Operation Clean Pantry: Samgak Kimbap (Triangle Kimbap)

I love these things! When I was in Korea a buddy of mine and I traveled around quite a bit and we would stop at convenience stores while on the road. I usually got a coffee or small soda and a couple of these samgak kimbap. These are rice and roasted pressed dried algae (kim) usually stuffed with meat and hot sauce. They are really clever because they are wrapped a certain way where you peel the plastic off and the kim is still nice and crunchy when it touches the rice.

I loved shopping at the local stores such as E-Mart or Lotte Mart. Mega shopping centers with tons of cool stuff and food. I found these plastic wrapped kim made for making samgak kimbap. I brought a bunch of them home with me.

I decided to make these and give these out to friends. I think they are really tasty and fun to make and eat. You can find the sheets of kim at a well stocked Korean store. Ask and you may be able to order them. Sometimes they come with the mold, but you can mold them by hand if you need to.

Samgak Kimbap

Makes 8-9 Kimbap

4-5 cups fresh cooked Korean rice (warm)
1 Tablespoon white vinegar
2 teaspoons white sugar
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

Mix the vinegar, sugar and salt in a bowl until dissolved. I usually microwave it for about 30 seconds to speed up the process. Pour the mixture over the rice (in a big bowl) and cut in and mix with a rice paddle. Set aside and let cool.

Can tuna, drained and squeezed well
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
black pepper


Heat vegetable oil in a pan and add tuna. Cook for a minute and add garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar and stir. Cook for another minute. Mixture will be dry. Turn off the heat and add the sesame oil, seeds and black pepper and mix. Put in a bowl and set aside to cool.

Once the rice and tuna mixture are cool start making your triangles!

Using damp hands press a little rice into the bottom of your mold. I make a slight indentation in the middle to hold the filling. Put in some tuna filling and a little Korean red pepper sauce. This makes it taste really good!

Then using damp hand press some more rice on top. You'll want to press firmly but don't over pack it. Lay out a sheet of the prepared kim with the writing side down. Pop the rice triangle out and place the top tip at the top of the kim. Usually the kim package will have instructions. Bring the bottom of edge of the kim up and fold the sides in and use the stickers provided to seal.


These are so delicious. Unwrapping them takes a bit of practice but that'll just give you an excuse to eat more of them! I got this recipe from my favorite online Korean cook, Maangchi and you can watch her demonstrate as well. Thanks, Maangchi!!

It's good to have an open mind.

This is one of my favorite Korean dishes to eat when drinking beer. In fact I think it's one of every Korean's favorite. What's not to like about it? It's spicy and sweet and tangy and chewy. I love it! What is it you ask?

I had eaten this dish many, many times before really knowing what was in it. My Korean friends always said it was just "seafood." Well, that could mean anything. My last duty station in Korea my friend, Ah Young told me the secret to making this. I finally figured out what was in it I just didn't know the proportions. The main ingredients are fresh veggies (mostly cucumber and onions) and canned sea snails called golbaengi. Don't wince. No gagging allowed until you try it. They are very good.

In fact when my sister, Darcie came a few days earlier than everyone else during the big journey to Korea this summer, she had a taste of it. Of course I didn't tell her what it was. She liked it until I told her what it was. Poor Darcie. She doesn't know what she's missing.

GolBaengi MuChim

1 can sea snails
(you can pick these up at any Korean market. Just ask the Korean ladies who work there. They will be more than happy to help you!)
1 cucumber, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 carrot, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 medium onion, halved and sliced thin (you can use less onion. I just like a lot)
3-4 green onions, julienne into about 2 inch lengths (I just sliced mine on the diagonal too)
1/2 cup dried cuttle fish, snipped into 1 to 1 1/2 inch pieces (I used more because I like it)

Sauce:
3 Tbls. Korean red pepper paste (I used 4 because I like mine extra spicy)
1 Tbls. Korean dried red pepper flakes (of course I used more)
1/2 Tbls. soy sauce
2-2 1/2 Tbls. sugar (start out with less and add more to taste)
2-2 1/2 Tbls. cider vinegar (start out with less and more to taste. I added way more because I like the tang)
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. sesame seeds (or more if you would like)


Angel hair pasta, cooked, rinsed in cold water, drained well

Cut the veggies and put in a bowl. Open, rinse well, drain, and chop the snails into bite sized chunks. Don't gross out. They are very good. Snip the dried cuttle fish into bite sized strips. Set aside.

Mix all sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Pour the sauce over all other chopped ingredients in bigger bowl. Mix well. Chill overnight if you'd like or eat right away. It tastes better when it sits in the fridge a bit.

Take the angel hair pasta and coil into little bundles on each side of the salad. Mix when ready to eat. Drink copious amounts of any type of beer. Delicious!

I'm eating this for lunch and I made this batch without cucumber. I hate cucumber, but for some reason not having it in my dish makes it taste...not quite right.

It's been a very long time!

I actually cooked tonight! It's been a very long time. I have been so busy and so tired that I haven't taken out much time to cook. I learned how to make a delicious egg dish (on the left). It's steamed and you can add whatever you like to it.

Korean Steamed Egg

2 eggs
1/2 cup water
whatever you would like in the dish (I used sliced red peppers, red pepper powder, black pepper, kosher salt, and a little beef seasoning)

Beat everything together and place in a crock or heat proof bowl. The egg should come up to about half way up in the dish. Place in a pan of boiling water (the water about 1-2 inches from the top of the dish) cover and keep boiling over medium high heat. It'll take about 15-20 minutes and the egg rises to the top of the bowl. You will know when it's done when you press a bit in the middle and it feels spongy.

Serve immediately. The egg will deflate, but it's still very delicious!!