Semiserious Chefs

Because quick pickling doesn’t require a bunch of time to be delicious, (not even overnight,) this is a FANTASTIC last minute dinner party recipe. It’s the perfect addition to the classic holiday dinner, but they are also just as good served with toothpicks along side your charcuterie board or other hors d’oeuvres. As for the […]

This sauce is a SUPER EASY staple to have in your repertoire. Perhaps you’ll measure for the first few times you make it, but soon enough you will find that you can easily toss together a rough proportion, or even experiment with some of your other favorite flavors, (try adding ginger or substituting ponzu!) for […]

As Ćwikła in Poland or tsvikli (цвіклі) in Ukraine this relish, a combination of beets and horseradish, is very commonly used as a spread on sliced bread, and is in-fact so popular that it is sometimes referred to as Ukrainian Kimchi. In Russian, hron (Хрoн) means simply horseradish, but also usually refers to this relish with both […]

Oi-muchim (오이무침): oi for cucumber and muchim for mixed or tossed, this quick Korean side dish is very common as a snack and of-course a banchan for any meal or special bapsang. (Sometimes it is also written as Oi Saengche (오이생채) from the Chinese influenced Korean writing for live vegetable since it is not ‘dead’/cooked.) […]

Anyone who has spend much time in ‘Tolkien-Land’ will most likely think of Gimli when asked about a dwarf. “Gimli, son of Gloin,” he can always be quoted. I always think of the 13 member dwarf company in the original book, “The Hobbit,” with all their clever, rhyme-y names: Dwalin, Balin, Kili, Fili, Dori, Nori, […]

Bilbo. There is a possibility that you don’t know that name, but if you live in the US it’s quite unlikely. Either way, he was a most beloved hero in JR Tolkien’s book “The Hobbit.” He was the precursing character to Frodo in the “Lord of The Rings” trilogy. He was brave out of necessity, […]

I first came across this recipe when looking for Lord of The Ring’s related dishes. It was originally called Smaug’s Balls. I played around with it a little and renamed it a much more sophisticated Smaug’s Gems, but now that I’m sharing it with the entire world, I think maybe they need another new name… […]

It was a beautiful Saturday morning, and it started in a way I most enjoy, with a walk to the market. Okay, so our ‘market’ is just the local Fred Meyer, but it’s very close and there is a wonderful block of wild woods along the way. This particular Saturday I was blessed with the […]

Almost everyone is familiar with kimchi. Smelly fermented cabbage, right? I’m pretty sure that most of the people who won’t touch it fall into one of two categories: “I don’t do spicy”or “Ew, cabbage! Icky!” Well, if you are a member of the latter group let me introduce you to a very pleasant option. Kkakdugi. […]

It’s pretty obvious by looking at the recipes around this one that I am on a total Korean kick. It all started when I found out what banchan even were through my discovery of Dubu Jorim. I love these little side dishes! One might be sweet, one might be spicy, this one has a ginger […]