Birthday Kalbi!

We are at home waiting to go to Laurie Zanger's 2nd 29th birthday party. Since there was not much better to do, Corrie told me to write a blog post. I am complying because I am an awesome husband. Laurie's party is a multi-stage affair that is starting at our local Kalbi restaurant, then going bowling, and finally ending on Zanger's roof for dessert. Since I have no experience bowling in Korea and dessert will be pretty much you would expect, I am going to tell you about Kalbi.

Kalbi is a traditional Korean meat dish. It is usually done with pork because that is the cheapest/easiest meat in Korea, but it can also be done with beef. Long, wide strips of meat are marinated for a long time and then given to diners raw for them to cook and serve. I am very thankful that Corrie has turned out to be a great Kalbi-cooker...and a good-looking one too. While the meat is cooking, the table is set with various side dishes as well as a platter of various leafy greens, raw garlic, peppers, and carrots. The leaves are for making little wraps for the meat once it is cooked. The side dishes are quite diverse, from green salads with a bit of dressing to pickled jellyfish. I usually eat a bit of the jelly fish, pretty much to say I have and then I stick to the more familiar stuff. Tofu is also popular, but a bite or two is enough for me. Max and Elisha enjoy the "chun" which is like a dense pancake that has bits of carrot and, I think, green onion baked into it. Anyway, the star of the show is the pork. Once the meat has cooked a bit, kitchen shears are used to cut the strips into bite-sized chunks which are grabbed with chopsticks and put on the leafy greens with garnishes to be eaten. Kalbi is a good meal that is meant to be shared with friends and family. Our local place wont even let you order for one.

I will get some picture up from our dinner tonight. I hope you enjoyed me talking about food.

Later!