Lee Chan-won shares six home-cooked recipes for solo dwellers

Singer Lee Chan-won showcased various easy-to-make meals, including SPAM jjageuli and yakbap, in a KBS WORLD TV video. He demonstrated his cooking skills by preparing fusion dishes like corn kimchi pancake and traditional desserts such as rice gangjeong.

Singer Lee Chan-won revealed a friendly side by presenting customized home-cooked recipes tailored for those living alone. In a video released by KBS WORLD TV, Lee personally cooked various menus that are easy to find in daily life without sacrificing flavor, ranging from SPAM jjageuli to yakbap.

From SPAM jjageuli to stir-fried small shrimp, "rice thief" menus targeting solo dwellers

The first menu Lee Chan-won selected was 'SPAM jjageuli,' considered an essential item for those living alone. He demonstrated a cooking method that utilizes the juices from the SPAM without using additional oil. After adding plenty of potatoes, onions, and tofu, and seasoning them with red chili powder, soy sauce, red chili paste, and sugar, he completed the thick broth by adding tuna at the end for umami. Mentioning the finished jjageuli alongside white rice, he explained, "It is a taste that Koreans cannot dislike."

The following menu was 'stir-fried small shrimp,' with shrimp as small as grains of rice. To maximize the nuttiness of the small shrimp, Lee showed meticulousness by straining them through a sieve to remove debris. He sautéed the shrimp in oil infused with garlic and green onions, then added soy sauce, sugar, and corn syrup to create a sweet and crispy texture. In particular, he enhanced the quality by generously sprinkling sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds at the end.

In the third menu, 'braised pork neck with shishito peppers,' a unique sauce with a Chinese-style touch drew attention. After pre-grilling pork neck cut into sizes suitable for tangsuyuk, he tossed it with shishito peppers and a sauce made by mixing corn syrup and soju. Lee expressed his satisfaction with this menu, stating, "It is so simple, but it is a rice thief."

Fusion menus targeting the MZ generation and heartfelt traditional desserts

Lee Chan-won also presented menus utilizing combinations popular among the younger generation recently. Along with cheese-filled rolled omelets, he cooked 'corn kimchi pancake.' He used kimchi juice to provide color and added corn to complete a fusion-style pancake, emphasizing a "crispy on the outside and moist on the inside" texture.

To finish the meal, 'yakbap' and 'rice gangjeong' were prepared with a traditional feel. In the process of cooking yakbap using a large-capacity electric rice cooker, he pursued a healthy taste by adding ginkgo nuts and pitted jujubes to the soaked rice. Expressing affection for the menu that is indispensable at holidays or banquets, he remarked, "It is the first yakbap of my life." While waiting for the yakbap to cook, he showed interest in traditional confections and continued his sincerity through the process of making gangjeong using rice.

"I learned by watching" Lee Chan-won speaks on his cooking style

Regarding his ability to cook various dishes skillfully, Lee Chan-won revealed that he has never received special training. He explained the background of how he could naturally encounter cooking by mentioning the environment where his father used to run a mathematical study house. While noting, "Since I am living alone, I keep making only simple things," he showed how he puts sincerity into every single menu by preparing ingredients and making sauces.

Source: KBS WORLD TV (YouTube)