Stuffed Cucumber Kimchi with Shrimp and Minari

 stuffed cucumber kimchi with shrimp, minari
Stuffed Cucumber Kimchi
Oi Sobaegi 오이소박이

With Shrimp, Minari, Sesame Oil, Sesame Seeds, Gochugaru

Jupiter has aligned once again with Mars, in the blogging universe that is. Food Network’s Summer Fest features cucumbers this week. Our monthly cooking group, the Creative Cooking Club’s theme is “stuff-it.” And I planned to create another seasonal Korean fusion dish this week celebrating the honor of having my recipes featured in the Korea Herald Business.

Korean + Summer + Cucumber + Stuffed = Oi Sobaegi 

 stuffed cucumber kimchi recipe, oi sobaegi

My recipe for stuffed cucumber kimchi came from studying 5 Korean cookbooks in my collection, plus researching many recipes online. One thing I kept noticing, especially on google image – the final dish was not very attractive; green logs with all this stuffing hanging out. No doubt they were delicious, but my challenge was to make the dish pleasing to the eye as well as the palate.

Pairing with shrimp was a natural combination, as the kimchi recipe contains tiny dried white shrimp. My recipe also contains a good deal of ginger, it is quite zippy. Minari is a bright herb sometimes called Korean watercress which adds a fresh note. I also used the thicker Chinese chives to hold the sliced cucumber together, making for a neat pretty presentation. This, my first attempt at oi sobaegi was surprisingly successful, so I am sharing the original recipe here.

Cookbook Resources:

  • Korean Cooking by Young Jin Song
  • Seoultown Kitchen by Debbie Lee
  • The Korean Table by Taeyung Chung
  • The Kimchi Cookbook by Kim Man-Jo
  • Aeri’s Korean Cookbook 1 by Aeri Lee

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quinoa & shrimp {pad-thai-style}

shrimp & quinoa pad thai style

quinoa & shrimp {pad-thai-style}

tri-color quinoa, jumbo shrimp, pad thai chili sauce
garlic scrambled egg, cilantro, peanut, pickled thai chili, lime

It must be the plethora of quinoa recipes on Pinterest. I have quinoa on the brain. Here I took a perfectly good Pad Thai recipe and made it with quinoa. And actually, it was a nice twist on the classic. Not that I’m in anyway tired of the classic…

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Lori Lynn, please bring an appetizer…

shrimp and feta appetizer

Shrimp & Feta
Kalamata Olives, Lemon Wheels

Oregano, Red Chile Flakes, Olive Oil, Lemon Juice

The following note was in my mailbox at work:

Lori Lynn – Please bring an APPETIZER for the party on Tuesday.
Thanks!

Once a month we have a festive luncheon for the faculty and staff who are celebrating birthdays. This month I brought spicy Shrimp & Feta which is definitely a crowd-pleaser. And it couldn’t be much easier or quicker to prepare.

Place cooked shrimp in a large ziplock bag with hunks of good feta and lemon wheels. Add dried oregano and red chile flakes to taste. Pour in plenty of fruity olive oil and fresh squeezed lemon juice to well-coat the mixture. Place drained pitted kalamata olives in a separate baggie to keep them from discoloring the feta. Travel time to work or to a party gives the mixture time to marinate.  To serve, gently toss the bag to mix all the ingredients then pour into a pretty serving bowl. Top with the olives. That’s it.

Wow, might be my shortest post since 2007.

Shrimp Pad Thai & The Shrimp Plant

best shrimp pad thai recipe

Shrimp Pad Thai & The Shrimp Plant

Justicia brandegeeana (Mexican Shrimp Plant or Shrimp Plant

Home renovations continue here at Chez Lori Lynn. The Brazilian granite counter is installed. Painting the walls and final electrical are all that are left of this project. Meanwhile however, the exterior of the house is being painted, along with the perimeter white picket fence. So, all the plants along the fence had to be trimmed back, including the shrimp plants. Rather than let those lovely branches go to waste, I saved them for arrangements. To my surprise they make striking centerpieces, which will definitely show up at parties in the future. And then the night’s dinner was inspired by those plants…

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What makes this the perfect garden party salad?

garden party shrimp salad, lemon basil shrimp salad
garden party shrimp salad

shrimp, navy bean, arugula, cucumber, olive, tomato, red onion
chunky lemon basil dressing

What makes this the perfect garden party salad? Breezy summery colors ~ pink, green, yellow, red. Contrasting textures from creamy beans to crunchy cucumber. It’s light enough to enjoy on a hot summer day, yet substantial enough to be a satisfying entrée. Ease of preparation, everything is made ahead and refrigerated in separate containers. The salad is composed just before serving ~ it’s casual and informal. The dressing is bright and pizazzy, whole lemon adds a bold note… As for the flavor, please be my guest and Taste With The Eyes!

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