Samgyetang

For people who are new in Korea, you must be wondering what Samgyetang means since we could see many posters with Samgyetang everywhere in Seoul. In the word 'Samgyetang', 'Sam' means ginseng, 'gye' means chicken and 'tang' means broth and it is a small whole chicken stuffed with glutinous rice, red dates, garlic and ginseng and boiled in broth. This dish is commonly eaten in summer, often accompanied by ginseng wine as people believe that this dish helps to reduce our body heat and replenish our body water after all the sweating.

This restaurant 'To Sok Chon Sam Gye Tang' is pretty famous in Seoul and it is often visited by even the locals. One recommendation is to come here before or after lunch hour as there are always line-ups during this period. Since this is a traditional Korean house, you could eat and immerse yourself in traditional Korean atmosphere.

This restaurant also offers 'Otgyetang' which is wood boiled with the chicken broth and 'Okorgye' which is black chicken broth and both of them are also considered good for health and delicious.

This is Samgyetang with milky-white broth and it is usually served with seasalt so that you could add the amount of salt as you like. The broth is usually boiled without any additional seasoning so that you could enjoy the authentic taste of the chicken and ginseng. Check this restaurant out if you are near Gwanghuamun or Gyeongbokgung.

Direction: Get off at Gyeongbokgung station and exit from #2. Walk straight for 10 mins till you reach a convenience store (GS25) and turn left.

North Korean-style Cold Noodles

Cold noodles or 'Naengmyeon' is a popular dish in Korea and it was originated from North Korea. It comes in 2 basic forms: Mul Naengmyeong (cold buckwheat noodles with icy cold broth, fresh vegetables and egg) and Bibim Naengmyeong (cold buckwheat noodles with spicy thick sauce, fresh vegetables, egg and without broth). There is no fancy ingredient due to the harsh condition North Koreans are living in, however it is definitely a refreshing and delicious dish to try.

The restaurant that we went to is near the entrance to DongGuk University and the name is 'Bir Dong Myeong Ouk'. It can be difficult to find but if you ask around, I am sure someone will be able to direct you.

The 'Mul Naengmyeon' is a simple dish and it tasted very good after mixing with some vinegar and mustard to the noodles and the sliced white radish they provided. Usually the staff will provide a pair of scissors for you to cut up the noodles as the noodles are usually pretty long.

The 'Bibim Naengmyeong' was mixed with spicy thick sauce and it's actually not as spicy as it looks.

North Korean-style dumplings were stuffed with minced pork, onions and vegetables and the taste was simple yet tasty when dipped in soy sauce. Over there, you could find grandpas and grandmas who were probably from North Korea and it was interesting listening to their accent. If you are in Seoul, come and try and immerse yourself in the traditional North Korean-style cold noodles.

Sinchon, Seoul

Sinchon in Seoul is surrounded by 4 major universities, Yonsei Uni., Ewha Women's Uni., Sogang Uni. and Hongik Uni. and it is a popular spot for the 20s-30s for its restaurants, cafes and culture. If you are interested in 2nd-hand korean books or comic books, you should drop by at Book-Off near Sinchon station exit 5.

You can also buy 2nd-hand Japanese or Korean comic books at 1000won each so come by and immerse yourselves in these books. Next for dinner, you can go to the back street near Sinchon station exit 2 and try chicken galbi in this restaurant.

It might be strange to see this man hanging around trying to get customers but the food was great and many locals love to come to this restaurant. This dish included chicken and lots of vegetables like cabbage and beansprouts and the staff cooked it in front of us.

Even though we ordered enough for 2 people, I think this is definitely enough for 4 people as you can ask for rice or noodles to go with this.

We also asked for seafood topping (we weren't really sure but anyway..) it came with big squid and extra vegetables and after cooking, they added extra chilli sauce (though the staff kept telling us that it's not spicy).

It might not be spicy however korean food usually get spicier and spicier as you enjoy them so be prepared for it.

For the grilled pork lovers, you should also walk around the back lanes as the restaurants offer as low as 3500 won per portion and it is interesting to sit around and watch how the koreans spend their night on the weekends. So check out the link at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A2NN40h8ug

Have fun in Korea!

Mackerel

In Korea, it is pretty easy to get fresh fish especially if you are staying by the sea or you could get it in the supermarket or fish market. You could find fish stew, grilled fish, fish with red hot sauce, raw fish Bibimbap, raw fish with vegetables or sushi from Japanese influence. Today we managed to try mackerel in a pretty famous local restaurant.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The restaurant was crowded and seemed like it has been broadcasted on TV.  The menu mainly features mackerel dishes and we decided to order grilled mackerel (작은갈치조림) and mackerel stew with spicy sauce (고등어조림). 

With side dishes like kimchi, pickled garlic and sweet potato, the stew consisted of mackerel, radish, chilli sauce and probably soy bean paste. The sauce tastes really good when you mix it with rice. The fish was soft and tender and without much fishy smell. As for the grilled mackerel, we ate it with soysauce and horseradish and the taste was excellent but beware of the bones.

If you are interested in going there, take subway Line 4 and alight at Hansung University. Exit from #5 and walk ahead for about 15mins. Keep walking and follow the curve. After the 2nd traffic light, turn left and walk up a little slope and you should be able to find the restaurant.

곰탕 / Beef broth, Seoul

     At first, when I heard this name, I thought that this soup was made from bear meat because '곰' means bear in Korean and it's the only one I knew. However after checking my dictionary, I realised that it also means broth in korean. Whew... I am safe.


     The restaurant we went to is near NokSaPyeong station (subway line 6) exit 2. The directions to the restaurant is as below: Walk straight, turn left at the traffic light, keep walking for about 10mins.

     This restaurant is really popular as I saw men in suits in the restaurants or Lexus cars outside the restaurant. In Korea, if you see restaurants with a lot of older men, you can guarantee that the food is authentic so check that out before stepping into any restaurant.

The menu is limited but the dishes are great. 

     We all ordered the beef soup and it was served within 10 mins. Fortunately we went there earlier as it was filled with businessmen by lunch time.  In Korea, main dishes always come with a few side-dishes and you could always ask for free refills.  The beef soup is basically made from beef bones and it includes beef parts like the stomach, intestines, tail and meat.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
    In the soup we added green onions, red pepper and sea salt. In this restaurant, they don't add MSG to their soup broth which is why it's so healthy, delicious and popular. 
 

In case you get lost, there is a pizza school restaurant nearby. So drop by Itaewon and try this authentic Korean dish!

Tofu In Asia

In Asia, you get to eat tofu in various ways like fresh tofu, soft tofu, firm tofu, dried tofu, fried tofu, fermented tofu and flavored tofu. Tofu is made of soy milk and it is originated from the Han dynasty in ancient China. Tofu is high in protein and iron and it is low in calories therefore it's a healthy food for everyone. In Korea, you could find tofu in a lot of the local dishes.

Delicious tofu stew (순두부찌개)

Freshly made tofu with kimchi and other side dishes.



Next time if you have an opportunity to eat tofu, don't hestitate to try this delicious and healthy food!