Minari's Cast Members Are Sharing Their Favorite Family Recipes for You to Make at Home
If you are one of the countless people who have fallen for the acclaimed Lee Isaac Chung film Minari and you want to learn more about the cast, now you have an opportunity to make some of their favorite family dishes. The film is named after a vegetable used in some Korean dishes, and the cultural significance of food is woven throughout the film. So, as part of the promotion of the movie, the filmmakers created a free downloadable ebook with recipes from the cast, all beautifully illustrated by Naomi Otsu.
Related: What Is Soju?
Here's a look at a few of the dishes in the cookbook:
Steven Yeun's Mom's Stir-Fried Fish Cakes: Writing about these fish cakes and a chicken dish with a flavorful mixture of vegetables, scallions, ginger, chiles and garlic, Yeun shares: "These are the two dishes that my mom chose when I asked her what she wanted to submit for the project; they're not the dishes that immediately came to mind for me. That's not to say these aren't some of my favorites—what I mean is that I eat whatever my mom makes. That's it. The point is that she made it for me, so I love it."
Yuh-Jung Youn's Kimchi Jjigae: The key to this classic Korean stew is using good quality, thoroughly fermented kimchi, says Youn.
Lee Isaac Chung's Samgyetang: "This is a dish we used to eat in the hottest summer months in Arkansas," says Chung of this ginseng and chicken stew with jujubes. "Why eat a hot ginseng stew in the summer? Supposedly, it helps you stay healthy through the whole year."
Yeri Han's Simmered Blackfish & Seaweed Soup: Han notes that this dish is good for digestion.
Noel Kate Cho's Cheese Tteokbokki: Cho loves to add mozzarella cheese to this dish of stir-fried rice cakes to tone down the spiciness.
Alan Kim's Mom's Bossam, Galbi Jjim and Kimbap: Kim notes that bossam, a dish of pork belly with radish kimchi, "tastes better with minari!" and describes beef rib dish galbi-jjim as "super duper delicious!" And, as Kim says, the kimbap (seaweed and rice rolls) would be perfect for a picnic.
You can download the whole cookbook for free on the A24 Films website.