A Summer Salad At Yet Nal House: Refresh Yourself With Sashimi With Rice And Vegetables

Stretch your summer dining by trying a salad that mixes fresh greens, sliced sashimi and rice for a light, but filling, bowl.

We're talking about hwae dup bop -- or "sashimi salad" as it is rendered in English on the Yet Nal House menu in Ellicott City.

We had a terrific simple dinner at Yel Nal House.  The huge bowl of sashimi salad -- a variety of greens and lettuces, topped with sliced raw fish and other vegetables and served over steamed rice.  It's a filling meal, even though it is light and perfect for summer.  Your dress your own salad with a red chili sauce -- cho go chu jang --  that is chilis mixed with vinegar, sugar and sesame seeds.  That lets you set the heat however you prefer.

Hwae dup bop is a common Korean dish, and I got the inspiration from Lisbeth who posted on Lisbeth Eats about her favorite version at Hang Sung also in Ellicott City.

Lisbeth's beautiful photos show Hang Sung's salad with shredded iceberg lettuce.  Yel Nal House does a mix of whole-leaf greens, including several lettuces and baby chard.  Lisbeth says that's just wrong!  I have to admit that I loved the variety, but next time, I might ask for a knife to chop the greens a bit.  I'll definitely ask for small plates because I realized halfway through the meal that I wasn't supposed to be eating from the metal mixing bowl.  (We think the waitress just forgot.)

The beauty of Korean dining is that you can order a salad and eat so much more.  We got a half-dozen small dishes like you do at most Korean restaurants.  Those panchan dishes provide variety in the form of kimchi, sauced tofu, marinated vegetables and more.  We augmented the hwae dup bop with an order of bi bim bop in a stone pot.  That's the rice dish topped with a variety of vegetables and an egg.  In this case, the egg was fried, and the vegetables included some perfectly-cooked mushrooms that gave an earthy, meaty flavor.

Yet Nal House is a really friendly restaurant on Rte 40 west of Rte 29.  The menu varies from the Shin Chon Garden barbecue that we would suggest as Korean 101, and Yel Nal is welcoming to anyone.  If you go, check out the freezer of takeout dumplings just inside the door.  You buy them at the cashier in back.

Yet Nal House: Takeout Dumplings Make A Great Meal, Blow Away The Bags From The Frozen Aisle

Scrumptious convenience.  Yet Nal House's meat or kimchi dumplings.

Now you can have your convenience and eat it too.

Yet Nal House is a Korean restaurant on Rte 40 in Ellicott City that has captivated my imagination with casual stews, soups and other dishes.  Our tipster Min just told me about the newest dish that I have to try -- beef and octopus hot pot to warm away the winter chill.  She said it was sweet from the bulgogi meat, but so spicy that her husband to take some deep breaths from time to time.

Bulgogi & octopus hot pot

I recognize that octopus hot pot may be adventurous, but Yel Nal offers a perfect convenience food for almost anyone -- house-made meat or kimchi dumplings sold in plastic bags from the white freezer right inside the door.

These are Korean mandoo.  Way better than even the good frozen dumplings that I have enjoyed from Lotte, H Mart or similar stores.  Buy them at the cash register in the back -- after you also check out the takeout soups and rice cakes in the refrigerators.

Yet Nal's freezer

A tipster turned me onto the mandoo, saying that they're made in Yel Nal House.  They certainly have a thinner, more delicate wrapper than the ones that I make, and they have a cleaner, fresher taste than the supermarket bags.  They're an easy staple because you want them to stay frozen.  Grab dumplings from your freezer for an instant meal.

For $10, you get a bag with 20 dumplings.  It's not cheap, but it's a steal where you can turn that bag into a meal for four to five.  Those dumplings can be steamed, boiled or pan-fried.  Then served up with kimchi or any number of vegetable side dishes.

I have tried all kinds of cucumber, eggplant and other vegetable side dishes out of my beloved cookbook Growing Up In A Korean Kitchen.  You can borrow that from the Howard County library.  With kimchi and another vegetable, we have been satisfied with four Yet Nal dumplings each.  I think they could anchor all kinds of meals if you play around.

Bagged dumplings

The dumplings are absolutely convenience food.  You can steam them for six to eight minutes in any steamer and end up with a perfect snack or dinner.

My recent discovery has been pan frying.  You heat a thick sheen of vegetable oil in a pan and add frozen dumplings.  Right from the freezer, this is real convenience.  Let them sputter over a medium heat without moving until the bottoms turn golden brown.  

Then pour a half-inch of water into the pan and cover.  Usually I lower the heat.  I let them steam for maybe six minutes.  Then I uncover and turn the heat higher.  I evaporate the water until the dumplings start to sputter and crisp again.  You get a cooked-through dumpling that is crisp on the bottom and soft on the top.

Serve with a dipping sauce.  I mix equal parts soy sauce and rice vinegar, then add about a half part of sesame oil.  Maybe a dash of hot sauce.  Maybe some sliced green onions.

Yet Nal House Makes A New Korean Option On Rte 40, A Terrific Warm-Up For Winter Chill

Yuk gae jung at Yet Nal House

I'm infatuated with Yet Nal House, and I haven't even scratched the surface yet.

This Ellicott City restaurant is a casual Korean place tucked in the first-floor corner of a shopping center at Rte 40 and Pine Orchard.  It doesn't have an English sign, and the front door -- down from Bippy's Pub -- opens onto a takeout area.  But you walk through into a cozy dining room with a bar and a big selection of Korean dishes.

Friend of the blog like Min had turned us on to Yel Nal with suggestions of rice cakes and the brisket casserole.  With the weather chilling, I convinced Mrs. HowChow that the season had arrived to try new soups to stay warm.

We got huge bowls of spicy beef soup (yuk gae jung) and seafood-tofu stew (soon doo boo), and we gorged ourselves surrounded by a crowd that ranged from families with small children to a table of young adults enjoying soju, beer, and a platter of seafood and noodles to some older couples who lingered over a table of dishes that looked amazing.

Our dishes seem like fine introductions if you like some heat.  The soon doo boo has a low, warm spiciness.  It isn't aggressive.  The base soup has a rich seafood flavor.  Not fishy, but more brine with clams and shrimp.  The smooth tofu pieces work like noodles in chicken soup, and Mrs. HowChow added spoonfuls of white rice that soaked up the flavors and left her with a take-home bowl as full as her original stew.

My yuk gae jung was spicier.  You get shredded meat in the red-pepper and beef broth, along with scallions and what I thought were dried fernbrake.  It's earthy and delicious.  Perfect for a chilly night.  We really didn't need the boiled dumplings that we had ordered because Yel Nal puts out the small plates of panchan on every table -- some kimchi, some noodles called chapchae, fish cakes, a seaweed with spicy sauce. . . .  We had more than two lunches in plastic containers when we walked out.

I can't suggest Yel Nal enough if you have already tried Shin Chon Garden and a few nights of the "Korean 101" menu that I wrote about.  People waiting for a table seemed initially surprised to see non-Korean-speakers come through the door.  But they -- and then everyone in the restaurant -- were friendly.  The menu has English descriptions, or you could look for suggestions on Yelp and just repeat the Korean names.

A few years ago, I ran two posts that were a "Tour of Rte 40," and, since then, we have nosed around other Korean spots in Ellicott City looking to see what we find.  Yet Nal and  Lighthouse Tofu are the two that most called me back with a welcome feel and delicious food.  Lighthouse specializes in soon doo boo, and both places offer a bit of theater with the dish.  You get white rice in a really hot bowl, and you're supposed to scoop out most of the rice, but leave a thin crust.  That cooks for 10-15 minutes, then you pour in a few inches of water.  By the time you're done eating, you have a palate-cleansing, stomach-settling tea.

Next time, I'm going to try the rice cake soup at Yel Nal.  I need to see a baseline because I'm hoping to cook this for the Korean New Year in the winter.  I also need to figure out the brisket casserole and the LA short ribs.  I'm up for any suggestions.  I have heard that Yet Nal has a good reputation with Korean diners, so I'd love to know what people enjoy.

For a smile, check out the Web site for Bippy's Pub, the bar a few doors down from Yel Nal House.

Years ago, Yel Nal House was a very different business.  I stopped there in 2008, when it was basically a takeout shop with kimbop, kimchi, soups and other dishes.  Since then, the space has been completely renovated, and the restaurant is warm and casual.  But there are still takeout coolers, and I bet you'd do well with the soups, kimchi, or other items.