My Favorite Food from Pippa Park Crush at First Sight
Nov 05, 2023 by Erin Yun
In Pippa Park Raises Her Game, I included some of my favorite Korean snacks and dishes, from sweet walnut cakes filled with red bean to comforting kimchi-jjigae. In Pippa Park Crush at First Sight, Pippa is back with a whole batch of new problems—like Royal party hosting duties and a confusing love triangle—but at least one thing is the same: there is no lack of delicious food!
1. Oxtail Soup
“It was hard to describe the taste, except that it was like the richest, beefiest thing you could imagine. The ox was so tender it dissolved as soon as it touched your tongue, and the saltiness of the soup was perfection combined with the spicy sourness of the kimchi and the comfort of the rice. As soon as I had my first bite, my worries melted.”
Also known as kkori gomtang, oxtail soup epitomizes winter for me. As soon as the temperature drops, I crave this rich, meaty, delicious soup. This soup takes a full day to simmer, and oxtails can be expensive, so growing up, this dish was a special treat. My family would eat
the broth for days—we’d boil the huge pot on the stove during the day and let the residual heat keep it warm overnight—but my siblings and I would always selfishly devour the oxtail meat within the first few bowls.
2. Chapagetti
“I had just started heating up a pot of creamy chapagetti for me and Mrs. Lee when Bianca texted me a single word: Downstairs. Nooo! She was supposed to text me when she was close. Abandoning the pot on the stove, I tugged on my jacket and hurried down the steps.”
While oxtail soup is my absolute favorite meal in Pippa Park Crush at First Sight, a classic pack of chapagetti is my favorite dish that costs less than two dollars. I adore a heaping portion of jajangmyeon—thick noodles with black bean sauce—but when I don’t feel like spending money on take-out or making the dish from scratch, a quick pot of chapagetti will satisfy that craving. And it’s so easy to prepare that even Pippa can nail it!
3. Jung-Hwa’s Party Feast
“There were crispy kimchi pancakes, savory dongtaejeon, and enough Korean fried chicken to feed the entire girls’ basketball team—and we could eat a lot. That alone would have been enough reason to salivate, but the make-your-own bibimbap bar was my favorite by far. Jung-Hwa had made a huge batch of white rice, and set out all the necessary accoutrements—bowls of bean sprouts, fernbrake, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, and spinach in sesame oil, along with a
huge vat of vivid red bibimbap sauce on the side.”
It would be impossible to pick just one dish from Jung-Hwa’s party preparations—so I included them all! I would be happy to munch on any of these dishes, but if I was at Pippa’s party, I would beeline toward the dongtaejeon and the fried chicken. I like to consider myself a pretty good chef, but I haven’t been able to perfect Korean fried chicken. For special occasions, my mom used to make sticky fried chicken wings with fresh peanuts—they’re both sweet and mildly spicy, and we kids devoured them. Mmm . . . now I know pretty good chef, but I haven’t been able to perfect Korean fried chicken. For special occasions, my mom used to make sticky fried chicken wings with fresh peanuts—they’re both sweet and mildly spicy, and we kids devoured them. Mmm . . . now I know what I’m craving tonight.
Find more delicious Korean dishes in Pippa Park Books 1 & 2! Get the books here:
Photo Credit (From Left to Right): Jason Kim (Pexels), sharonang (Pixabay), 2960230 (Pixabay), ma-no (Getty Images), nikluv (Pixabay), sharonang (Pixabay), Clauii Campos (CaptureNow)