Cho Sun Ok (Chicago, Il) Review

If it weren't for growing up with Chinese food and feeling weirded out when I don't eat it, I would DEFINITELY live off of Korean food.  I love having burning hot soups, a variety of little dishes, and spicy food to complement loads and loads of rice.  My sister and I yelped and yelped and finally decided on going to Cho Sun Ok on Sunday.  We arrived at 7 and waited for about an hour until we got to our table.  They don't really have a seating system, so you're supposed to wait in the line until you get to the restaurant.  Be aware that if you're a 2 person party and a 6 person table opens up, people behind you might get to a table first...It's SUPER crowded but TOTALLY worth the wait.  SO DON'T GIVE UP!!!!  

As my dad says, the three stages of going to Cho Sun Ok:

1. Wait and wait, cold cold cold.  Just when you're about to give up...

2. TA-DA!  You're in the restaurant...looking at all the food you get REALLY hungry...

3. Which makes everything 10X better even though it's for sure the best Korean I've ever had (including the things I've eaten in Korea although I was sleep deprived on a mission trip getting up at 4 am and sleeping at 12 am...)

When we finally sat down, we ordered a seafood pancake, spicy soft tofu soup for my sis, and a cow intestine/blood soup for me.  

There wasn't much seafood, but it still tasted great!  It was slightly crunchy on the outside and had the toasted flavor in it.  There was also a sauce with it that tasted salty, sesame-y (which I know is not a word...but let's be creative with food!), and also a bit sour (like vinegar), it did also have a bit of sweetness for balance.  Definitely a good appetizer, remember not to fill up on it, though!

Next up, BAN CHAN!!!  Little pickled and marinated dishes of awesomeness.  These were by far the best I've had.  Things tasted fresh and each dish had distinct seasoning.  Sometimes I feel like the side dishes almost all taste the same at Korean restaurants.  SO GOOD.

This is my sister's soft tofu soup.  I had a sip, it was really tasty and flavorful.  Lots of seafood and a HUGE chunk of silky soft tofu in it.  Can't describe much more, though...

And here is my dish!  Aside from the beef, intestine slices, and blood, there were some bean sprouts and veggies.  The first taste...MAN!  I have never in my life tasted something so bloody and almost metallic-y (again, being creative ;) )!  But the next sip...AHHHHH, very tasty!  The soup was flavored with soy bean paste.  Now onto the meats...and innards...the blood was NOT what I expected.  

I really enjoy eating pig's blood and duck blood, which is typically on the very soft side.  Kind of like jello, but more firm and has more of a bit to it.  The texture was stronger and pretty firm (a little like pig liver), even seemed to be a little sandy towards the end.  I didn't not care for it THAT much, but still enjoyed it.  Although, I would've preferred less chunks of it, there were maybe 6 in the whole bowl!  The meat was AMAZING.  It was soft and fell off the bone.  And the intestines were also great, soft, a little chewy, and flavorful.  Definitely recommend it!

Prices are reasonable and affordable, I would say about $10-$12 per person.  They also have korean BBQ, which of course, I went back for 2 days later.  And I also tried the kimchi soup, as well.  Which tasted amazing like all the other things I've tried, really spicy and sour!   So far this is my favorite restaurant in Chicago!

4200 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60618

Red Bean Pastries

These little pastries do not have the traditional chinese red bean pastry wrappers made of lard. They are made of easy ingredients, but turn out to be flaky and wonderful.  The red bean paste in these are basically shelled and cooked red beans that are mashed and sweetened.  However, the ingredients are definitely not the healthiest combo, making them quite the addicting treat.  So if you would like, just go ahead and enjoy the pictures.  And if you dare, go ahead and check out the recipe!  Also, I did not have a hard copy of the recipe, so I used my three year old memory-they turned out great though!  

Complete!

Check out that flaky crust and yummy filling!

                                                                   Pretty, pretty pastry!

Ingredients

1. 4 C flour

2. 2 sticks of butter

3. 8 oz. bar of cream cheese

4. 1 tsp salt

5. 1 can or bag of fine red bean paste (The difference is the one that is not fine is made of red bean with the shell)

6. 1 egg

What to do

1. Beat the butter and cream cheese together on medium speed until combined

2. Slowly incorporate flour and salt into the butter and cream cheese until it forms a ball of dough

3. Cut off a chunk of dough and roll into a 1 inch diameter ball

4. Flatten it out with a rolling pin into a 4 inch round

5. Put in some red bean filling

6. Fold it in half and press the edges together.  You can do this two ways:  1) Make them dumpling style and then fold in the edges (I'll make another blog post about how to shape dumplings. and 2) Press  them with a fork, like a hand pie

7. Brush with beaten egg

8. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes

9. EAT UP YUM.

BONUS PICTURE OF MY STUFFED SHEEP JOEY PLANKING AROUND A FRIDGE FIND MEAL.  THANKS FOR READING!