My mother is a devoted Buddhist. As a kid I occasionally accompanied her to one of the Buddhist temples she often visited. I saw her vowing hundreds of times down to the floor in front of Buddha statue asking for mercy and compassion. She had many wishes to pray to Buddha and all of her wishes were for her children. One of the fond memories of visiting a Buddhist temple is the FOOD. Like other millions of kids around the world, I wasn't a vegetable lover as a child. (Were you?) However, it became a completely different story when I was in the the temple. All the vegetarian dishes were just so good! I don't know why it was. Maybe the fresh air in the mountain, or the truly organic vegetables and herbs that they pick in the nature made the difference? There are many vegetables and herbs they cook in the kitchens of Buddhist temple. Some are available in the grocery stores and some are not. I, unfortunately, was not able to find the specific Korean vegetables that I am looking for in Buenos Aires, but I can easily substitute with the different one; the watercress!

Watercress is quite unique vegetable. I love its crunch texture and the subtle bitterness. I would like to combine this watercress with tofu. It makes delightful Korean salad that you can eat with a bowl of rice. Just like one of the vegetable dish I had in a small Buddhist temple near my hometown, it was delicious and many fond memories came upon me as I was enjoying it.

Use firm or slightly soft tofu for this recipe. Silken tofu can be too fragile and it won't hold it well. Smash the tofu with side of your knife to loosen. Use a cotton cloth to wrap around the tofu and squeeze out the moisture out of tofu. (If you don't like the raw flavor of tofu, you can cook the entire block of tofu in a simmering water for 5 minutes, cool it down, then squeeze out the moisture)