By Honorary Reporter Tanzzila Shaikh from India

Photos = Tanzzila Shaikh

When it comes to Korean food, the first thing that comes to my mind is kimchi. As a non-Korean lover of kimchi, I thought of using it when making several of my favorite Korean dishes. I'm not a professional cook and had never cooked these Korean dishes before, so some tuned out well but others did not.

So this is the list of my "lockdown" kimchi dishes and how I made them.

Kimchi jjigae
This kimchi stew was the first Korean dish I tried to make. I looked up the recipe on YouTube and found an easy vegan recipe for it. Several friends asked me for the recipe when I shared a picture of the stew I made on my social media. For something made by an absolute beginner, it turned out pretty tasty.

Kimchi deopbap
This rice topping is the dish I tried and poached the most. It takes just 10 minutes to make this. Simply heat a pan, fry kimchi on it with sesame oil and seeds, and place chopped scallion on top. Serve the kimchi over rice. Simple, right? This is a perfect meal that is easy to make and healthy.

Kimchi bokkeumbap
Making kimchi bokkeumbap (fried rice) wasn't easy for me and took a considerable bit of my time at 15-20 minutes. But it was worth it. Kimchi and fried rice with spicy kimchi juice and a sunny-side egg on top make an excellent meal.

I enjoyed cooking Korean food I missed from restaurants for the first time, and some of them turned out pretty tasty. I discovered my secret talent for cooking during lockdown, so maybe others can, too, if they try.

enny0611@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.