Cycle 14 – Item 280
12 (Thu) October 2023
Everyday Savory Chili Crisp with Greek Yogurt (+ Potato Crisps + Bagel Bits)
4.0
at SFS ES Atrium
-Yeonhi, Seodaemun, Seoul, Republic of Korea-
with JP … and book fair participants
At SFS this week for the fall book fair (see previously 13.288 Lentil Tostada Bowl).
Serendipitous timing, the book fair runs while James Park is in town (see generally 14.274 Tuna Tataki), and the school was so gracious to host him as a visiting author.
BRUNCH
The first part of the program invited James to teach a cooking class for 8th graders.
First, he showed them how to make Every Day Savory Chili Crisp from scratch.
Every Day Savory Chili Crisp is James Park’s signature version, the first recipe in the book. The use of seasonings, including soy sauce, chicken bouillon powder, and MSG, as well as brown sugar and black vinegar, creates a much more complex and intense flavor profile than standard chili crisp (typically just spicy and oily), while gochujang and gochugaru contribute a Korean spirit.
The students made their own fried eggs, which were topped with chili crisp and served with steamed rice.
Following the chili crisp recipes, the book’s Chapter 1 (All-Day Breakfast and Midday Snacks) starts with Chili Crisp Fried Eggs – his signature dish with his signature chili crisp.
GMTD featured a similar pairing on a prior post about Laoganma (see 13.349 Laoganma with Steamed Rice & Fried Egg).
As the class ran from 09:15 to 10:25, the food was ready to eat by 10:00. Everyone appeared to love it.
Unfortunately, I had to run back to the book fair, so I couldn’t partake, but I look forward to making the dish myself.
LUNCH
While the food at SFS has thus far ranked #1 based on their western items, I was very pleased to find that today’s Korean offering was excellent.
Cafeteria food at international schools in Korea, ranked according to taste and quality, as well as overall service, based on my experiences at book fairs (and other events):
- SFS (13.139 Kimchi Fried Rice) (13.288 Lentil Tostada Bowl) (13.309 Roast Chicken with Mashed Potatoes in Gravy and Buttered Vegetables) (
- KIS (14.127 Bibimbap & More)
- YISS (13.111 Fried Chicken with Soy Sauce + Fried Rice + Salad) (14.090 Chicken Rice Bowl in Chipotle Sauce)
- SIS (14.240 Wake Spread)
- CI (13.337 Veggie Sweet Potato Hamburger Steak)
- CDS (12.107 Chicken Mayo Rice)
- DC (14.048 Ramen etc)
God, how I despise that SFS does everything so well.
AFTERNOON SNACK
Following various presentations throughout the day, the program ended with a Meet the Author + Taste His Chili Crisp (+ Buy His Cookbook) + Book Signing event in the midst of the book fair.
The ES students hadn’t participated in any of the earlier sessions featuring James, and yet they seemed very well aware of who he was and what he was offering. They went crazy tasting the chili crisp – rolling their eyes in amazement – paired with Greek yogurt, dipped first with potato crisps, then with bagel bits (I ran to the coffee shop and bought out their entire supply).
Absolute perfection. The combination of chili crisp + yogurt would not seem to work, but the pairing seems obvious upon tasting – the sharp savoriness of the condiment is perfectly balanced by the round creaminess of the dairy, all brought together by the comforting carbiness of the potato/bagel. And I’m not just saying that because I’m in the midst of promoting the book.
With many more events ahead, I am very excited.
(See also IRIS)
(See also FOOD GLOSSARY)
(See also RESTAURANTS IN KOREA)