4 Dishes You Should Try in the Only Korean Restaurant in Ankara
Saebyeol Blog: How to feel Korean in Ankara /Comd 357 Multimedia Journalism Sonbahar 2019-2020 Listeleme Projesi
Hello, Ankorean!
Are you hungry? Do you miss Korean food? Don’t worry!!
Now, I’ll introduce Hangang한강, which is the only Korean restaurant in Ankara.
I went there yesterday with my two Ankorean friends, Yechan and Jeongmin, who were also starving for Korean food.
We ordered four kinds of food: stew, rice, noodles and Korean-style pancake.
Don’t you wanna feel Korean food right now? Let’s do that!
*All dishes can be served as vegetarian when asked
1. BIBIMBAP 비빔밥
Bibimbap is one of the most famous Korean traditional dishes. In the case of this restaurant, meat, carrots, cucumbers, mushrooms, eggs and dried seaweed are used as toppings of bibimbap. You can choose between soy sauce or red pepper paste. I chose red pepper paste.
The price is 40TL.
Savory sesame seeds were sprinkled on the top of bibimbap. They add flavor to the bibimbap along with sesame oil. The literal translation of Bibimbap is ‘mixed rice’ in English. So, yes, I mixed all the ingredients in the bowl with red pepper sauce! The sauce was not that spicy for me actually. If you’re a Korean who is used to spicy sauce, it would be a little bland. But if you’re not good at eating spicy foods or never have tried Korean foods before, bibimbap would be a great choice.
Yechan “I would like to recommend this menu to foreigners. It’s less spicy than usual bibimbap we eat in Korea. Also this is a very representative Korean dish.”
Jeongmin “Compared to bibimbap in Korea, the number of ingredients is small. Especially, I am sad that there are no bean sprouts and bracken. Nevertheless, I’m happy to have red pepper paste! I’ve missed it.”
2. DUBU JJIGAE 두부찌개
Dubu Jjigae is a stew made with tofu as a main ingredient and flavored with red pepper paste. Zucchini and green onions are also in the stew. I ordered a bowl of rice with the stew!
Dubu Jjihae is 40TL and a bowl of rice is 10TL.
The stew was served in ttukbaegi which is a folksy earthen pot used to boil a dish. The spicy and savory taste of tofu stew made me just feel Korea. I highly recommend you to eat the stew with a bowl of steamed rice because it’s quite spicy and, above all, that’s the way Koreans eat stews. I was satisfied with the amount of ingredients and tofu was very soft.
Yechan “Incredibly familiar taste. It’s a little spicy even for me. I would not recommend it to foreigners who have no experience in Korean foods.”
Jeongmin “My opinion is a little bit different with you. The spicy smell and taste, the form of stew and even the pot! It’s like a collection of Korean food culture. I want to recommend it to everyone.”
3. JAPCHAE 잡채
Japchae is commonly prepared for special occasions in Korea. It consists of stir-fried slices of vegetables, including spring onions, onions, carrots, paprika and mushrooms, mixed with boiled bean threads (also called cellophane noodles) and seasoned with soy sauce and sugar. Savory sesame seeds were sprinkled on the top of the dish.
The price is 60TL.
The texture of the springy noodles was really good. Can you imagine the sound of the noodles entering your mouth? And the savory scent and slightly salty taste! It was just the same with what I’ve eaten in Korea. If there were more vegetables in it, it would have been perfect. If you have a reluctance to spicy food or Korean sauce, I recommend you to eat this dish. It’s a little salty and sweet dish to suit everyone’s taste.
Yechan “I want to bring my foreign friends and let them try this dish. They will like it. The shape of the noodles will be a bit interesting to them, and the taste is not spicy but sweet.”
Jeongmin “It’s a little expensive but the taste is the best. It’s hard to see this kind of noodles in Turkey, so I think it’s worth ordering Japchae in this restaurant.”
4. KIMCHIJEON 김치전
Kimchijeon is a Korean-style pancake made with slices of well-fermented kimchi mixed into a flour batter. This is prefect with Makgeolli, one of the oldest traditional alcoholic drinks in Korea. Two pieces of kimchijeon were served for one dish.
The price is 30TL.
The pancakes were a little thick. It would be better if the dough is spread a little more thinly when it’s fried to make a crispy texture. Except for the texture, the smell and taste of kimchijeon were satisfactory. It would be good to share this food by ordering as a side menu when there are 3 or more people.
Yechan “I like kimchijeon. Who doesn’t? It’s relatively cheap and tastes good. It just reminds me of Korea. All I need is makgeolli.”
Jeongmin “It’s cheaper than other dishes, but seems to lack sincerity. They could have made it look better and taste better. It’s a bit disappointing.”
| | ANKARA KOREAN RESTAURANT 한강 Aziziye, Mesnevi Sokağı 9/10, 06690 Çankaya/Ankara (0312) 286 44 80 Mon-Sat 11:30-21:00 / Sun Closed https://ankara-korean-restaurant.business.site |
