Green Tea, Egg Confit, and Creamy Udon 🍵
Welcome to Secret Breakfast / The best place to start cooking stuff at the exact temperature of your fever, dreaming about soju, eggless breakfasts, and corn cookies
Hi there!
Today, I'm not ok.
Less editing and more food.
It's not that bad, then.
Piero
✹Fredrik Backman, My Friends.
K-Partying!
Remember that haunting Anthony Bourdain episode where he seemed completely disconnected? The whole show felt like watching someone reconstruct a night that went too far—empty bottles, half-eaten plates, piecing together what happens when drinking becomes cultural immersion. Soju Party captures that same raw authenticity, but with warmth. Irene Yoo doesn't just teach Korean drinking—she initiates you into a social ecosystem where every shot has rules and every meal serves the hangover. This isn't cocktail recipes. It's cultural anthropology as party manual. Yoo maps Korean drinking's invisible architecture: hierarchy, rituals, essential anju foods that keep you standing. Viral Milkis Shots to late-night Kimchi Carbonara—recipes that matter when you're three bottles deep. The book promises what Bourdain sought: genuine connection through shared consumption. Unlike his darker moments, Soju Party celebrates the messiness. It includes hangover cures because some nights are worth the morning after.
Soju Party. How to Drink (and Eat!) Like a Korean by Irene Yoo
→ Shortplot: 🍜 🍗 🌶️ 🍻
When Life Gives You Fever, have a Cuppa, and Make Confit
Stuck in bed with a 38.2°C fever (100.8°F), my food-obsessed brain started wondering: what could I actually cook at this exact temperature? Turns out, precision cooking doesn't always need fancy equipment—sometimes you just need to be creatively unwell.
Because when you're running a fever, you might as well run with it.
Egg Confit. Submerge eggs in olive oil at 38°C for 45 minutes. The whites stay creamy, yolks remain liquid gold. Perfect over toast with flaky salt. Or follow this one by The Glutton Life (★recipe).
Green Tea Perfect Brew. Steep premium sencha at exactly 38°C for 2 minutes. Use 6g tea per 200ml water. This temperature preserves delicate flavors without bitterness.
Chocolate Ganache Infusion. Warm cream to 38°C, pour over dark chocolate (1:1 ratio). Add cardamom or chili. Stir gently until glossy. Ideal for truffles.
Yogurt Activation. Heat milk to 38°C, add 2 tbsp live yogurt per liter. Maintain temperature 6-8 hours. Your fever temp creates perfect bacterial environment.
Vanilla Bean Oil. Split 3 vanilla pods into 500ml neutral oil at 38°C. Infuse 2 hours minimum. Transforms simple cakes into luxury desserts.
Honey Crystallization Control. Gently warm crystallized honey to 38°C in water bath. Takes 15-20 minutes. Crystals dissolve while preserving enzymes and flavor compounds.
Herb-Infused Butter. Soften butter to 38°C, fold in minced herbs (thyme, rosemary, chives). 100g butter + 2 tbsp herbs. Maintains fresh herb color.
Sake Warming. Heat premium sake to exactly 38°C (nunkan style). Takes 2-3 minutes in warm water. This temperature opens floral notes without cooking alcohol harshly.
Fruit Enzyme Activation. Dice pineapple, sprinkle with sugar, hold at 38°C for 30 minutes. Natural enzymes break down proteins, creating incredibly tender fruit compote.
Probiotic Kefir. Mix kefir grains with milk at 38°C. Ferment 12-24 hours at this temperature. Creates optimal conditions for beneficial bacteria multiplication.
Considering how I feel today, I'm probably somewhere between egg confit and probiotic kefir myself—slow-cooking in my own heat.
🍛Finally watched Past Lives, curious about the Yukgaejang, Spicy Beef Soup (★recipe) 🥟Who needs a gyoza bag? 🫒Chocolate–Olive Oil Cake, Dr Pepper–Braised Pot Roast, Creamy Udon with Umami Butter and the 15 Favorite Recipes From Food & Wine’s September Issue 🌮Video: The Ice Cold Death Of The Choco Taco 🧇16 Eggless Breakfasts, From Smoothie Bowls to Scones (★recipes) 🍳5 One-Pan Recipes for Back-to-School Season (★recipes) 👩🏻🍳Meet the Pastry Chef Who’s Going Viral for Her Wildly Inventive Conchas and Croissants 🍲25 Easy Weeknight Recipes by Best New Chefs, From Carbonara to Meatloaf
The plant-based problem: why vegan restaurants are closing – or adding meat to the menu
Isobel Lewis / The Guardian
Veganism is still on the rise, but many popular venues and chains are shutting down. Are they victims of a terrible era for hospitality or part of a growing shift in cultural values?
