hate dark meat but the thighs hold the flavor so much better than the breasts)
• 1 onion, chopped (not pictured; my apologies to the onion)
• 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-in of a piece of ginger root 
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup Korean malt syrup* 
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil**
• 1 teaspoon black pepper 

*I can read minds and what you are thinking right now is, "What the cuss is Korean malt syrup??" I know, I know. I didn't get that either. The Korean name for it is mool yut and yeah, I'm sure that totally helps. Korean malt syrup is really similar to corn syrup. It's traditionally made from barley malt but my bottle is from corn syrup. If you can't find mool yut, I would just substitute corn syrup for it but it would likely turn out fine but perhaps just a tad bit sweeter. Mool yut can be found at any Asian market and if you have an international section at your grocery store, it might be there, too.

**Although sesame oil can be expensive, it is a wonderful ingredient to have in your kitchen if you enjoy Asian cuisine. A little goes a very long way. Also, people have been on a weird kick with sesame oil lately. Try googling the health benefits if you're curious about it.

Instructions:

Take a knife and score the chicken on both sides so that the chicken will be easily infused with the marinade. In a bowl, combine the onion, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sugar, malt syrup (or corn syrup), sesame oil, and black pepper. I take my hand held grater and grate the garlic and ginger over the bowl so it's less of a mess. Since it's just a marinade, I don't peel the ginger.

Douse the chicken in the marinade ensuring that the chicken has been completely covered with the mixture.


My recipe from Eating Korean says to cover and refrigerate for at least three hours or preferably overnight. I like to refrigerate overnight to really make sure that the chicken absorbs as much of the marinade as possible!

Finally, grill the chicken over medium-high heat until it is completely cooked. On a normal outdoor grill, this can take anywhere from 20-40 minutes. Thighs tend to cook more quickly than breasts so watch it carefully. I like mine nice and chargrilled but if you don't, it will still taste delicious. If you're really in a bind and do not have an outdoor grill (or it rains or you don't have time to grill) you can always bake the chicken. Although the taste will be different, I've done this before and it is still very delicious!

Oh, and don't forget the rice! Eating this chicken with a side of rice cannot be beat. 

EunSung says, "Mahni deu se yo." ((Please enjoy plentifully))