At the Table This Week: 9th May
Simple suppers for the week ahead and small observations.
Welcome to Simple Supper.
Sometimes I stand in front of the fridge and wonder if there is a dinner in there. A bag of leeks my husband brought home after shoot, and not much else beyond a few odds and ends of vegetables, and even less energy to muster.
When it comes to thinking on your feet though, I’ve come to believe the answer lies in muscle memory - those reliable ways of cooking we have practised enough times to know by heart.
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Suppers, Lately
Leeks Vinaigrette + Soft Boiled Egg
Tender vegetables dressed sharply with a mustard vinaigrette is something I come back to, frequently. I have learned that knowing how you like your dressing - and being able to make it - is a small but useful skill that rewards lasting confidence in the kitchen. I know now that I like mine sharp with rounded acidity and a velvety body, which means adding roughly equal parts of vinegar and extra virgin olive oil into a jar, brought together with a good dollop of Dijon mustard. I like the delicate, floral taste of Moscatel vinegar for my dressing, and occasionally balance it with a spoonful of my homemade Korean pink grapefruit cheong to accentuate fruit forward sweetness.
In Vittles Recipes, Nick Bramham describes the French classic, leeks vinaigrette so perfectly, and generously guilds us through the preparation, along with his recipe.
“Leeks vinaigrette is, I think, their single purest expression, a synthesis of tangy vinaigrette and soft vegetable, all but tamed of its pungent allium bite. The vinaigrette’s electric jolt and creamy texture complement and lift the leeks into another realm.” - Nick Bramham, Vittles
Pojangmacha Udong Noodles with Frozen Prawn Tempura
I grew up in Korea at a time when most street-food carts served fat, bouncy udon noodles in a dried anchovy-based broth. People often described that flavour as an honest taste. I wrote about it in my book POCHA - how easily it can be recreated at home with just a handful of pantry staples.
There are a few things I keep in the freezer for the evenings that call for an easy supper. Among many are a pack of frozen udon noodles, some pre-breaded Japanese prawns. A quick broth made from pantry staples is never far away, and a comforting bowl of noodles can be on the table in minutes, sometimes made a little more special with crisp, fried prawns on top.
Chimichurri Marinated Roasted Carrot + Squash
A leftover dressing of any kind is always useful in my kitchen. I like to pour it over roasted vegetables while they’re still warm, so they absorb the flavour as they rest. Chimichurri - a bright, herb-filled Argentinian sauce often paired with grilled meat - works just as well with sweet root vegetables.
Braised Spring Vegetable Pasta
There are odds and ends of fresh peas, broad beans and wild garlic in my vegetable drawer right now and I know exactly what I want to with them: braise them gently in plenty of extra virgin olive oil with finely chopped preserved lemon, then toss everything through pasta.
Pork Tenderloin and Squash Thai Red Curry
Cooking a Thai curry at home can be just as convenient - if not better - than ordering a takeaway, especially when you have a ready-made paste you can rely on. I like to start by gently heating the thick cream from the top of the coconut milk until it separates to resemble a curdled milk - to crack the cream - before frying the paste and building the curry from there.
Small Things Around the Table
Over the years of visiting Korea, the three of us - my husband, my daughter and I - have each formed our own relationship with the country. While it holds slightly different meanings for us individually, collectively, there are certain rituals we hold sacred.
One of them is a dish we now return to every time: spicy stir-fried chicken.
The dish is usually cooked at the table, on a burner, meant to be stirred constantly. On our first visit as a family, it must have been obvious that while I could speak Korean, I was no longer entirely fluent in the rhythm of things. An auntie from the restaurant came over and, quite sternly, demonstrated ‘the proper way’ to stir-fry it. I think she took pity on me. We all bursted into laughter after she left - my daughter especially, delighted at seeing her mother being told off. That moment stayed with us. And somehow, it became our tradition.
This dish is no longer just a memory of my past, but a ritual we share as a family to find a sense of home together, and a reminder that home is not just in a place, but in being with each other as we look forward to future adventures.
I shared more about how my cooking and writing are shaped by memory, migration, and the quiet rituals of family life in a recent piece for Table Talk at Popsa Perspectives. You can read it here, along with a recipe for spicy stir-fried chicken.