RCP: Kimchi-Cheddar Waffles

[Jenise]

From Food and Wine's website. Haven't made them yet, but I am so going to try this soon!



Waffles are the perfect vehicle for mix-ins. Turn your basic waffle batter into a super-savory meal by adding fiery kimchi and gooey cheddar cheese. It's unexpected, but the combination is so addicting you'll want to eat these at any time of day. In the morning, try them with crispy bacon and maple syrup. For a quick lunch, sandwich them with turkey or roast beef, or turn them into croutons to top a fun kale salad. You can even cut the waffles into small squares and top them with smoked salmon and crème fraîche for unique cocktail party hors d'hoeuvres.

Here, we swapped in tangy buttermilk to tenderize the waffles and also folded in whipped fluffy egg whites to help keep them light and crispy.

Kimchi-Cheddar Waffles
Total 30 min
Serves 4

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons baking soda
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
3 large egg whites
3 large egg yolks
1 ½ cups buttermilk
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 cup chopped napa cabbage kimchi
1 cup finely grated sharp cheddar cheese
3 scallions, finely chopped
2 serrano chile peppers, finely chopped
Vegetable oil spray

1.Heat a waffle iron until very hot. In a large bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a handheld electric mixer and in a medium bowl, beat the egg whites at medium speed until medium-soft peaks form, about 3 minutes; keep chilled. In a separate medium bowl, mix the egg yolks with the buttermilk, butter, kimchi, cheese, scallions and chile peppers until well incorporated. Add the flour mixture and mix until well blended, then fold in the egg whites.

2.Coat the waffle iron with vegetable oil spray. Pour ¾ cup of the batter onto the iron, spreading it slightly (amount of batter needed will vary according to machine). Cook until golden brown and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter.

[Robin Garr]

Sounds intriguing. I never thought of cheddar (even melted) as being "gooey," exactly, but that's picky.

Good luck. A lot depends on the quality of the kimchi.

I put in some effort to make kimchi fried rice and it wasn't great because I had bought a jar of very mild "not" Kimchi.

Need to do some research and find some kimchi that is at least a LITTLE HOT to begin with.

[Jenise]

Good luck. A lot depends on the quality of the kimchi.

I put in some effort to make kimchi fried rice and it wasn't great because I had bought a jar of very mild "not" Kimchi.

Need to do some research and find some kimchi that is at least a LITTLE HOT to begin with.

It's obvious that if you have a good Korean store in your area, you'd find lots of options. What about where you found the Korean flour?

Good luck. A lot depends on the quality of the kimchi.

I put in some effort to make kimchi fried rice and it wasn't great because I had bought a jar of very mild "not" Kimchi.

Need to do some research and find some kimchi that is at least a LITTLE HOT to begin with.

It's obvious that if you have a good Korean store in your area, you'd find lots of options. What about where you found the Korean flour?

Yeah, H Mart, I need to try again. Reading about how popular this kimchi fried rice is, makes me want to taste it the way it should taste.

[Jenise]

Sounds great to me, too.

This sounds good to me! Hope to try soon.

Frank, HMart probably carries 15 brands of kimchee, but I find the instore brand of the napa (in various size plastic containers/tubs) is a nice balance of sour and mild to moderate heat. There are others that are milder or hotter. If none hot enough for you might try adding a little gochujang (red pepper paste) -Hmart sells several.

I just got some local kimchis (napa and daikon) at farmers market yesterday, delicious though could use a tad more heat for my tastes.

I like cooking with kimchi. Kimchi fried rice is one of my staples for lunch when we have leftover rice. I'd also recommend the Momofuko recipe for Brussels sprouts with bacon and kimchi.

Thanks Dale. After watching Roy Choi on TV, 2 shows, Simply Ming and I'll Have what Phil's Having, I looked up his recipe for kimchi fried rice -- and I bought the powdered version of gochujang, kochu karu. (Of course I also have gochujang)

https://www.ming.com/food-and-wine/reci ... d-rice.htm

I'll look for the H Mart kimchi you mentioned and I will consider stirring in some more kochu karu if that seems necessary.

At any rate for kimchi fans, you probably ought to try this fried rice recipe. I do have the tiny dried shrimps left over from my crazy about Japanese cooking days.

[Jenise]

Thanks Dale. After watching Roy Choi on TV, 2 shows, Simply Ming and I'll Have what Phil's Having, I looked up his recipe for kimchi fried rice -- and I bought the powdered version of gochujang, kochu karu. (Of course I also have gochujang)

https://www.ming.com/food-and-wine/reci ... d-rice.htm

I'll look for the H Mart kimchi you mentioned and I will consider stirring in some more kochu karu if that seems necessary.

At any rate for kimchi fans, you probably ought to try this fried rice recipe. I do have the tiny dried shrimps left over from my crazy about Japanese cooking days.

It was the Phil episode that had me going too. It was especially taunting considering that I'd just stayed in the hotel that restaurant was in, but didn't partake. Damn!

Thanks Dale. After watching Roy Choi on TV, 2 shows, Simply Ming and I'll Have what Phil's Having, I looked up his recipe for kimchi fried rice -- and I bought the powdered version of gochujang, kochu karu. (Of course I also have gochujang)

https://www.ming.com/food-and-wine/reci ... d-rice.htm

I'll look for the H Mart kimchi you mentioned and I will consider stirring in some more kochu karu if that seems necessary.

At any rate for kimchi fans, you probably ought to try this fried rice recipe. I do have the tiny dried shrimps left over from my crazy about Japanese cooking days.

This sounds delicious and way simple and I know my wife will like it. I'll have to give it a go. We get good kimchi in the grocery stores here but I will likely have to hunt around a bit for the kochu karu. Haven't heard of that before.

If you have a Korean grocery nearby -- they sell FIVE POUND BAGS of the red powder. I managed to find a little jar. It helps if you can read Hangul. But if you see red powder that's probably it.


고추 가루

[Jenise]

If you have a Korean grocery nearby -- they sell FIVE POUND BAGS of the red powder. I managed to find a little jar. It helps if you can read Hangul. But if you see red powder that's probably it.

고추 가루

Yeah, there will be a whole section devoted to it--it won't be just a jar or two on the shelf.

If you have a Korean grocery nearby -- they sell FIVE POUND BAGS of the red powder. I managed to find a little jar. It helps if you can read Hangul. But if you see red powder that's probably it.

고추 가루

Yeah, there will be a whole section devoted to it--it won't be just a jar or two on the shelf.

Thanks - we have a huge place not too far away that sells pretty much everything from Korean to Chinese to Russian to Mexican. They're a good one-stop shop for ethnic stuff like this, so I'll look for it next time I'm in there. I just hope they don't limit it to the 5-lb bags!!

For what it's worth here's a first lesson in Hangul. You can see it in Kochu Karu above. The vowels are easy:

O is for OVER. A horizontal line with a little line above it is OVER = "O"
U is for UNDER. A horizontal line with a little line below it is UNDER = "U" oo.
A is RIGHT. A vertical line with a little line to the right = "A"
Left is "EU" which is kind of a "schwa." "Uh"
A vertical line with nothing else is "I" = "ee"
A horizontal line is another schwa = "EO" "Uh"

For what it's worth here's a first lesson in Hangul. You can see it in Kochu Karu above. The vowels are easy:

O is for OVER. A horizontal line with a little line above it is OVER = "O"
U is for UNDER. A horizontal line with a little line below it is UNDER = "U" oo.
A is RIGHT. A vertical line with a little line to the right = "A"
Left is "EU" which is kind of a "schwa." "Uh"
A vertical line with nothing else is "I" = "ee"
A horizontal line is another schwa = "EO" "Uh"

Cool! This will make the search for kochu karu more fun.

Yesterday I made picadillo -- which could be thought of as a "non hot chili" with subtle flavors from alcaparrado (green olives, capers, and pimento). I wanted to make it hotter without giving it that "chili" flavor -- so I sprinkled on some kochu karu. Mission accomplished. It is NOT crazy hot, you can throw it around a bit without worrying. The hotness is more like hot paprika.

Got my kochu karu yesterday, and the Hangul lesson was helpful. As Jenise mentioned, there were a couple of shelves of "red pepper powder" in packages that ranged from small jars to 5 lb bags. The words "kochu karu" were nowhere to be found, though. Your post with the Hangul characters was what made me certain I had the right stuff, Frank. Thanks!

The dipping sauce is done and the rice is cooked, but we may be going out with another couple for supper tonight. If we do, then it will be tomorrow night before we have our kimchi fried rice.