“Where are you from?” That’s the question I get whichever country I am, be it America, Korea, or Singapore. And honestly, I have no idea.

First of all, there’s my American/Korean/Chinese/Singaporean accent. Thus, I have a weird accent in all three languages that I speak: English, Korean, and Chinese. So when I’m in America where I have lived for 8 years, people ask me which country I am from and whether I am a FOB (fresh out of boat). When I am in my mother country, Korea, speaking Korean and trying to merge in, people ask me why I speak so funny. And when I’m in Singapore, my hometown, people tell me to stop being so stubborn trying to hold on to my “American” accent and just relax leh and speak Singlish lah.

My passport clearly states that I’m a native-born, 100% Korean. But I blend in well with Singaporeans and Chinese, and all my childhood memories are deeply rooted in Singapore. Yet I am definitely very Americanized, having absorbed all its culture and education. I am deeply in love with America, but I have fond attachments to Singapore. I express myself very well in English, but not to the degree of the relief I feel when I express myself in Korean.

And then there’s my preference for food. You would have thought having been brought up with rice, I would consider rice my staple. Yet I avoid rice like the plague, and detest most Asian food. But in a weird way, I love Asian-fusion. The “American” food in Asia suites me way more than the real American food back home.

So, where am I from? What nation do I truly belong to? I guess my answer would be: neither. In this global age of the melting pot, I doubt I’m the only one confused about my national identity. I think we should create our own nation called the U.S. of Melting Pot or something.

Anyway, despite my claim that I dislike Asian food, my Korean blood is still indelible, evident in the fact that I just cannot live without kimchi.

There is a saying that if you don’t like kimchi, you’re not Korean. Koreans eat kimchi all day, with all meals, with anything and everything. Spaghetti for lunch? Bring out the kimchi! Oatmeal for breakfast? Pile on the kimchi! Steak for dinner? Where’s the kimchi?

I’m one of the lucky ones whose mother still knows how to make good, homemade kimchi. None of the store-bought kind with lots of sugar and MSG. Don’t hate. It’s not my fault my mom is fabulous like that. Each month she buys a whole crate of fresh cabbage and cranks out several big jars of kimchi. If you’re lucky, you might be presented with a fresh jar of kimchi, made with lots of love by my mom.

Anyway, today I decided to bring out the Korean side of me and make a dish highlighting kimchi. But of course, since I am a citizen of the U.S. of Melting Pot, I’ll also have to add some non-traditional ingredients…

Kimchi Cornmeal Pancake
Serves 2, or 4 Sissies

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 large egg
• salt and pepper
• 1 cup kimchi, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 2 links andouille sausages
• 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons green onions, chopped

Mix together the cornmeal, flour, chicken broth, egg, and seasoning to make a batter. Toss in the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine.

Heat a large frying pan with some oil. When the oil gets hot, pour in all the batter and flatten it out.

Once the bottom is cooked, flip the pancake out into a large plate, then slide it back onto the pan to cook the other side. Serve hot and sizzling.

Hell, yeah.

Kimchi is a much more versatile ingredient than to be just eaten with plain old rice, people! This is my idea of a perfect melting pot dish…and as a pancake, no less! My favorite!

I chose cornmeal over regular flour because I thought it would make for a more interesting texture. I was right. The batter was gritty and crispy, almost like a spiced-up polenta. Very dense, very satisfying.

That’s not ketchup! I drizzled some Korean red-pepper sauce on top. Because kimchi is just not spicy enough for me!

I know many of you probably don’t have kimchi lying around in your fridge…but perhaps it’s time to step out of the regular items you buy and get adventurous! I have a few more kimchi recipes up my sleeves…I’d love if you’d come up with some yourself!
After discovering about Regional Recipes from Joanne of Eats Well With Others, I decided to submit this to the Regional Recipes (Korea) hosted by Wandering Chopsticks.

And now…since this post is already all about me, why not get even more self-obsessed and have some Q & A’s, eh?

Q & A Session!!

Brooke from homegirl can eat asks:
“What’s your absolutely favorite vegetable, fruit, and ethnic cuisine my dear?? ”

My answer:
”Favorite veggie: kabocha, broccoli, sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts!
Favorite fruits: mango, durian, mangosteen, figs, oranges, um…practically all fruits except bananas and melons.
Favorite ethnic cuisine: The “American” food in Asia! Lol…don’t know what you would call that?”

Morgan from Dancing to Recovery asks:
“What is the absolute strangest thing you have ever eaten?”

My answer:
”Live octopus. It was hell-disgusting. There was like a boiling pot of soup in front of us, and the person just dunked the living, slithering octopus into the soup, tentacles and all. Then once it was dead, they cut up the still-wriggling tentacles for us to eat with some red chili sauce. It was still moving in my mouth! EEEEEWWW! This was in Korea.
In Singapore, I had some deep-fried frog legs. It wasn’t such a big deal. Tasted like chicken.”

Susan from Trying for a Tri asks:
“How has your cultural background and time living abroad influenced how you eat? (namely, your awesome creations!)”

My answer:
“Aw, thank you! Hm. That’s a toughie. I would like to say it’s all from my oh-so-genius mind, but no one would believe me. LOL.
Well, I think I probably derive a lot of my creations from my experiences with the western and European food I’ve eaten in Asia. The Japanese are the most creative with that. They may just take a bowl of Asian fried rice, smother it with some cream sauce, top it with cheese, bake it in the oven, and voila! Western food!”

And also a question from one of my non-blogging readers, in response to yesterday’s post:
“How in the world did you make yourself that hungry? Are you not eating enough?”

My answer:
“Haha, actually, I eat a lot more than the normal person in a day. I’ve stopped counting to the dot (another previous obsession of mine), but I roughly eat more than 3000kcal a day as I am in weight-gaining mode right now.
Yesterday was just a weird day. I usually wake up at 7:30 am at the latest, but I woke up more than 4 hours later. Right after that I had to go grocery shopping, so I missed breakfast, which would explain my hunger. But don’t worry…that won’t happen again!”

Okay, I’m off for dinner, because guess what? My stomach is rumbling…and I’m not stupid now to mistake it as a tummyache anymore!

And…ew. My brother’s friend just shared with me his whole history of diarrhea. Do I look like the kind who’s interested in other people’s personal poop stories? Oh wait, yeah, I do. Heh heh. Have a great diarrhea-free weekend, you guys!

Question of the day: Where are YOU from? Are you also a citizen of the U.S. of Melting Pot?

P.S. Oh, and one last thing: Did you join our Warm Fuzzies game yet? Check out the Warm Fuzzies page to make sure your name is on the list! The game starts June 8…Just 2 more days!!
And Erin, Michelle (Mish), and Keri410, I need your url please!!

Related posts:

1. I Have No Life
2. Hi, I’m a Grocery-holic
3. Beauty and the Beet-face
4. How Calbi BBQ Got Its Ass Kimchi-ed
5. This is Me Blogging in Class

Tagged as: cheese, corn, kimchi, pancakes, q and a