Inspired by my cousin Nam’s photo of a snack she recently enjoyed, I tried my hand at making joo muk bap (literally, fist rice because it is made by hand) with
ingredients I had in my pantry. Spread 2 cups cooked short-grain rice in a wide plate (I used an 8×8 baking dish), then season lightly with salt, Japanese seasoning rice vinegar, and toasted sesame oil
(use oil sparingly or else the rice will not bind). Separately, soak about 5 dried wood ear mushrooms in hot water; when reconstituted, drain and julienne. Heat a little toasted sesame oil in a small frying pan,
then add the drained mushrooms and a dash of soy sauce. Stir until fragrant, then turn off heat. Add the sauteed mushrooms along with a few shakes of Japanese furukake (rice seasoning – I used bonito flavor)
to the rice, then fold together gently with a rice paddle. Sprinkle with some sesame seeds (I used a combination of toasted and black). My rice was too loose to mold by hand, so I used a Hawaiian musubi mold and filled the middle with a little Chinese chili-marinated bamboo shoots, and then garnished with some Korean roasted laver (ggim). This recipe is loosely based on Korean Rice Triangles, available at kimchimari.com/2011/04/07/joomukbap. Thank you to Nam for the inspiration! (June 2014)
Cooking Adventures 