Donkkaseu is still served in restaurants around South Korea, but it's also easy to make at home. Scott shares a recipe for her take on the dish, called Old-School Pork Cutlet, in her cookbook. Engaging and warm as the words are, the colourful illustrations by Harriet Lynas magnify and enhance the message of this unique celebration of how we eat. Best of all, they were each made in quantities to enjoy over the next few days, lifting a simple Spring Onion Pancake into a rather special lunch.

I think it is important to be interested in the culture of cuisine I adopt into my kitchen, to have an insight of why such is processed in such ways traditionally. Once I gain better understanding of the culture and history that surrounds the tradition, I then feel more comfortable and confident to explore how I can adapt to suit the modern living while maintaining the respect to the origin of dish. Jjajangmyeon is a popular Korean-Chinese dish which has established itself as one of the most convenient delivery meals of all time in Korea. A book of belonging. Food as a love letter to family. Writing as delicious as the recipes." - Allan Jenkins, Observer Food Monthly In Rice Table, Scott outlines a series of recipes known commonly as bapsang, representing what she describes as a "very ordinary spread of daily home-cooked meals that sustain us". Scott added, "I wanted to celebrate how food can connect the small pieces together to make us feel whole." It’s no secret, by the time I publish this review, that I adore Rice Table: Korean Recipes & Stories To Feed The Soul, the debut cookbook of award-winning food writer, recipe developer, and mother Su Scott. I’ve been raving about the book via social media for a good few weeks, and Pete’s made several recipes already, which we’ve loved!

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Littered between enticing plates are tender stories of what it means to be a woman, mother and immigrant all at once and how food connects all the pieces of our lives to make us whole. This is a love letter from mother to daughter woven together by food. It's a book about identity and immigration. Rice syrup has a softer sweetness than sugar, and a faint butterscotch taste with umami undertones. In the absence of rice syrup, a simple mixture of sugar dissolved in hot water in equal ratio, with a touch of maple syrup to flavour, can make a reasonable substitution. But I do think it is worth trying the recipe with rice syrup, as the substitution will give the dish a different finish (it sets differently). After all, it wouldn’t be a gangjeong without the dominant appearance of traditional syrup, which can easily be found in Korean supermarkets or online. Recipe I can’t wait to make Chestnut flour maltagliati (see Pasta Masterclass review) with porcini sauce. To make the glaze, combine the jocheong, ketchup, water, sugar, soy sauce, gochujang and garlic in a bowl. Mix well and set aside. When I think about my childhood, there's this powerful moment of smell," says Scott. "There's this one specific memory of my father sourcing the good meat bones, and my mother preparing the broth for days on end.

The fatty layers of pork are rendered gently to keep the meat juicy and gorgeously tender. It is then wrapped in pliable seasonal leaves and eaten with a dollop of salty sweet and spicy ssam sauce to bolster everything together. It is a real explosion of flavours in one mouthful. What will surprise people in your book? Scotland-based Sumayya Usmani’s exploration of the food of Pakistan is full of enticing recipes, but this is a memoir, too, about growing up as a woman in Pakistan in the 1980s and 90s, and how cooking helped Sumayya find her place in the world.I didn’t know that… The walls of a traditional tandoor are strengthened by straw. Photography: Issy Croker

Continuing with the sauce, melt the butter in a heavy-based saucepan and add the flour. Cook the flour over a low–medium heat for 3–4 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture turns toffee brown in colour, making sure you don’t let it burn. Su has written a beautiful account of how food can help rebuild culture from treasured memories, how it conveys love and connection, and how it can ground us when we feel untethered. The recipes are totally tantalising - and thanks to Su's guidance, entirely achievable even for novices. - Tim Anderson She started cobbling together the ingredients for this dish without really thinking about what she was doing, and felt a “moment of euphoria” when it all came together.

Korean food writer Su Scott on rediscovering her culture through cooking

After the dough has rested, divide it into four equal-sized portions, so you have a more manageable volume to work with. Work one piece at a time, keeping the remaining dough covered. Shape the dough roughly into a log, then divide it into five small golf-ball-sized pieces. The texture of the dough may feel unusual and a little crumbly. Don't worry if this happens – just squeeze the dough firmly to shape. I didn’t know that… Early in his career, Andy Warhol illustrated etiquette expert Amy Vanderbilt’s cookbook (Claire named her book after a set of Warhol’s prints). Photography by Maren Caruso A book of belonging. Food as a love letter to family. Writing as delicious as the recipes. - Allan Jenkins, Observer Food Monthly After five minutes, your pan should look a little drier than when you started to fry the kimchi. Stir in the soy sauce, ensuring it is completely incorporated, before adding the tomatoes. Let it simmer for a further 10 minutes.

I didn’t know that… Andaza means ‘estimation’, in the sense of cooking relying on the senses. Photography Alicia Taylor I didn’t know that… Setting agent agar-agar is extracted from red seaweed. Photographs by Matt Russell Scott encourages readers to make her recipes their own by adjusting to taste, especially when it comes to saltiness and level of chilli heat. Fill a saucepan suitable for deep-frying with vegetable oil. It should be filled deep enough to submerge the dough balls but no more than three-quarters full. Heat to 160°C. If you don't have a thermometer, a cube of bread should brown in 12 seconds. When it reaches 160°C, turn off the heat and carefully lower a few of the dough balls into the pan, making sure you don't overcrowd the pan. Keep the heat off for two minutes. After two minutes, the dough will start to move and float a little.

Meanwhile, to make the sauce, combine the sugar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and English mustard in a bowl. Mix well and set aside. The process has taught me that what appears to be seemingly ordinary and mundane days or our lives and the memories that surrounds the taste, are in fact what sustains and shapes us the way we are. I’ve leant to appreciate the everydayness. What are the components of a fantastic meal for you? Recipe I can’t wait to make: Neri miso, a combination of miso, honey and water or sake, which has “extremes of salt and sweet that are so balanced it’s as if your taste buds have been put into a painful, yet deeply soothing, yoga position” .