seoul foods: part 2

my parents came to korea for 8 hectic days, which explains my absence from the net. it's been three years since my parents and i were in korea together, so we took advantage of their short trip here and attacked what we do best- EAT!! :)

it's like a little tradition we have, me and my mom, to go eat 갈치조림 (braised spicy silverfish) at the namdaemoon market. this year was no exception.

tiny alleyway, always jam packed with the lunch crowd

mom and grandma waiting in line

the restaurant is so small, there's no kitchen inside. there's only two menu items and both gets cooked outside in the alleyway!

i realize this may not look appetizing... but you gotta trust me, the taste is unbelievable. on the bottom they put radish which gets braised soft like tofu, then on top is layers of silverfish, moist and buttery. and the spicy sauce... i take scoops of the sauce and mix it in my rice. total yumfest!

since the fish is extra spicy, a bubbling pot of steamed eggs and veggies balances out the flavor and the heat. this is also what i was eating almost every day (minus the veggies) when i got my wisdom teeth pulled.

the guy is cooking on the street... with more lunch crowd waiting for their seat as we walk out in 20 minutes flat. basically they have everything cooking already, so you just tell them how many portions, and it comes out in minutes. talk about a literal eat and run!

when i have a daughter, i'm gonna make sure to bring her here as well. she better not become a vegetarian...