It was told to me the two times I was honored to visit households in Seoul that Japchae is a traditional dish to serve “special guests” because, although it uses simple ingredients that it requires quite a bit of work and finesse to get right. Also the smell is very distinctive and it permeates from apartment to apartment so it tends to announce to others that you are having a “special guest” over. (So it’s really appropriate for the “mother-in-law”! :O) )

I think it’s my wife’s favorite dish but, although I’m fairily accomplished for a white guy in Iowa with four adopted Korean-American children on the art of Korean cooking, it is one dish I still haven’t gotten quite right. (So she doesn’t get Japchae very often! :( )

So Yen, since yours looks (better than) right.. I wouldn’t fear any other of Maangchi’s recipes. I think you have it down. :) Nice job on all of the pictures!

Maangchi, thank you of course. I don’t always (but usually I do) agree 100% with you on the recipes, but the techniques you taught me was not stuff I could learn out of the “HOLLYM” English cookbook I brought back from Seoul in 2001! I wish you continued great success on your YouTube cooking show!