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A review by subversive_augury
Maangchi's Big Book of Korean Cooking: From Everyday Meals to Celebration Cuisine by Maangchi
5.0
Maangchi is queen, and with this tome, she came to slay.
Having binge-watched Maangchi's YT channel during lockdown, I made the leap a few years ago and decided it was time to order her inaugural cookbook. It has come to be one of my most referenced cookbooks in my library, independent of the national cuisine concerned, and the go-to among my several Korean cookbooks. I adore this book without qualification. The instructions are easy to understand and broken up into comprehensible sets of activities that make it intuitive and easy to follow.
Highly deserving of its "Big Book" title, this cookbook is broken into thirteen recipe sections with the average section having around ten to twelve recipes, give or take. Some of the longer sections have even more—the section on banchan and mitbanchan boasts no less than twenty-five recipes. It is comprehensive, including chapters on ingredients and cookware and Korean cooking techniques. Short narratives also accompany every recipe. There is such wonderful variety, including meat and vegetarian options for some of the most quintessential Maangchi recipes, and an excellent range of options among the low- to moderate-effort recipes.
The color photographs are bright and well-lit and do not suffer from intrusive post-production editing that sacrifices visibility for aesthetics.
Of all the recipes I have tried, not a single one has disappointed. Indeed, a few that I went into without any preconceptions ended up being so surprisingly good that they easily surpassed dishes that I have long known to be my favorites. Of these, I want to particularly mention kimchi guksu, which is hands-down my favorite and hugely enticing for its effort-to-reward ratio.
Here are the recipes that I have made from this cookbook:
Tongbaechu kimchi (napa cabbage kimchi)
Kkakdugi (diced radish kimchi)
Kimchi guksu (noodle soup with kimchi seasoning)
Haemul pajeon (seafood pancake)
Dububuchim yangnyeomjang (pan-fried tofu with soy-scallion seasoning sauce)
Brokoli-dubumuchim (broccoli with tofu)
Oi-bokkeum (sautéed cucumber)
Ganjang-yangnyeomjang (soy-scallion seasoning sauce)
Having binge-watched Maangchi's YT channel during lockdown, I made the leap a few years ago and decided it was time to order her inaugural cookbook. It has come to be one of my most referenced cookbooks in my library, independent of the national cuisine concerned, and the go-to among my several Korean cookbooks. I adore this book without qualification. The instructions are easy to understand and broken up into comprehensible sets of activities that make it intuitive and easy to follow.
Highly deserving of its "Big Book" title, this cookbook is broken into thirteen recipe sections with the average section having around ten to twelve recipes, give or take. Some of the longer sections have even more—the section on banchan and mitbanchan boasts no less than twenty-five recipes. It is comprehensive, including chapters on ingredients and cookware and Korean cooking techniques. Short narratives also accompany every recipe. There is such wonderful variety, including meat and vegetarian options for some of the most quintessential Maangchi recipes, and an excellent range of options among the low- to moderate-effort recipes.
The color photographs are bright and well-lit and do not suffer from intrusive post-production editing that sacrifices visibility for aesthetics.
Of all the recipes I have tried, not a single one has disappointed. Indeed, a few that I went into without any preconceptions ended up being so surprisingly good that they easily surpassed dishes that I have long known to be my favorites. Of these, I want to particularly mention kimchi guksu, which is hands-down my favorite and hugely enticing for its effort-to-reward ratio.
Here are the recipes that I have made from this cookbook:
Tongbaechu kimchi (napa cabbage kimchi)
Kkakdugi (diced radish kimchi)
Kimchi guksu (noodle soup with kimchi seasoning)
Haemul pajeon (seafood pancake)
Dububuchim yangnyeomjang (pan-fried tofu with soy-scallion seasoning sauce)
Brokoli-dubumuchim (broccoli with tofu)
Oi-bokkeum (sautéed cucumber)
Ganjang-yangnyeomjang (soy-scallion seasoning sauce)