Kimchi Mamas

Postsecret . . . Open Discussion

I saw this on the 2/13/2011 postsecret.com.

What are your thoughts?

 

--Angie in Texas "marr[ied] a white man."

Jap Chae

I've been craving jap chae lately. Jap Chae is a tangle of slippery glass noodles stir-fried with brightly colored, crisp vegetables and dressed with a hint of soy sauce. You can eat it hot or at room temperature. Along with kim bap, it's a great picnic food. It can be made with or without meat.

The Korean women in my husband's family don't use recipes, and when I ask them how to make something, their instructions are vague, so I rely on cookbooks, recipes scoured from the Internet, and my own taste buds. This time I started with a recipe I found on Jaden's Steamy Kitchen. I followed her basic technique, with a few additions like red bell peppers and a little more garlic and soy sauce. There are two things I've learned from watching my inlaws make jap chae: 1) Kitchen shears are key. The noodles in the package are very long, so cutting them with shears after you've boiled them makes them more manageable. 2) The best way to mix everything together at the end (after the jap chae has cooked and cooled) is with your hands. My sister-in-law always has rubber gloves around for this purpose.

--Weigook Saram

Making room for more mamas

I just want to share the love. Fellow sister Chicago blogger MJ (but not the Kimchi Mamas commenter of the same name), aka SugarMama, and a talented group of Filipina and Filipino-connected moms, has launched Filipina Moms ... and a dash of patis! In their own words:

We are a group of Filipino Moms around the world who collaboratively write flavorful tales and thoughts on current events, parenting, culture, tradition and what it means to be a Filipino (or married to one).

Yes, we can relate! I'm so thrilled that this voice, and some very beautiful writing, is now out there. Happy blog launch and a long life to you, Filipina Moms!

--Carol

Halfmama Blogs for Parenting Magazine

Halfmama, a Korean-American mother of (gorgeous!) twins who's been reading and commenting here for a while, just got a gig blogging for Parenting Magazine. Congratulations, Halfmama. And the rest of you, go check out her first post, about how she turns into "Mama Kim Jong-Il" when her daughter acts up in the supermarket.

--The Kimchi Mamas

Boston Progress Radio

I will admit upfront that I am involved with Boston Progress Radio.  But I still think it's a worthwhile endeavor.  In my unbiased opinion.

The goal of Boston Progress Radio is to provide a space for community to develop around Asian American independent musicians.  Ever feel like you're at a loss for finding Asian American artists?  Too quiet at work and need something to pick you up?  Looking for some music that speaks to your experience?

Boston Progress Radio is now both a blog and an online radio station.  To tune in, please use the following link. You will need a player capable of playing MP3 streams (e.g., iTunes or Winamp).

There's not a ton of artists up there yet (I'm only starting to learn about the craziness of getting rights to music etc.) - but there's already some good stuff up there.  Yes, there's definitely the politicized hip-hop that i enjoy blasting at work, but there're also some great singer-songwriters, and a little bit of everything in between.

Stop by, drop a comment, and let us know what you think.

~ eliaday

Kimchi Mamas is 1 today!

Kimchi Mamas is turning one today!  And you know what that means...a party where we get to dress up in a beautiful, but uncomfortable hanbok, be beset by relatives taking 5,000 photos, have a big feast featuring some attractively arranged plastic food , and choose our fate from some objects laid out before us in the doljabee ceremony.  The dol was traditionally celebrated because many babies did not live a full year.  We didn't know if our little blog experiment in motherhood and Korean culture would last a year, so we thank you for your support of our "baby blog."  Because of you, we not only survived, but thrived.

In the doljabee, the birthday child is supposed to grab an object to predict her fate.  We wish to all of you the spirit of the doljabee:

A thread for a long and happy life, so that you may some day see your children's children celebrate their dols;

A book, so that you accumulate the wisdom of a scholar;

Rice, for an abundance of good food, and that you may never know want;

A coin, for wealth enough to have what you need, and some to give away;

A ruler , so that you might have skill with your hands, to build the life that you want for yourself;
And finally, some ddok, so that your life will be filled with sweetness.

We decided that in order to celebrate our Dol, we would share with you what it has meant to each of us to be a part of this blog.  We invite you to celebrate with us, by sharing your thoughts in the comments as well.  Even if you don't normally comment, please say hello.  Everyone is welcome at this party.  Soju all around!

Show the Kimchi Love

Kimchi Mamas is up for "Best Parenting Blog" on the Blogger's Choice Awards.  Show some Kimchi Mama solidarity and sign-in to vote!  You have to register with the site to vote or nominate a blog, so please take a moment to go over and shower us with the kimchi love.  We know our readers are the smartest, wittiest -- and did we mention most attractive?-- in the whole blogosphere and will not let us down!

Seoul-Bro Metrodad is nominated for the Blogitzer for consistently great writing, and Kimchi Mama Stefania's Family Food Blog is up for Best Food Blog.  While you're over there, cast a vote for them as well!

Our campaign slogan: "Vote for Kimchi Mamas or Fear the Wrath of the Korean Mother-in-Law." Or how about, "Vote for Kimchi Mamas: A little spicy, a little sweet, with no unpleasant aftertaste."  Any other suggestions from our smart, witty, attractive readers?

Celebrity Endorsements*:  Daniel Dae Kim, Sandra Oh, Yunjin Kim, Grace Park, Margaret Cho, Yul Kwon, Becky Lee, Moon Bloodgood, Toby Dawson, Paul Kim (dude who was robbed lost on American Idol), That Guy on The Apprentice, and the Ajummah at the drycleaners.

Love,

The Kimchi Mamas

*only kidding.  None of these people actually know about us or are affiliated with this site.  Except the Ajummah at the Drycleaners.  She totally digs us.

Anti-Racist Parent: New blog gets to the point

Jason of Daddy In A Strangeland and Rice Daddies (and a familiar face around these parts) emailed me today to let me know that's he's involved with the new race, culture, and parenting blog, Anti-Racist Parent.

The site was founded by Carmen Van Kerckhove and Jen Chau, the team behind New Demographic, Racialicious and Addicted to Race (and podcast).

Anti-Racist Parent  is a blog for parents committed to raising children with an anti-racist outlook. It certainly tackles issues that are near and dear to us here at Kimchi Mamas so we're happy to bring this site to you.

What's it all about? Start here.

Welcome to the fray, Anti-Racist Parent! We'll be reading!

—Stefania Pomponi Butler


 

The APA Parenting Meme

The APA Parenting Meme

Mombloggers and dadbloggers who happen to be Asian Pacific American (APA) have been sharing their unique experiences at the intersection of race, culture, family and parenting with the blogosphere for a while now.  We [we being eliaday of Kimchi Mamas and daddy in a strange land of the the Rice Daddies] thought an APA Parenting Meme would be a fun way to open up dialogue and get ideas flowing (for those of us afflicted with writer's block or blog fatigue).  We're not experts, and in no way are we trying to be definitive or essentialist - we just hope that these questions will get us started talking about experiences we have in common as APA parents, things we don't talk about and share enough.  We're posting our answers to this meme on both our solo and group blogs and tagging 3 of our blogging brothas and sistas to represent and then tag some more.  The questions are short, but, like everything, are open to interpretation, as is this meme, so hapas, transracial adoptees, non-Asians who married in, immigrants to 6th-generation, parents of teens or folks still planning their first, you're all game.

I'm tagging weigook saram, Nina, and CityMama.

1. I am:

     third generation Chinese American

2. My kids are:

 Chinese-Korean American

3. I first realized I was APA when:

    I discovered that my nursery school teacher with black hair was NOT APA.

4. People think my name is:

    Delta Horn - my last name in print looks kind of like Horn, but it just goes to show, people tend to expect more "white" names like Horn versus my Chinese last name.

5. The family tradition I most want to pass on is:

    Having family dinners together.   

6. The family tradition I least want to pass on is:

    Crazy superstitions about the auspicious dates for holding certain events.

7. My child's first word in English was:

    CAT!!

8. My child's first non-English word was:

    Nai-nai (milk in Chinese

9. The non-English word/phrase most used in my home is:

    POP!! (rice in Korean, followed closely by KIM!! - seaweed)

10. One thing I love about being an APA parent is:

    The tight community amongst other APA parents.

11. One thing I hate about being an APA parent is:

    Constantly being told that my daughter looks like a little doll.  She's no china doll!!

12. The best thing about being part of an APA family is:

    Being encouraged and supported throughout my many years of education.

13. The worst thing about being part of an APA family is:

    Not hugging very often.

14. To me, being Asian Pacific American means:

 Walking a tightrope - It's a little scary sometimes without something to hold on to, but ultimately, enthralling as long as you don't look down.

~ eliaday

Live The Delicious Life

You know how Koreans are always talking about food? What they ate yesterday, what they ate today, what they will eat next week?

Sarah Gim is really good at that. She is a food blogger that blogs The Delicious Life. She also blogs over at Slashfood, where I was also a regular contributor until I burned out.

The thing I love best about Sarah's food writing is that she understands that food is supposed to be fun and enjoyable. She can be as passionate about fast food as she is about farmer's markets.  She doesn't take herself too seriously. She makes me feel like I'm right there at the table with her. I dig that.

This recent post about Korean barbecue caught my eye not only because I used to live in the 'hood, but...a Korean restaurant in Marina Del Rey?!?! Aah, hanging out in Marina Del Rey.  I worked at a boating store in MDR when I was in college because it was a way to meet cute guys who would take me sailing. Actually, I didn't care about the guys as much as I wanted to go sailing. But I digress.

Check out The Delicious Life.  Just don't read it on an empty stomach.

[photo credit: Sarah Gim]

--Stefania Pomponi Butler (sailing whore)