Journeys Unparalleled Launches Culinary Journeys

In early 2018, we launched Culinary Journeys: small private, invitation-only culinary events exclusively for clients of Journeys Unparalleled. These events will be offered quarterly throughout the Bay Area.

Culinary Journeys’ kickoff event, in partnership with ParksKitchen and the Four Seasons Seoul, was a Korean cooking lesson. The event was held in the beautifully appointed Noe Valley home of instructor JiYoung Park, owner of ParksKitchen. Born in Seoul, Korea, JiYoung has been teaching Korean cooking since 2007, first in Tokyo, then Seoul, and now San Francisco.

Every detail of our culinary experience was a work of art from the actual works of art in JiYoung’s gorgeous home to the furniture, the glassware, the dishes, the tea set, and not least the presentation of the food. She put thought, care, and love into every aspect of the event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we arrived, there were seven cutting stations waiting for us on the island in the middle of her large, open plan chef’s kitchen. JiYoung welcomed us with plum and lychee sake-tinis (or was it soju?). The drinks were refreshing and just the right amount of sweet, and the more we drank, the more challenging it was to drink successfully out of the beautiful wooden square cups without dribbling all over our aprons.

Here is what JiYoung taught us to make over the course of our late morning/early afternoon together; warning, if you haven’t eaten yet, chances are very high that you will be famished after reading this:

• Bulgogi, thinly sliced beef marinated with sesame oil, soy sauce, sake or soju, brown sugar, plum juice, garlic, scallion, apple, pear, onion and black pepper powder
• Mushroom Japchae (Korean vermicelli made of sweet potato) with wild mushrooms, carrots, onions, and green and red peppers
• Kimchi Jjigae, a traditional Korean stew made with sour kimchi, tofu, and salted shrimp sauce
  

I might add that JiYoung insists on only the best ingredients, which means that anything authentic that she cannot buy in San Francisco, she carries it back in her luggage on her twice-yearly visits to Korea.

We ended the meal with a surprise dessert of a very sophisticated-tasting mochi and a delicate, subtly licorice-flavored Chinese tea. So delicious, and that’s saying a lot from someone who usually doesn’t like licorice.

Congratulations to D. and A. (and the youngest member of our cooking class!) for winning the raffle for a 3 night stay at the Four Seasons Seoul in a Palace View Suite with Club Access!