One thing all my sisters have in common, despite the wide age difference, is they’re good cooks. Even though we’re scattered across the US and Korea, we still share new recipes we try in our Kakao “sister chat.” Food and cooking is one of the many ways we bond, though we all have our own background and experience with it.
Aera unni happened to marry a man who wanted to come home for lunch everyday to eat a home cooked meal, so she was forced to refine her culinary skills through daily practice. Living in the US also meant she had to cook if she wanted to feed her family Korean food. I remember she learned to make traditional rice cake for her son Jeffrey’s birthday because there was no Korean bakery nearby where she could buy one. She now lives 8 months a year in Jeju island and offers her house to people when she is away.
Youra unni has always been passionate about cooking, so much so that she used to dream about attending the famous cooking school “Le Cordon Bleu” in Paris. She sadly couldn’t afford the tuition, but I still have the green notebook where she recorded all her recipes. I’ve always believed in her talent. When she consulted me with the idea of opening a hotel and cafe on Jeju island, I encouraged her even though she didn’t have any prior experience. It didn’t surprise me when the cafe became popular. If you do what you like and what you are good at, you are bound to be successful. She loves hosting and she was always a great cook.
She chose Jeju island for the hotel because she fell in love with it when she went there for her honeymoon. My brother in law, who is a sculptor, has an atelier as well as a gallery that houses his pieces in the same compound. The breakfast served at the cafe is the best part of our trip to Jeju every year.
My younger sister Soonjin allegedly made 깍두기 as a teenager. Thanks to marrying a foody husband Josh, she is talented at making both western and Korean dishes. Her cheese cake and chocolate cake recipe, which she got from Josh’s Italian aunt, are better than the ones from any bakery.
The nickname we gave to my youngest sister Dangsun is “the Korean Martha Stewart.” She has a PhD in classical piano, but she does research on every aspect of life, including cooking. When she shares a recipe with me, I know it’s fully trustworthy and she’s already perfected any errors. She tested her strawberry scone recipe, for example, a few times and modified the sugar measurement before sharing it with me. It’s now one of my staple breakfast items.
My oldest sister Lira unni is 16 years older than Dangsun and is in her 70s already. She says she doesn’t enjoy cooking, but I see her hosting people at home, even if it is only for dessert.
When my children stay at her place while visiting Korea, she lets them pick out the breakfast menu ahead of time to make sure she serves them what they want.
It’s so nice that when we all gather for a holiday or a family function, there’s no need to worry about who will be in charge. Aera or Youra unni lead the Korean dishes, and the two younger sisters, Dangsun and Soonjin, usually make Western food. Lira unni and I pitch in when necessary and lend a helping hand.
When we spent Christmas together with Soonjin’s family a few years ago, we baked a traditional Christmas log with mushrooms made out of meringue. It was hectic cooking for 20 people, but I felt extremely lucky to have sisters who know how to cook so well. It reminded me of Christmas in my parent’s house where we baked cookies and cakes for days. Maybe that’s where our shared love for food really started.
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