Have any of you ever had Kimchi Jjigae? It is a Korean kimchi stew that is a-m-a-z-i-n-g. I think I’ve mentioned before that I occasionally go on a Korean drama binge and end up drooling over all the food the characters seem to always be eating. My first Korean dish that I made, besides kimchi and bibimbap (Korean mixed rice dish), was this Kimchi Jjigae from My Korean Kitchen. It was so good and it made a lot. After having it as a stew for a couple of days, I decided to do something different with the leftovers. These Kimchi Tacos are like a taco form of bibimbap but with the delicious flavors of the kimchi stew.

Kimchi Tacos

The Kimchi Jjigae is used in the meat marinade of the Kimchi Tacos, along with soy sauce and green onions.

The pickled cucumber and carrots are “flash” pickled, meaning not pickled in the traditional and slow method. A simple combination of water, sugar, and vinegar for 30 minutes creates tangy, crisp, and slightly sweet taco toppings. Like bibimbap, these Kimchi Tacos would not be complete without seasoned bean sprouts.

Poached eggs are placed on top of everything, along with a generous drizzle of Sriracha. As I was editing these photos, I got a strong urge to make these Kimchi Tacos again. They’re just so damn good.

5 from 1 vote

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Kimchi Tacos

Kimchi Tacos are a delicious fusion hand food, with pickled veggies, Kimchi Jjigae marinated meat, tortillas, and poached eggs.

Course Main Dishes

Prep Time 50 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 4 tacos

Ingredients

Seasoned Bean Sprouts

• 9 ounces bean sprouts
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• sesame seeds to taste

Pickled Cucumbers and Carrots

• 1/2 a cucumber peeled and julienned, small
• 1 carrot peeled and julienned
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

Meat

• 1/2 pound USDA angus beef stir fry beef precut for you into stir fry strips
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 3 green onions diced
• 1 cups Kimchi Jjigae Kimchi Stew
• 4 small corn tortillas

Poached Eggs

• 4 eggs
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar

Instructions

Seasoned Bean Sprouts

1. Parboil the bean sprouts. Bring the water to boil in a large saucepan. Add the bean sprouts and cook for two minutes. Drain the water and cool the sprouts by shaking and tossing the strainer. Squeeze the sprouts to get rid of any excess water and transfer to a bowl. Season with 2 teaspoons sesame oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Pickled Cucumbers and Carrots

1. Julienne the carrots and cucumber (use your expert cutting skills or a mandolin) .
2. Combine the sugar, salt, and vinegar in a large bowl and stir until completely dissolved. Add the julienned carrots and cucumbers and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Meat

1. Combine the thinly sliced steak, soy sauce, and green onions in a bowl or ziplock bag and marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Heat a frying pan on medium heat and add the marinated meat. Once the meat is done and the liquid almost completely gone, add the Kimchi Jjigae. Cook until the liquid has thickened and most of it has evaporated (but not all of it).
3. Heat the tortillas (warm them wrapped in foil in the oven or you can brown them in a skillet).

Poached Eggs

1. Poach the eggs. Fill a saucepan with water (about 2/3 of the way full) and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer.
2. Crack the egg into a small measuring cup and add the vinegar to the water. Carefully ease the egg into the water and cook for 4 minutes. Meanwhile, assemble your tacos.
3. Use a slotted spoon to take the egg out of the water and pat it dry. Place on the very top of your assembled tortilla.

Healing Woes

I’ve been having a hard time. Yes the general trend is upward but it’s my emotions that have been hard to handle lately. When everything goes right with the ostomy bag, it really is fine. I can eat without pain, stress, and worry. That is a huge improvement. But when things go wrong and I have to change the bag often, I feel raw, exposed, and ugly.

Some of the skin near my stoma was exposed for long enough that it is irritated and extremely raw looking. On the opposite side of the stoma, there was a small tear/busted stitch that my mom has to put steri-strips on so that it can heal (I can’t see it so my mom has to do it for me). This decreases the length of time the bag will last so I’ve been experiencing leaks, itchy burning, rashes, and pain.

My incision site is also pretty sore and now that the summer heat has arrived, I’m having a really hard time getting dressed in clothes that don’t irritate everything.