Time after time...

Ramblings on time and a recipe for maesil cheong (fermented green plum syrup)

It’s been far too long since I’ve sent out a Sook dispatch, and I apologize to you all for the delay. “I’m sorry for the delay” is perhaps the sentence I type out more often than any other, the sentiment I am repeatedly relaying whenever I find a moment to try and catch up on the hundreds of unanswered emails in my various inboxes, messages by text + WhatsApp + KakaoTalk, DMs on social media apps I have become more and more disenchanted with these days, and the odd voicemail or two. During the day, time slips away; and then the days slip away; and all of a sudden I’m startled to realize it’s been a few weeks since I’ve written a newsletter or ten days since I received an email I’ve been meaning to answer. If I had the time, I would research how to better manage the influx of messages requiring my attention. But between running one restaurant, trying to open another, parenting an extremely attached and active three year old, managing our household and the general requirements of life, sometimes it feels like there is never enough time.

Time flies.

So yes, time has been on my mind a lot this week. Part of it may be because it was my birthday earlier this month, and I’m feeling quite acutely the passage of time. My days are punctuated by realizations in an endless stream of scenarios of how quickly time has passed. As in, I can’t believe I’m so old now! I can’t believe it’s been five years since I left Hong Kong! I can’t believe it’s been four and a half years since Baroo closed. I can’t believe it’s been twenty years since my mother passed away. I can’t believe my son is already three years old. Where has the time gone indeed. Disbelief abounds at the way time slips between my fingers.

Time is of the essence.

I think some of my angst about the passage of time is, in the quiet dark moments, I something feel like I don’t have enough to show for all the days and years that have passed. Sometimes, I feel like I’ve fallen behind. Behind in an imaginary, self-inflicted race to an ever-shifting finish line. There are the things I know I want to do in my life, like write a cookbook! And I honestly thought I would have done most of those things by now and I can be impatient and frustrated by my seeming lack of progress. So why does that even matter? I suppose I’ve always been surrounded by people who value productivity at any personal cost. There’s no time to waste. Life is a never-ending series of tasks that must get done, skills that must be learned, just keep moving, and it’s a sin to be still. Seared into my brain since I was a child is the myth of a shark that cannot stop moving to run water over its gills or it risks death. I think of this while my son dances to the Korean lyrics of Baby Shark.

Time is money.

We are quickly approaching the opening of our restaurant, baroo. The opening is not yet fixed, and though that date has slipped slightly further away than expected, we are quite close to needing to be ready. So again, do we have enough time to be ready? Like many large projects, our restaurant would take whatever time we had. If we had six more months rather than one or two months, we would feel overly busy during those six months and I’m not sure the restaurant would be any better for the extra time. While we have many things left to iron out, I have to say I’m grateful that we aren’t able to drag this out any longer. But ask me if I feel the same two weeks before our opening!

Time of my life.

As my mind has meandered aimlessly around the topic of time the past week, I have come to accept that all that is happening right now is what is meant to be happening at this moment. I think of life has having different seasons. Childhood is a season of pure joy and fearless exploration (hopefully). Many people have a season in their lives that is focused on their exterior, social life and figuring out how they best relate to and connect with others. And there’s a season for cultivation of the interior self and laying the foundation for one’s dreams, and this is the season that I am in right now. It’s a quieter, more secluded season that I’ve been used to, but I’ll enjoy the quiet while I can.

I have faith that all the things I want in my life, for my family and friends, for my career and our restaurants, will come in their own time. Once I let go of my own preconceptions and arbitrary timelines.

But only time will tell.

“To live in the present moment is a miracle. The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green Earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now.” - Thich Nhat Hanh

xx Mina

Maesil Cheong 매실청

And so while we’re talking about being patient and accepting of time as it is, this week, I’m sharing a recipe for a fermented green plum syrup, maesil cheong 매실청. The recipe has three ingredients — the maesil, sugar and time.

The green plums used here are actually from the apricot family and are also called ume in Japanese. Their season is quite short so go find them right now in Southern California at the farmers markets. For the past four years, we have been making our maesil cheong from organic maesil grown by Nicholas Family Farms. This year, I presume due to the rains this year, the maesil are in top form, large and plump! Last year, they were quite scrawny and sad due to drought.

When your syrup is ready, you’ll find that there is of course sweetness, but also some tang and a depth from the fermentation. Maesil cheong is my favorite way to sweeten my cooking.

Ingredients:

• one part maesil

• one part organic cane sugar

Method:

Sterilize a glass jar or fermentation crock and its lid with boiling hot water. Sterilize your hands and a large bowl. Make sure everything that touches the plums is sterilized so you don’t introduce bacteria to the ferment that can cause mold.

Remove the brown ends of the stem from each plum (these dried bits should pop off easily using your finger tip). Discard plums that are damaged or have brown spots. Wash the plums, drain and leave to dry for at least an hour.

In your bowl, toss the plums with the sugar so the plums are evenly coated in sugar. Place all the plums and sugar in the jar. Make sure the plums are covered in sugar, so add more sugar to the top if needed.

Cover and store in a dark, cool spot. Once the sugar starts to dissolve, you’ll need to stir the mixture using a sterilized wooden spoon so the liquid is distributed more evenly. After all the sugar is dissolved, it will take around three months for the syrup to be ready. Check on your cheong and stir once in a while. Depending on the temperature and humidity, your cheong may ferment faster. The syrup should be a luscious honey gold color when it’s ready.