Korean Lettuce Wraps

My summer vacation is officially over.  Actually, it's been over for more than two weeks.  The Hawaii school year seems to begin while most of the northern hemisphere is still enjoying the dog days of summer.

So once again, the dilemma of packing a lunch presents itself.  I really don't enjoy making sandwiches.  Seems like a lot of dishes for a mediocre output.  Leftovers are a better choice for me, and a great way to use up leftover barbecue (beef, chicken or, my favorite, pork) is to make lettuce wraps.  My last post, Korean spicy bbq pork, is what I normally use for lettuce wraps.

The Help remembers having lettuce wraps as a kid.  He said they did a simple one where they put rice and some shoyu on a lettuce leaf.  D1, before she was rat lung worm-phobic, couldn't get enough of the minced chicken lettuce wraps from Hilo Rice Noodle.  We would need to buy 2 orders...1 for her and the other one for the rest of us.

For the neatest lettuce wraps, use Manoa lettuce.  The leaves are soft enough to mold around the filling, but not so soft that it will disintegrate.  I've seen it described as a leafy, bibb-type lettuce.  It is readily available in supermarkets here, and I usually buy the hydroponically grown type sold in the giant plastic bubble (takes up lots of space in the vegetable bin).  If Manoa lettuce isn't available, a boston or bibb lettuce will work.  A leafy lettuce would also do fine.  I had The Keeper over for sake sipping and served lettuce wraps using organically-grown baby Romaine.  That worked out well, since the leaves were just the right size to hold a golf ball-size rice clump and some meat slivers.  But please don't use iceberg lettuce...that would be more appropriate for minced chicken.

What makes these lettuce wraps really tasty is the sauce.  I used to buy kochojun, until my friend's mom shared her sister's recipe for the homemade stuff.  It's infinitely better than the store-bought variety.  My dad even uses it to make his own taegu.  Of course, if you're not so ambitious and don't want tubs of kochojun in the fridge, buying it in small jars is the sensible alternative.  The sauce (you can see some of it on the rice in the pictures above and below) has some kochojun in it, and I think it adds a nice flavor to the wraps.  But my dad prefers to use straight kochojun.  He smears it on the lettuce leaf before adding the rice. 

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Korean Lettuce Wraps

     Manoa lettuce, separated

     cooked rice
     strips of cooked, seasoned beef, pork, or chicken 

     3 oz shoyu

     1 tbsp kochojun (gochujang)

     1 1/2 tsp sugar

     1 1/2 tsp rice vinegar

     chopped green onion

Combine all ingredients except lettuce, rice, and meat.  To eat, place rice and desired meat on lettuce leaf.  Spoon sauce over.  Wrap up and eat.

 
It's been a little over two years since my mom passed.  Although I still miss her dearly, I feel like some normalcy and routine have returned to my life.  I'm hoping to post more frequently since I'm cooking more now (I have another mouth to feed during the work week).  Over the past few years, I've become more adept at knitting, something which would have made KikukatMom proud.  While I will continue to share favorite recipes, I hope to also share my knitting triumphs, fails, WIPs and FOs.
    

Beryl's Special Dressing for Doritos Salad

There are two stars of this post.

The first star is a creamy dressing which goes so well with nacho cheese Doritos.

I began making this dressing back in 2002.  I was prego and jonesing for something cool and crunchy.  My coworker at the time gave me this recipe and told me to eat this with lettuce and crushed nacho cheese Doritos.  Since I was on bedrest at the time, I had my mom prepare this for me.  I couldn't believe how good it was.  Since then, I've made this numerous times for lunch.  It's fast to pack and very simple to throw together.  And for whatever reason, I never thought to post it here.

A few months ago, while working at a volleyball game, I noticed that the concession was selling something called "Doritos salad".  Turns out, they were selling shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, and crushed nacho cheese Doritos with Beryl's Special Dressing!  The addition of tomatoes, I must admit, was really nice.  Of course, I wish they would've taken the time to remove all the tomato seeds and slime, but this is MY hang-up, not theirs.

Then at the last faculty meeting of the year, one of my current coworkers brought a taco salad.  It was served in a pan and consisted of the typical taco salad ingredients:  lettuce, tomato (with seeds!), taco meat, and cheese.  But topping the salad was a layer of crushed nacho cheese Doritos and a generous all-over drizzle of a dressing which tasted exactly like, you guessed it, Beryl's Special Dressing!  While the tomato addition at the concession was nice, the taco meat and cheese took it over the top.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Beryl's Special Dressing

     1/3 c mayonnaise

     1 tbsp sugar

     1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Combine all ingredients with a whisk.  Chill until ready to serve.

If you don't have the time to prepare the taco meat and fixins, don't despair.  A simple salad made with just shredded lettuce, crushed chips and this dressing is awesome in it's own right.  It is good enough reason to always buy a gigantic bag of nacho cheese Doritos from Costco.

The second (but not lesser) star of this post is The Keeper.

I had the good fortune of befriending The Keeper many moons ago.  I'm not sure how we met, but we hit it off immediately and have been close ever since.  Over the years, he has listened to my bitching, shared some of his own, and provided me hours of entertainment and education with tales of his travels in the land of the rising sun.

This past week, The Keeper's arm of friendship and kindness, extended far beyond any expectation when he took me (and a few others) to Hokkaido for the trip of a lifetime.

We spent four-ish glorious days together, stuffing our faces with local seafood (mostly raw), savory ramen, decadent sweets, and, surprisingly, very little alcohol (for me, at least; my alcohol consumption was limited to a sip of something which tasted like grape juice in a can purchased by The Keeper from a vending machine at a train station).  Most of us bought amulets at a shrine, possibly to protect us from blowing our fortune$ at the shopping venues.

I learned so much about Hokkaido and Japan, as a whole.  Japan is such a beautiful country, and Hokkaido has it all. . .an upscale city (Sapporo) with a vibrant night life district (Susukino), as well as quaint towns (Otaru and Hakodate), not unlike Hilo.  At times, I felt like I was traveling with the Old Lord of Mito (Mito Komon) on his journey and wondering which character I was...Kaku-san (a retainer), Ogin (a ninja), or Hachibei (the jester). 

According to my fitbit, I walked over 100k steps in those four-ish days, which equals somewhere over 40 miles.  In spite of having to haul my ass around Hokkaido and worrying about chafing in the nether-regions, I could not possibly thank The Keeper enough for allowing me to interlope on his vacation.  An entire lifetime would not be enough time.  

To The Keeper:  私の心の底からとてもありがとう。 あなたの友情は常に大事にされます。

And my trip would not have been possible without The Help.  My air ticket was my birthday present, and he took care of my home and family (four-legged, finned, and feathered members) while I was away.  Much thanks. . .you are my rock, even if not everyone knows your name.