What's Wrong With Secretary Kim Star Park Min-Young On Rise Of K-Dramas Globally: "When I Visit Different Countries..."
Park Min-young, the popular South Korean star best known for What's Wrong With Secretary Kim?, says she truly feels the global impact of K-dramas when she's recognised in unexpected corners of foreign countries.
The actor said such moments, especially outside major cities, make her realise just how far-reaching and influential Korean dramas have become worldwide.
"It hits me when I go visit different countries and not in the city, but when I go to the countryside, and there are people who recognise me.
"When you're in the city, I think that's pretty much expected. But if there are people who know me when I am in a different country and in the countryside, that's when I can truly feel the power of Korean drama and how popular it is," Park told PTI in an exclusive interview.
She is one of the most popular South Korean actors and became a household name thanks to her impressive range of roles across hit dramas.
From portraying a woman disguised as a man in the gender-bending "Sungkyunkwan Scandal" and a determined journalist in "Healer", to a sharp-witted secretary in "What's Wrong With Secretary Kim?" and a devoted fangirl in "Her Private Life", Park has consistently showcased her versatility on screen.
Her next project is "Confidence Queen", a crime comedy series from Prime Video in which she stars alongside actors Park Hee-soon and Joo Jong-hyuk. It will premiere on September 6.
A remake of the Japanese show "The Confidence Man JP", the series features Park as Yi-rang, a smart woman who becomes the ultimate con artist.
She joins forces with James (Hee-soon) and Gu-ho (Jong-hyuk) to form a trio of swindlers who take down scammers and reclaim their illicit gains.
Park admitted that she didn't watch the original show, except for one episode, which was universally praised to be the "most fun one".
"And while the character Dako (played by Masami Nagasawa in the original) is a very charming character indeed, it's been over 10 years since that show came out and also acting and performing styles change with time as well.
"So I tried more to really do the studying myself and developed the character to bring a truly Korean style version." She may be playing a confident con artist on screen, but where does Park Min-young find her own confidence? In reality, Park said, she does not consider herself to be the "most confident person".
"When I was portraying the character Yi-rang, I actually envied her and I had a lot of fun portraying her in real life. When I try to pick myself up from those moments when you don't feel that much confidence, I try to look back on my career and think about all the things that I've done during the 20 years of my career.
"I would look back at it and think I was able to do this, I also achieved this, then there shouldn't be any issue why I can't do this next thing. So I try to look back on it and pick myself up," Park said.
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Economic Times
6 minutes ago
- Economic Times
These famous pancakes make people wait for hours in line but don't have to: Check the viral recipe
Synopsis Golden Diner in Manhattan's Chinatown became famous for its pancakes after a TikTok video sparked huge crowds, with people willing to wait hours to try chef Sam Yoo's unique creation. Combining classic diner flavors with innovative techniques, these yeast-risen buttermilk pancakes are topped with a special maple-honey syrup, salted butter, and berry compote. NYT News Service Golden diner Pancakes. The chef Sam Yoo drenches his pancakes with maple-honey syrup and tops them with a berry compote and salted maple-honey butter. Food styled by Susie Theodorou. (Christopher Simpson/The New York Times) NEW YORK -- A few weeks ago, Golden Diner, a restaurant in Manhattan's Chinatown, began taking reservations for weekend brunch, years after the wait for a table could stretch to two, sometimes three, hours. But the crowds have not diminished. Everyone is willing to stand in the shadow of the Manhattan Bridge for chef Sam Yoo's pancakes. In 2019, Yoo opened Golden Diner, where his takes on classic diner dishes weave in playful Asian inflections like a highway zipper merge done right. Diners regularly filled the seats at the counter and small tables along it, and then, in October 2023, someone posted the pancakes on TikTok, then others did as well. The masses arrived, lines outside grew, sales jumped. What Yoo thought might be a blip turned into a pivotal moment. "I never created the pancakes to go viral or for the Instagram crowd," he said. "As a chef, I needed them to be beautiful because you eat with your eyes first, but I wanted to know, 'Is it balanced? Is it familiar but refreshing in taste and concept?'" After researching and testing countless batches of pancakes, he landed on what has become a new classic. Along with the internet rise of the Golden Diner pancakes came copycat recipes. Yoo declined to share his version until now. It's a game-changing one that combines all the nostalgia of diner pancakes with innovative techniques for a dish that makes your eyes widen at first taste. Yoo cooks a yeast-risen buttermilk batter in individual skillets to give them height like Japanese souffle pancakes and a perfect roundness like those in the flapjack emoji. As soon as he stacks them on a plate, he drenches them with buttery maple-honey syrup, then tops them with salted maple-honey butter, both inspired by Korean honey-butter chips and reminiscent of Werther's hard candies. A berry compote completes the meal with its fresh tang. To fully experience Golden Diner pancakes is to make -- then eat -- all four components together. No single step is difficult, but the execution takes some coordination and delivers the high that restaurant cooks get during brunch service. Yoo said he is still recognized as "Mr. Pancake," but now spends most of his time in midtown Manhattan, where he's the chef and owner of the new Golden Hof -- Korean Bar & Grill. His Golden Diner chef de cuisine, Danny Ugolick, oversees the kitchen downtown, which now revolves around pancake production. On Saturdays and Sundays, Ugolick expects about 350 diners for brunch, which means about 280 pancake orders. Each order includes two pancakes, so to turn out about 1,120 pancakes over two days, the cooks prep 60 quarts of berry compote once a week; 60 pounds of maple-honey butter every other day; 35 quarts of maple-honey syrup daily; and 100 quarts of batter twice a day. They can cook only eight pancakes at a time while also making other brunch dishes. "It's mainly about time management, risk management," Ugolick said, but it's far simpler at home: Because you're not cooking hundreds of orders, you can start the batter and, while it rests, make the butter, syrup and berry compote. And since you're probably cooking with just one skillet, but want to serve everything at once, you finish the pancakes in the oven. Yoo doesn't include any butter in his batter and cooks it in an ungreased nonstick skillet so it develops a dry crust that softens when soaked with the syrup. At the restaurant, the batter is browned on the bottom, then slid under a salamander, a professional broiler, to cook through before the round is flipped. At home, you can brown both sides of a single pancake, then slide it onto a rack-lined pan in the oven so the center cooks through and the outsides stay crackly as you work. The syrup, which has a savory depth from soy sauce, requires only whisking, as does the butter. The compote is nearly as easy. To retain the berries' freshness as they thicken, Yoo cooks them hot and fast with sugar and cornstarch. Everyday pancakes, these are not. Ugolick isn't on TikTok and still hasn't seen the videos that transformed his work life. "I'll be very honest -- I've never ever been a pancake person," he said, but added that this recipe "has opened people's eyes to what a pancake can be." When Yoo was creating the restaurant's menu, he wanted waffles, but pancakes made more sense logistically for the small kitchen. He never thought they'd be the hit they are. "It's all a little crazy," he said. They're so good that they are, in fact, worth hourslong waits in New York -- and definitely worth making at home everywhere. --Recipe: Golden Diner Pancakes This game-changing pancake recipe from Sam Yoo, the chef and an owner of Golden Diner in Manhattan's Chinatown, combines all the nostalgia of diner pancakes with innovative techniques for a dish that makes your eyes widen at first taste. Yoo cooks a yeast-risen buttermilk batter in individual skillets to give them height like Japanese soufflé pancakes and a perfect roundness like those in the flapjack emoji. As soon as he stacks them on a plate, he drenches them with buttery maple-honey syrup, then tops them with salted honey-maple butter, both inspired by Korean honey-butter chips and reminiscent of Werther's hard candies. A berry compote completes the meal with its fresh tang. Recipe from Sam Yoo Adapted by Genevieve Ko Yield: 4 to 6 large pancakes with toppings (3 to 6 servings) Total time: 1 hour, 45 minutes Ingredients: For the Pancake Batter: 2 1/4 teaspoons/7 grams active dry yeast (one 1/4-ounce packet) 2 cups/260 grams all-purpose flour, divided 1 1/4 cups/300 grams buttermilk 2 tablespoons sugar 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon fine salt 2 large eggs 1/4 cup/60 grams canola oil or other neutral-tasting oil For the Maple-Honey Butter: 1/2 cup/113 grams unsalted butter, softened 3 tablespoons honey 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup 3/4 teaspoon fine salt For the Maple-Honey Syrup: 1/2 cup/113 grams unsalted butter 1/3 cup/100 grams honey 1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup 1 teaspoon soy sauce 1/2 teaspoon fine salt For the Berry Compote: 14 ounces/400 grams mixed berries, such as blueberries, raspberries and stemmed strawberries, cut to the same size as the small berries 1/3 cup/67 grams sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch Preparation: 1. Start the pancake batter: In a small bowl, whisk the yeast with 1 cup flour. In a small saucepan, heat the buttermilk with 1/4 cup/60 grams water over medium-low heat, stirring often, until lukewarm (about 100 degrees), about 5 minutes. Pour the buttermilk into the flour and whisk until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour to create a preferment. This will give the pancakes a deeper flavor and some additional rise. 2. Meanwhile, make the maple-honey butter: In a medium bowl, whisk the butter, honey, syrup and salt until smooth. Keep at room temperature if using within a few hours. Otherwise, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Soften the butter and whisk it again before serving. 3. Make the maple-honey syrup: Combine the butter, honey, syrup, soy sauce and salt in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-low, whisking often, until the butter melts completely. While whisking, add 1 1/2 tablespoons water. Keep whisking until emulsified, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting to keep warm. 4. Make the berry compote: In a large bowl, gently mix the berries, sugar and cornstarch until the berries are evenly coated. Heat a large, deep skillet over high until very hot. A drop of water sprinkled on the pan should immediately sizzle away. Add the berry mixture and cook, stirring once in a while, until the blueberries look like they're about to pop, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. 5. Finish the pancakes: Heat the oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the center. Set a metal rack in a sheet pan and place on the center oven rack. 6. After the preferment has proofed for an hour, whisk the remaining 1 cup flour with the sugar, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and oil until smooth. Scrape the preferment into the egg mixture, then add the dry ingredients. Gently stir with the whisk until no traces of dry ingredients remain. 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Economic Times
5 hours ago
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Hina Khan wants to make a comeback after cancer treatment but why is the industry still hesitant?
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