Acorn Jelly | Dotori Mook (도토리묵)

I love 묵 ('mook'). It's like a jiggly jelly-ish mush with a similar consistency to Jell-o except it's savory. It's an acquired texture, I think. If you haven't had it before, you might expect it to be sweet, like Jell-o, and it might throw you off. But it's delicious, so if you're feeling adventurous, you should try it!

I know of three types of mook: mungbean, buckwheat, or acorn starch. It's super easy to prepare and it makes for an easy and summery side dish.

Ingredients:

¼ cup acorn starch (or mungbean starch or buckwheat starch)

1½ cups water

¼ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon soy sauce

½ teaspoon vinegar (rice wine or apple cider are preferable)

¼ teaspoon sesame oil

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ teaspoon sesame seeds

4 perilla leaves, chopped into ribbons

handful of chives, chopped (or 1 scallion)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 hot pepper, sliced

Start by adding the acorn starch, water, and salt to a saucepan.

Place the saucepan over a low heat. Whisk vigorously to get rid of any lumps and then whisk continuously until the mixture comes to a boil. Look for big sloppy bubbles and you'll know it's done.

Pour the mixture into a glass container and let it cool to room temperature before popping it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Mix together seasonings just before you're ready to serve. Add the soy sauce, hot pepper flakes, sesame seeds, vinegar, sesame oil, chives, garlic, perilla leaves, and hot peppers to a bowl and stir.

Turn out the jelly onto a cutting board and cut it up. I used a squiggly cutter because that's what my mom always used.

Plop the pieces into a bowl or a platter - I went with a square container - and dump in the seasoning and combine.

Yum!

Here's the recipe page: