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The Korean Vegan

Gluten FreeSauces

Mouthwatering Braised Tomatoes

braised tomatoes in white pot on windowsill

Mouthwatering, savory tomatoes blend with the bite of balsamic vinegar and garlic and the sweet of shallots to make a beautiful braised tomato dish that is perfect for dipping in with crusty bread, or topping pasta.

This Mouthwatering Braised Tomatoes recipe resulted from sheer laziness. I think many great recipes are a result of an unwillingness to complete “all the steps” of a traditional recipe and this is exactly how this recipe came to be.

My husband loves tomatoes. Marinara sauce is to him what gochujang is to me (if you’d like to see how I marry these two loves, check out my Red Sauce recipe here). This means that I usually include one marinara based pasta dish during my weekly rotation of meals.

braised tomatoes in white cast iron

But you know how it is. Better yet, you know me. I like simple and easy and not a lot of steps in my recipes. My favorite recipes, in fact, are those where you dump a bunch of things into a pot and let it simmer while you do more important things (like playing Animal Crossing or watching Itaewon Class). So, I came up with a “dummified” version of my red sauce, which included nothing but the basics:

  • Lots of fresh tomatoes
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 shallot
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Dried Italian herbs
  • Bay leaves
  • Salt & Pepper
  • Olive Oil
tomatoes in white pot

So, that right there is the ingredient list. And you rough chop everything (no need to make it look pretty) and stick it in a pot and let it simmer for an hour or so, until the tomatoes are so sweet, they taste like jam. Then, I let the whole pot cool for about another hour and take an immersion blender to it in order to achieve a rustic, chunky sauce for our pasta dish.

Well, the other day, feeling even lazier than usual, I thought, “well, what would happen if I just didn’t bother to blend it?”

WITCHERY is what happened.

I fished out the bay leaves and grabbed a hunk of ciabatta bread (store bought, because we are at quarantine level lows of flour and yeast here in Chicago). I dove in, sweeping the bread right through and parting the rubied sea of tomatoes. My first bite was a sweet, garlicky explosion and I knew, then and there, that no immersion blender would take to these tomatoes.

tomatoes in white pot next to green herbs

These tomatoes are an excellent substitute for the more al fresco “bruschetta” or fabulous poured over some gnocchi. The Korean in me would mix it with a bowl of rice and roasted seaweed. The point is, you make enough to last you a few days and your meals are essentially done. What’s more? Your family will think you are the best cook of all time.

You see guys, as I often tell my clients, my job is to make YOU look good to YOUR clients. And trust me—these Mouthwatering Braised Tomatoes will do just that.

Mouthwatering Braised Tomatoes

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6

Ingredients
  

  • 2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 6 cloves garlic minced or thinly sliced
  • 1 large shallot sliced
  • 1 carrot small diced
  • 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 18-24 small tomatoes can sub 7-8 heirloom tomatoes, rough chopped
  • 2-3 bay leaves

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot (I like using a massive Dutch oven pot), add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium high heat.
  • When oil is hot, add garlic, shallots, and carrots. Allow the shallots to “sweat” (i.e., cook until they start to grow translucent). Add ½ tsp of salt, a little cracked black pepper, and 1 tbsp Italian seasoning.
  • Stir the veggies using a wooden spoon. When the garlic starts to turn brown around the edges, deglaze the bottom of the pot with a balsamic vinegar. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up any brown bits.
  • Add chopped tomatoes to pot, together with another healthy pinch of salt, and stir together the contents of the pot (so that the veggies are not all at the bottom). Next add a couple bay leaves.
  • Tomatoes will begin to release liquid immediately—continue to stir gently. When liquid begins to boil, reduce heat to low and allow tomatoes to simmer for approximately 1 hour, until tomatoes have broken down (though still retaining some shape).
  • Drizzle another tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and serve with crusty bread or pasta.
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Mouthwatering Braised Tomatoes was last modified: June 23rd, 2020 by the.krn.vegan@gmail.com
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About Me

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I veganize Korean food. I Koreanize everything else.

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The Korean Vegan, Esq.
Earlier today, I watched a video of a white man en Earlier today, I watched a video of a white man encourage his 3 year old son to “make fun of his Asian uncle” by pulling the corners of his eyes back into slits.  When confronted by a number of Asians explaining how offensive the video was, he grew defensive, claiming it was “just a little fun.”
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Several years ago, someone asked me what the big deal was about white people making fun of my eyes.  He claimed, “people make fun of my appearance all the time, I guess I’m just not as sensitive as you.” Being bullied for one’s appearance is always wrong and can definitely be traumatic no matter what. But when that appearance is tied to your ethnicity, and when that ethnicity is outnumbered, that kind of bullying can take on a different level of harm. If someone makes fun of my nose, I may spend the rest of my life hating my nose. But if someone makes fun of my eyes—an attribute tied to my Koreanness—then I not only hate my eyes, I also hate my Koreanness.
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Bottom line, I never thought that in 2021, I’d have to explain why making “Asian eyes” to an Asian is offensive, inappropriate, and insensitive.  But apparently, it’s a message that continues to be in demand. In lieu of yelling at people, though, I thought I’d just share a story.
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Finally, a couple translations: “Dominick’s Language” is what I used to call English, because it was the gibberish my Dad spoke at the grocery store. “Sohknehbok” is Korean underclothing, something my grandmother made me wear in summer, lol, because she was always afraid I would catch my death.
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You can find the recipe for Tteokbokki (or its popular sister recipe, Rabokki) on my blog.
I’ve been grappling with this a lot lately—the I’ve been grappling with this a lot lately—the feeling that people automatically question my authenticity, are waiting for me to screw up and reveal my non-Koreanness. I’ve been called out for using the wrong ingredients, providing incorrect translations, even typos in my hashtags—all as if these errors somehow serve as proof that I’m not as Korean as I “pretend” to be. This makes me so angry sometimes because I feel like so much of my work is directly on behalf of the Korean and Korean American community, and my choice to avoid animal products shouldn’t just erase that. Over the past two years, I’ve spent a great deal of time researching for my book. I talked to my family, went to South Korea, and educated myself on the ingredients I took for granted. But I worry that ppl will see “Vegan” after the word Korean and assume that I’m immediately disqualified from participating in the discourse of diaspora. I even thought about changing my @ but I like the challenge implied by joining Korean and Vegan. Even if it makes me nervous! Lol.
Jumeok bap for Oppa. Jumeok bap for Oppa.
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