I want to try some of the Korean food that I see in Kdramas: samgyupsal (삼겹살), tteokbokki (떡볶이), gimbap (김밥), but most of them look a little daunting to make. Under the heading of things I never imagined I would do, I decided to start with a traditional Korean side dish – the Korean Rolled Omelet. Korean Rolled Omelets show up in a lot of Kdramas. I figure they are delicious because every time someone eats one on screen – they seem to love it! After watching a few videos on how to make it, I give it a whirl.
I picked Maangchi’s recipe because her video makes it seem fairly easy and fun. Not too many ingredients required: 4 eggs, half an onion, a couple of tablespoons of bell pepper and salt/pepper to taste. I can handle that.
I start out well, chopping the onion and peppers, whisking my eggs. My ingredients mix up nicely even though it doesn’t look exactly like the video.
Now the hard part – cooking the omelet. I smear some olive oil into my cast iron skillet and turn on the burner. Maangchi stresses using a low heat. I’m fairly new to gas range cooking and still have a little trouble adjusting the temperature. I can’t tell if the pan is too hot. I also have a lot more runage than Maangchi’s version which worries me a little. After some trial and effort, I get the omelet rolling, with a little left behind in the pan. Note to self – don’t use cast iron next time.
Finally, I have the whole thing rolled and can now cook the sides. Mine is fairly brown compared to Maangchi’s so I definitely had the heat too hot.
The finished product doesn’t look too bad – I say to myself.
Time for the taste test.
My Korean Rolled Omelet is . . . not bad. It’s not great either. Even my husband gives it a half-hearted thumb sideways. I expect it have a smooth egg taste with a bit of crunch. Instead, there is a lot of crunch and a little bit of egg. I’m not a big fan of raw onion, so given that the onions were not cooked by themselves first, they are fairly crunchy. Next time, I will cook the onions first or use shallots which are softer and generally have a sweeter flavor. Also – less bell pepper. And more salt.
Before I try my hand at making a Korean Rolled Omelet again, though, I think I need to try an original one so that I better understand what it should taste like. Afterall – they must be yummy. Right?
Oops- I forgot to have mine with rice. Maybe that’s the secret.