In this video I’m cooking solo because Song is away working… or at least that was the plan. I wanted to properly surprise my husband with a cozy Korean dinner at home, because my man is a hunguk salam through and through and he really loves his Korean food. So I decided on galbi (marinated beef short ribs) plus a whole table of banchan to make it feel like a real Korean meal—rice, sides, and all the little dishes that make everything compliment each other. I ended up doing spinach, bean sprouts, and a marinated spring onion/onion banchan, plus tofu with ssamjang (and yes, the kimchi was the only thing not made by me). I was juggling timing, hiding my recipe notes, and trying not to get caught while he kept coming home unexpectedly. Kang didn’t have individual pears (only an expensive 8-pack), so I used pear juice instead and just tried to make it work. It took me about 4 hours in the kitchen, but the payoff was worth it—blindfold, reactions, and that moment when he says it smells like sesame oil and soy sauce. Hearing him say “oh chincha” and that it’s really, really good made all the effort feel so worth it, and it honestly motivates me to keep improving for our future family one day.