[Food]

[Food] Olchaengi Guksu (올챙이국수, Tadpole Noodles)

The Korean peninsular is a very fertile land full of rivers, plains and mountains so its main industry has been agriculture from ancient times. People planted and harvested many kinds of grains including rice, barley and so on. However, some towns located between mountains couldn't farm rice because of a lack of plain. So they usually ate corn, wheat, buckwheat, potato and sweet potato instead of rice and grain.

Olchaengi Guksu (올챙이국수, Tadpole Noodles) is the result of such an environment and culture. It's made of corn starch (NOT real tadpoles!!) and is named because of the shape of its noodle, which really looks like a big and fat yellow tadpole.

For people living in cities between mountains such as in Jeongseon, Yeongwol and Pyeongchang (Gangwon province) and in Muju (Jeonbuk province), olchaengi guksu was a very common meal for gaining basic energy from carbohydrates like potato, sweet potato and buckwheat.

They put corn kernels into a stone grinder and heated them on medium heat to turn them into corn starch water that looks like corn porridge - a very muddy form. Then they were poured into a large bowl or bucket with many holes at the bottom and placed into a large water basin so that the corn starch could penetrate these holes and form corn droplets which look like a tadpole.

When the noodles are complete, make seasoning with soy sauce, chili powder, green chili, sesame and salt to mix thoroughly with the noodles. You can also pour mild doenjang (Korean bean paste) soup into them for a more savory taste, as in the above picture of olchaengi guksu :) Yes, it's very similar to the German Spätzle except for its main ingredients (Spätzle is made of wheat).

Even though it doesn't have much taste but has a plain, mild and indistinct flavor, people prefer to eat it as they reminisce of their childhood (certainly in the case of people who lived in a mountain village) or just out of curiosity :)

These are noodles but you cannot pick them up with chopsticks so you have to use a spoon to eat them:) You can easily find them in Jeongseon, Yeongwol, Pyeongchang and Muju :)

Bon Appétit!

[Trip]

[Trip] Photo Trip - My Favorite Cafés in Sokcho

Today is a rainy and cloudy day so although it may seem gloomy, rain makes a cup of coffee taste better than ever. So I've been on short coffee trips to Sokcho, Gangwon province with a good friend. There are a few excellent cafés in Sokcho - among my favorites - so I want to introduce them to you today with photos :)

1. Coffee Belt (커피벨트)

It's a good café to visit for an aromatic cup of joy with its variety of coffee beans. They do cold brew (also known as 'dutch') and hand-drip coffee. They always use fresh coffee beans with an exotic aroma and flavor :)

2. Another Blue (어나더블루)

Its name is 'Another Blue' but the taste of the coffee is not 'blue' :) Another Blue is famous for einspanner (an Austrian coffee with thick sweet cream on top), accompanied by lemon zest and great cakes :)

3. Sunsarogil (선사로길)

This is my favorite café in Sokcho which serves an excellent cup of einspanner with sweet, thick cream and a fine bakery :) I recommend their selection of pound cake and scone :)

Bon Voyage!

[Food] Memil Jeonbyeong (메밀전병, Spicy Kimchi Buckwheat Pancake Roll)

[Food]

[Food] Memil Jeonbyeong (메밀전병, Spicy Kimchi Buckwheat Crepe)

Gangwon province in South Korea (Republic of Korea) is famous for its natural and clean environment, as well as the variety of ingredients from its mountains including herbs and mushrooms. Gangwon province can be divided into two regions; Yeongdong (meaning 'east of the mountain') and Yeongseo ('west of the mountain'). Yeongdong has long earned a good name for itself because of its beautiful coast line, marine resources (fish and seaweed) and relatively warm and cool weather. However Yeongseo is full of high mountains, narrow valleys, turbulent rivers and streams, and freezing cold weather which is (not always but usually) colder than Siberia. This particular climate in the Yeongseo region of Gangwon province provides good terrain for buckwheat. Among all the cities and towns in Yeongseo region, Jeongseon is its most well-known town, popular for herbs and buckwheat gourmet.

A stream and mountain in Jeongseon

Herbs and mushrooms of Jeongseon market

A 'grandma' selling buckwheat powder, honey and herbs in Jeongseon market

Many Koreans consider potato and corn the only typical foods in Gangwon province (also symbolizing the naivety and simplicity of citizens of Gangwon province), but I don't agree. It is true that Gangwon province produces a high quality of potato, corn and chinese cabbage but I think buckwheat has to be one of the staple foods in Gangwon province. Buckwheat has been grown in Gangwon province for a very long time (8~9th century Korea when there were three kingdoms in the Korean peninsula) even before potato and corn was imported into the Korean peninsula. Buckwheat grows very well on tough, cold and barren land, and it is also very resistant to any damage by the climate or insects. I think that it symbolizes the toughness and perseverance of the Gangwon people who survived in the mountainous terrains that have relatively less food resources than other provinces.

Citizens of Yeongseo have been cooking many gourmet cuisines using buckwheat. They crush harvested buckwheat into powder and cook them into pancake, noodle and muk (Korean style jello). Today I want to introduce you to one of my favorite Korean foods, 'Memil Junbyung(메밀전병, Spicy Kimchi Buckwheat Crepe)' :)

Memil Jeonbyeong (메밀전병, Spicy Kimchi Buckwheat Pancake Roll)

Mix buckwheat powder and water to make buckwheat dough. Pour some oil onto an iron pan, and bake thin buckwheat pancake on it. Meanwhile, mix sweet potato noodle, chopped kimchi, minced meat and spicy red chili powder into a bowl to make the inside of a crepe. When the crepe is ready, put readymade inside onto the crepe, roll it and chop it. The result is as following :)

Memil Jeonbyeong (메밀전병, Spicy Kimchi Buckwheat Pancake Roll)

It looks like very mild, with a soft and chewy texture but please don't be deceived by its look. It's very spicy and filled with kimchi and spicy red chili powder. As you bite into one, you will soon look for a glass of water :) By the way, I like crispy memil jeonbyeong more, which is fresh out of the pan as in the following picture :)

Memil Jeonbyeong (메밀전병, Spicy Kimchi Buckwheat Pancake Roll)

The best part is that memil jeonbyeong is a very cheap snack :) Buckwheat is not an expensive or common ingredient that you can buy anywhere in Gangwon province, obviously memil jeonbyeong is cheap too :) But you'd better not look over the taste of buckwheat with its savory, chewy and soft texture:)

I can tell you that Jeongseon has very beautiful rivers and valleys :) If you're looking for some leisure time in a clean environment with traditional Korean food, then how about visiting Jeongseon? (even though you have to climb high mountains and cross streams, it will be worth a visit :)

Bon Appétit!