I Am What I Cook

My Korean name is “So Hyun”. And my Chinese name is “Su Xian.” You know my English name: Sophia. Guess what? All of them mean similar things. The “So” and “Su” in my Korean and Chinese name means “intrinsically” or “naturally”. And the “Hyun” and “Xian” has many definitions, but one of them is “wisdom”. Sophia is derived from Greek, and it means “woman of wisdom”. As you can see…my dad certainly had a vision in mind when he named me. He wanted his daughter to be a person of deep thoughts and spiritual wisdom.

I had a few key ingredients in mind that I wanted to use:

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• Sweet potatoes: it’s a rather ugly root, buried deep within the ground…but it’s chock-full of super nutrients (wisdom, inner beauty)

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• Chickpeas: because it’s economical, but extremely versatile, universal, and nutritious…perfect balance of complex carbs and protein, too

• Peanut butter: for that exotic, perplexing depth…and a touch of nuttiness (my personality)

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• Gochujang: for a hint of spice, and a symbol of my nationality

I also wanted to make something that wasn’t too spectacular: Something simple, and plain to look at…but with an intriguing depth at first bite. So I decided to combine all these ingredients into a stew.

I really just threw this and that into the pot at a whim, so I don’t know the exact measurements…and I might even have left out some ingredients. But here’s a rough recipe:

The “Sophia” Stew:

• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 heaping spoonful gochujang
• balsamic vinegar (to taste)
• pinch of dried herbs (I used Provencal)
• 1 28 oz can diced tomato
• some frozen okra
• chicken broth
• 4 medium sweet potatoes, chopped
• about 3 cups cooked chickpeas
• pinch of red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter (I used Krema)
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• Spicy salsa (to taste)
• Korean BBQ sauce (to taste)

In a big pot, brown together the celery and onion until nice and soft. Toss in the garlic with the gochujang, and cook together for about a minute. Add in some balsamic vinegar and the dried herbs.

This is the Korean BBQ sauce I used:
It was given by Biz and I’ve been actually using it on random stuff. It’s not necessary in the this stew, but my hands got itchy and I couldn’t help adding this in, just a tiny bit for that unique kick. The finished product:
Look at that. Yeah, really look at it. It’s not much, is it? At first glance, you’d think it was nothing special.
But dig into it. Come on, just take a bite.
The flavor is fantastic. It is slightly sweet from the sweet potatoes, but with some spice from the gochujang and red pepper flakes, with the tangy taste from the vinegar and acid from the tomatoes.
  And oh my god. The peanut butter was the perfect ending to this stew. It wasn’t dominant, but made for this really fascinating and curious background taste that lingered in your mouth, urging you to have more and more. It was mysteriously delicious. As for the okra? Eh, I just happened to have a half-eaten bag of frozen okra in my freezer on its last leg, so I randomly threw it in. It’s a stew after all, so anything you put in there is forgiven.

Question of the day: What does your name mean? Do you define your name? How do you define yourself right now?

And here’s a challenge for you: Cook a dish that defines you. It can be the person you dream to be, like I did.
Let’s call it the “You Are What You Cook” Challenge. You can post it on your blog, and I might do a round-up of all your creations, linking to your recipe and posting your pictures. I think it’d be fun!

Related posts:

1. Identity Crisis
2. “They” vs. Me
3. Wishing For Dreams Come True…
4. Unwasted Time