A haute dog? What a concept!
Chef behind Hopscotch Festival says his eclectic experiences gave his life flavour
Chef Juno Kim is the culinary mind behind the eats at Hopscotch Festival Vancouver, the city’s celebration of whisky, which ends Nov. 26. This year, Kim is offering the ultimate street food — Korean-inspired hotdogs.
QWhat motivates and inspires you as a chef?
AI came from the fashion industry, but I wanted to start giving people experiences rather than material goods. Spending time to conceptualize a dish in your mind, sourcing, cooking, then presenting your creation to hungry diners, who take the time to understand your thought process, is incredibly rewarding.
How would you describe the type of food you like to cook?
I cook things that I personally enjoy eating with local, sustainable, seasonal and ethical ingredients. I draw from my past experiences, whether that’s from growing up in Canada as the son of immigrant South Korean parents or from my diverse education.
What might diners not know about you?
I actually got into cooking relatively late in life. I have a degree from University of B.C. in psychology and economics, complemented by many science, sociology and business courses. While I was attending school, I was also a buyer for an independent clothing boutique. All of these past experiences definitely play a big role in how I approach the culinary arts.
Describe a couple of your most recent creations.
I serve charcoal-grilled cabbage with chicken parfait, duck prosciutto crumble, sake espuma and egg yolk gel. Another favourite: a canape I made using Sole Food Street Farms’ breakfast radish. We quickly blanch it, then coat it in lemon aioli, a chicken skin crumble, wildflowers and preserved lemon.
What’s your favourite local product, and how do you use it?
Sake kasu made by Artisan Sake-Maker on Granville Island: It’s cool to see a local producer making such a high-quality product usually only found in Japan. It’s the leftover rice that’s filtered out in sake production, so it has a strong sake flavour that can be added to soups, sauces, marinades, et cetera.
If there’s one important piece of advice you might have for home cooks, what might that be?
The biggest mistakes I see with home cooks is not waiting for your pans to get hot before searing and not using enough salt. If you’re cooking everything from scratch, don’t be afraid to season your food.
Gochujang Dog
MAKES: 4
CHARRED AND PICKLED ONIONS
1 small onion, sliced into 3/4-inch (2-mm) unseparated rings 2 cups (500 mL) water 11/3 cups (330 mL) vinegar 2/3 cups (160 mL) sugar 2 tsp (10 mL) kosher salt Canola oil
GOCHUJANG SAUCE
1/2 lb (226 g) medium firm tofu 1 shallot, sliced 1 garlic clove, sliced 2 tbsp (30 mL) tamari 11/2 tbsp (22.5 mL) honey 2/3 tsp (3 mL) sesame oil 2 tbsp (30 mL) gochujang, or more, to taste 3 tbsp (45 mL) rice vinegar, or more, to taste Salt, to taste
PROSCIUTTO CRUMBLE
6 slices of prosciutto di Parma
HOTDOG
2 sheets roasted, seasoned nori, sliced into 1/8-inch (3-mm) strips 2 green onions, sliced thin on a bias 4 hotdog buns 4 wieners or sausages Cilantro, for garnish
The day before, combine water, vinegar, sugar and salt in a small pot on medium heat until sugar dissolves, about 6 minutes. Set aside to cool. Place a frying pan on medium-high heat. Add a thin, but visible layer of oil to the pan. Without separating the rings of onion, gently place onion in the pan until dark brown. Flip and do the same to the other side. This should be a quick process, as you don’t want to cook the onions through. Separate the onions and submerge in pickle brine overnight. The day of the meal, add all gochujang sauce ingredients to a blender and puree until fully smooth. Adjust seasoning to taste. Reserve. For prosciutto crumble, preheat oven to 325 F (160 C). Line a sheet pan with parchment and lay out slices without overlapping. Cover with parchment and a second sheet pan. Bake until crisp, about 20 minutes. Check it often. It should break easily in your fingers once cooled. Reserve. Cook sausage according to product’s directions. When it is cooked through, sear sausage for colour. Grill or toast the buns until just warm. Assemble hotdog and garnish with gochujang sauce, pickled onions, prosciutto crumble, nori and green onions.