I had some tonkatsu broth left over from when I made the Japanese soup, which I had frozen for another time. I wasn't sure what to do with it when I went to a Korean restaurant in London for dinner. One of the dishes ordered was spicy pork and kimchi stew, which I loved. I used the leftover broth and a batch of frozen sauerkraut I had in the freezer to make this stew at home. Both worked really well bur feel free to substitute the tonkatsu with water or another type of broth. Sauerkraut is very similar to kimchi, both being made out of cabbage, but without the spice in the case of the sauerkraut. Sauerkraut is also a lot easier to find in shops, being available in Polish sections of supermarkets or in ethnic stores, especially Turkish ones, and it is a lot cheaper too. If you have a choice, I prefer the vacuum packed whole head of cabbage that requires chopping, instead of the one packed in plastic tubs and is already cut up.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, sliced
500g pork belly, thinly sliced
450g sauerkraut, chopped into small pieces and liquid reserved
Salt to taste (the sauerkraut can be salty already, so go easy on extra salt)
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp Korean chilli flakes
1 tbsp gochujang (spicy Korean red pepper paste)
4 cups tonkatsu broth (can use chicken, beef or vegie if preferred)
225g firm tofu, cut into small pieces
1 tsp sesame oil
Method:
Heat the oil in a deep pot. Add the onion, garlic and pork, frying until the onion is soft and the meat is lightly browned all the way around.
Add the sauerkraut and fry for 2 minutes before adding the broth, salt, sugar, chilli flakes and gochujang. Boil for 20 minutes to allow the pork to cook all the way through and allow the flavours to blend together.
Add the tofu and cook for another 10 minutes.
Turn off and add the sesame oil.
Serve with noodles or rice.
While at the Korean restaurant, we had ordered savoury Korean pancakes, that ended up being the all round favourite due to how crispy they were, not to mention tasty. I decided to have a go making some at home too to serve with the stew. They turned out to be super easy to make, consisting of flour, egg and water mixed in with a bunch of vegetables. I made 2 different batched over two days, the first consisting of sweetcorn and grated carrots, with the second having spring onions and grated carrots. Both were excellent with the recipe being very adaptable. I include the recipe I used here (https://thewanderlustkitchen.com/korean-savory-pancakes-pajeon/) and I especially recommend the dipping sauce. We also tried the dipping sauce with Korean Fried Chicken (KFC hehe!), while my dad loved it poured over rice, when I took over some stew and rice to my parents to try.
To make the Korean Fried Chicken, I used the recipe in the Hairy Bikers Asian Adventure cookbook, with some minor adjustments as I didn't have all the ingredients. I didn't use any vodka and substituted the polenta with breadcrumbs instead. I halved the recipes, as I was only making it for two, and used chicken breast instead of thighs. It turned out great anyway, super crispy and not overly spicy at all. I took some of the chicken to my parents too, and they loved it too. My mum especially is sensitive to spicy heat and she did not comment on this aspect at all. Now I just have try not to make the pancakes and chicken every day, otherwise we'd have to replace all our clothes with bigger sizes!
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