Pete and I have quickly become regular visitors to Yijo Restaurant since our first visit just a couple of months ago. Head chef Jun Pyo Kwon serves up a delicious, authentic and very reasonably priced menu in this unassuming neighbourhood restaurant, just by Central Finchley tube station. You may have tried Jun Pyo’s cooking before, as he developed the menu and launched Kimchee restaurant in Holborn; of course, its location dictated the need to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. During one of our many chats, Jun Pyo explained his desire to open up his own place, where he could offer customers his personal insight into Korean cooking.
The restaurant specialises in Korean barbecue – which I mentally think of as yakiniku even though that’s a Japanese term – but there is also a range of other delicious dishes, with more to come soon – Jun Pyo and restaurant manager Cindy Roberts are finalising a new menu which will be available shortly.
Of course, the Korean barbecue is excellent. It’s such a sociable (not to mention delicious) dining experience cooking, talking, eating, cooking, talking, eating…
You can choose individual plates of meat or go for one of the mixed platters, which are excellent value and generous too.
We’ve also tried several other dishes including jap chae (sweet potato glass noodles and vegetables stir fried), tteokbokki (squidgy rice cakes in a fiery sauce), chicken mari (rice paper chicken and vegetable wrapped rolls), bokkeumbap (stir fried rice) and of course, a variety of pickles and salads.
Yijo Cooking Classes
We’ve also had great fun attending Yijo’s recently launched cooking classes, learning how to make kimchi in the first and making our own tofu (and several dishes using it) in the second. Both the classes we attended were held in the restaurant over a Saturday long lunch but Yijo are also offering classes in a central London cooking school.
In the kimchi class, Jun Pyo shares a wealth of information about the different varieties of kimchi enjoyed in Korea, and lots of tips about variations we can make to the recipe he shares with us. Each student makes their own kimchi to take home – one to ferment and age, the other to enjoy fresh. At the end of the class, we are served a traditional meal of tofu, kimchi and pork.
In the tofu class, as the process is more time consuming, Jun Pyo explains how to soak the beans and then demonstrates how to grind and strain them to make soy milk. Then we work in pairs to cook pots of soy milk, which Cindy and Jun Pyo made earlier in the morning, adding coagulant and straining into tofu presses when ready. Again, Jun Pyo shares tips on how to achieve a richer almondy flavour and ideas on how to create flavoured tofu. This time, we go on to make three dishes using our fresh tofu – a stew made from the leftover ground soy beans, a simple salad of fresh tofu and dressing and a fried kimchi and tofu dish. We sit down to enjoy these together after the class.
Each student is able to take a block of home made tofu away with them, plus a pot of the leftover ground beans. Pete and I coat ours in panko breadcrumbs and deep fry them for a quick and tasty lunch the next day.
These classes are a really wonderful way to learn more about Korean cuisine and the practical nature of the classes will give you the confidence to recreate the dishes at home. Check out all Yijo’s classes and events here.
Kavey Eats attended the cooking classes as guests of Yijo restaurant.
Please leave a comment - I love hearing from you!11 Comments to "Yijo Restaurant: Authentic Korean Cooking & Super Cookery Classes"
I was lucky enough to get some of Kavey’s kim chi after that class, and can definitely vouch for the quality! It was delicious!
That tofu looks lovely too.
Thank you Alicia x
Oh this looks amazing. I only had Korean food a couple of time but each time was an amazing experience!
It’s a great place, a real neighbourhood gem.
What a fabulous workshop you both attended – I really want to make Kimchi as hubs had it in a Korean restaurant and loved it!
Wow! That looks amazing. I love Kimchi, but my attempt at making it was a disaster and the shop bought ones have been tasteless so far. We had delicious Kimchi every day, and of course other excellent Korean food, in North Korea a few years back. At the time, I felt guilty eating it, knowing that the general public could afford very little else other than Kimchi, which they made during summer, for eating through the winter.
I would love to learn to make it.
Ooo – that kimchi looks amazing! What a great place to have in your neighbourhood 🙂
You know how jealous I am of you, don’t you? This is my idea of heaven on earth: a day learning to make one of the most delicious condiments known to mankind and another making on of the most versatile foods, ever. I think I my have to make a pilgrimage….
Your article good . I like Korean food so much and I would like to learn to make Kimchi. Korean foods are very delicious and tasty.
How much did the class cost ?
When I did it, I think was £40 per person. You’d need to check with them directly for current prices and dates and course content.