Synergy, that’s the word. This summer, the synergy between the Beehive Rome B & B created something brilliant.
While I was visiting Rome, and Linda and Steve mentioned that they had a lot of Korean customers in their B & B. The Beehive was a great place to say, possibly one of Rome’s best, and the only one complaint from Korean customers was there’s no breakfast. The Beehive café offers home-cooked breakfast and brunch on the selected days, only using organic ingredients, and we have decided to develop their breakfast menu even more special.
Introducing Juk
Juk, translated as porridge, is made of rice, pine nuts, sesame, pumpkin and beans. It is widely eaten hot as a morning meal, but now it’s popular in any time of the day. Rice porridge is ordinarily made at home, and it’s a typical get-well dish. My mother used to made rice porridge (only rice and water, nothing else) when I was sick, and I ate it with a bit of soy sauce or gim (seaweed). The most common kind is yachajuk (vegetable and rice porridge), although rice porridge with grounded meat, tuna fish, and abalones are also popular.
Rice porridge is easy on the stomach with its soft texture. Now, let’s make some juk!
Ingredients:
Rice 2/3 cup (for one portion)
Vegetables: carrot, onion, mushroom, spring onion, spinach…
Sesame seeds
Sesame oil
1. Cook rice
Water is three or four times more than the amount of rice. Pour the water on the cleaned rice and cook it until it softens up. Save one or two cups of waters and add it gradually to prevent the water to boiling over the pot.
2. Cook vegetables
While the rice is cooking, let’s prepare the vegetables. Dice carrot, onion, spring onion, mushroom and pan-fry them with a little bit of salt. Remove the lightly fried vegetables. Save some cooked carrots on the side. It will be an eatable garnish.
3. Cook it all together
Add the cooked vegetables to the rice pot and boil it until the rice and vegetables soften. If the rice is soft after absorb all the water, it’s ready.
#Remember to keep stirring to prevent the ingredients burning on the bottom.
4. Serve it beautiful
Remember the carrot we saved? Serve yachejuk in bowl and decorate it with the cooked carrot. Sprinkle a bit of sesame oil and sesame seeds, and we are ready to go.
#It is usually eaten with soy sauce and kimchi.
Korean Risotto?
Steve brought up an interesting theory. He said juk is a lot like one of the Italian food, risotto. It’s so true. If you had a hard time understanding what juk is, think the consistency of risotto. Just like there are various types of dumplings around the world, it is the same form of rice porridge but bares the cultural differences. The biggest difference is the use of sesame. Great minds think alike, indeed.
I’ve heard the Beehive already got some positive responses from Korean customers. I was really glad to hear that our collaboration made a difference. If you are heading to Rome, make sure staying at the Beehive B & B and have some juk for breakfast. It’s available upon request.
