Stra Pocha

This place is HOT!! And I mean literally. For once we decided to stray from Ceci and try out this infamous restaurant in Strathfield known for its spicy chicken. A Korean friend of ours was warned upon ordering this dish that it was extremely spicy and she might not be able to handle it.

Whole BBQ chicken with special hot sauce

So did it live up to the hype? You bet! This dish is easily one of the hottest foods I have ever tasted. The heat starts as a warm burn in your mouth and keeps on building until you just have to give in to the water. For those who don't have taste buds of steel, there are other less spicy dishes on the menu, rated by the number of chilis next to the name, but definitely give the chicken a try - it's soo good!

Ceci

We love Ceci! There was a time not too long ago when we used to come here about once a week. We visited Ceci again recently after quite a long hiatus and were greeted with the usual abrupt service and waitresses that don't speak much english - ahh good times! We were seated after a relatively short wait and ordered quickly as we practically knew the menu off by heart.

We knew the food was arriving soon when the waitress brought us the side dishes - small dishes of pickled stuff traditionally served as an accompaniment to the main meal. There was the usual sweet potato, acorn jelly with a slightly spicy soya sauce with green onions and sesame seeds, kimchi and radish kimchi. We were surprised to see they had replaced the pasta salad with a bean sprout side dish - not a bad change.

Side dishes: Sweet potato, acorn jelly, kimchi and soya sauce

More sides: radish kimchi and bean sprouts

I had chosen the cold spicy noodles which has a base of thin, elastic-y, slippery noodles topped with shredded veggies, egg, sesame seeds and a few ice cubes to keep the dish extra chilled. The noodles are tossed with a spicy chili sauce, similar to what you get with a bibimbub, before eating.

Cold spicy noodles

Patrick was craving the beef with rice cakes which is quite similar to jap chae but with the addition of rice cake sticks and quail eggs (and maybe a few other things).

Beef with rice cakes

Lynn's (and everyone's) favourite is the spicy chicken consisting of deep fried pieces of chicken fillet coated with a sticky, sweet and spicy sauce.

Spicy chicken and side dishes

For a little more than $10 each plus some doggy-baggy-ing Ceci is great value for consistently good Korean food.

Belfield Charcoal BBQ House

Both Lynn and I had been having intense cravings for Korean BBQ all week. To remedy this, we went to Belfield Charcoal BBQ House (aka Seoul Hoikwan). Having "trained" all day for the all-you-can-eat pig out with shopping and regularly spaced meals and snacks, we were ready to eat ourselves silly by the time we arrived at the restaurant.

When we got there, the staff were fairly slow in seating us as a large group of diners were just leaving and another large group had just arrived. We probably would have been seated more quickly if we had known Korean but unfortunately neither of us speak the language (despite Lynn considering herself to be pratically Korean).

This was forgotten when we spied the dishes on offer for the buffet. Having been to several all you can eat Korean BBQ's, I must say that this one is the best hands down, mostly because of the selection of Korean sides, salads and noodles they have in addition to the BBQ meat.

Displayed on an L-shaped bench against the wall were big bowls of spicy red kimchi, pickled veggies, deep fried sweet and sour chicken wings, japchae noodles, Korean pancake, kimbup, Korean sausage, potato salad, mushroom salad and tempura. Around the corner were bowls of soba noodles, a big rice cooker filled with boiled rice and huge pot filled with miso soup.

Kimchi, picked radish, pickled veggies, fried chicken wings

Kimbup, Korean pancake, japchae

Potato salad, tomato, mushroom salad, fish and asparagus tempura

Soba noodles

In a largely overlooked corner was a bain-marie with a small selection of hot foods including noodles with blackbean sauce, tofu and a few other things that we didn't really take note of. This was because we were too distracted by the main event: the marinated meat that you cook at your own table. There was a variety of beef (bulgogi, galbi, chuck steak), spicy pork, marinated chicken, baby octopus and mussels.

Meat!

Sauces and condiments

Having amassed enough food to feed a small-medium sized country, we started on grilling our meats. Despite the slow start with the service, the staff were suprisingly diligent in changing the grill whenever it got too charred.

An hour and a half and 3 plates of meat, 3 plates of sides, 2 plates of salad, 2 bowls of rice, 1 miso soup and a plate of watermelon later, we emerged from the old Pizza Hut building smelling of smoke and bellies filled.

Making Kimbup

A friend was having a Halloween party and we were asked to "bring a plate of something." My first thought was "Oh goodie, I get to cook!" (Yes I do live at home and I don't cook very often :D) The hardest part was choosing what to make - something not too messy and easy to share... I had always wanted to make sushi and have seen them do it on TV but never got around to trying. Jangers volunteered to help me out and since he had watched his mum make kimbup (korean sushi) dozens of times before, he was practically an expert!

To make kimbup, you will need:
Rice - Shortgrain or Koshihikari
Seaweed (aka laver)
Sesame oil
Salt
Sushi mat - Not essential if you are really good

The good thing about kimbup is that you can use almost anything for the filling. We stuck with fairly traditional ingredients:
Egg
Pickled radish
Cucumber
Carrot
Avocado
Varieties: Tuna and corn, fishcake, beef bulgogi

Cook the rice according to instructions on the packet (2 cups of uncooked rice will be enough to make four big rolls). Season with sesame oil and salt.

To prepare the egg, fry a thin layer in a large pan and cut into strips.

Egg pancake

Pickled radish

Cut all other ingredients into long strips.

Kimbup filling consisting of carrots, cucumber, egg strips and pickled radish

Flavour tuna and corn with mayo and fry/grill the beef bulgogi. Pan fry fish cake strips and season with soy sauce and sugar to make a caramelly teriyaki sauce.

Fish cake

All the fillings including tuna and corn, avocado, fish cake, beef bulgogi

Once all the ingredients are prepared, we're ready to roll!

First, place the seaweed shiny side down on a sushi mat and spread about 1 cup of cooked rice over the bottom 3/4 of the sheet.
Place the filling in the middle of the rice...
and use the mat to roll up the seaweed, making sure you squeeze the first roll tightly.
Continue rolling until you reach the end of the seaweed and voila!
Slice it up and you're done!

All I need now is a benriner slicer to make some garnish...:D

Needless to say the kimbup was a big hit at the party and I can't wait to try it again.