[Food] Myeongtae, Fish with Countless Names 2 (명태, Pollack)

[Food]

[Food] Myeongtae, Fish with Countless Names 2 (명태, Pollack)

In my previous article on Myeongtae, I told you briefly about the countless names for pollack in Korea and a few related dishes. Today, I want to tell you more about pollack dishes in Korea :)

Koreans love hot and spicy dishes. Spicy chili, garlic, spring onions with pollack or frozen pollack gives a savory flavor and usually hits the spot for many Koreans. The broth of stew and soup also provide refreshing and hearty energy with the silky flesh of pollack.

Spicy saengtae (Raw pollack) and egg soup, saengtae jjigae

The difference between raw pollack and frozen pollack is that raw pollack has a softer flesh while the frozen one has a chewy and tough texture which entertains one's teeth and tongue.

Spicy frozen pollack soup (동태찌개, Dongtaejjigae)

There isn't only spicy pollack soup, there's also a mild one which is made of dried and frozen pollack called hwangtae.

Hwangtae haejangguk (Dried and frozen pollack soup). Once I introduced this dish in an article where I talked about Haejangguk.

Hwangtae soup is not spicy enough to give you the hot and refreshing flavor of flesh and broth. I would recommend hwangtae haejangguk for Korean breakfast :)

This is kodari jorim which is spicy braised semi-dried pollack. Kodari also has a chewy texture but it's not as tough as frozen or full-dried pollack.

Myeongtaejeon (Fried pollack fillet cake)

Myeongtaejeon is usually cooked for Korean New Year's day and Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving Day) because myeongtae fillet was eaten on a special day in Korea a long time ago due to its high cost :) It has a savory, salty and soft flavor.

Fermented and salted pollack eggs (명란젓, Myeongranjeot)

All of pollack's miscellaneous parts (egg, gill, intestines etc.) can be turned into 'jeotgal', which is a salted and fermented dish. Among them, fermented and salted pollack egg is most popular. It's salty, silky and elastic texture goes very well with plain rice, and the Japanese also love this dish.

If you have a chance to visit Korea and are a seafood lover, I recommend you taste various and countless Korean pollack dishes :)

Bon Appétit!

[Food] Myeongtae, Fish with Countless Names 1 (명태, Pollack)

[Food]

[Food] Myeongtae, Fish with Countless Names 1 (명태, Pollack)

Pollack, 명태(Myeongtae)

Once upon a time during the Chosun dynasty in Korea, there lived a fisherman named Mr. Tae in Myeongchun (northernmost tip of the Korean peninsula, which is in North Korea today) who caught fish that he had never seen before. He presented his catch to a public officer who worked in the kitchen of Myeongchun city hall. He cooked this fish and served it to the mayor. The mayor, who loved the taste, asked for the name of the fish. Obviously no one knew its name, so the mayor said:

"Let's call this fish 'Myeongtae' because Mr. 'Tae' of 'Myeong'chun caught it."

Therefore, from then on, people called the fish 'Myeongtae (Pollack)', and it has become among the most popular and common fish in Korea. Today, pollack has numerous names according to its method of preparation.

In today's article, I want to introduce you to the many names Koreans have given to pollack :) I can't name all of them because there are more than 30 in Korea but these are the most common ones :)

1. Saengtae (Raw pollack), 생태

Raw pollacks

2. Boog-uh (Full-dried pollack), 북어

Boog-uh guk, Full-dried pollack soup

3. Dongtae (Full-dried pollack that was caught in the winter), 동태

Dongtae-jjigae (Frozen pollack soup), 동태찌개

4. Hwangtae (Frozen and Dried pollack), 황태

Mass pollack drying rack in Gangwon province. Pollacks go through a freezing and drying process many times over to become good hwangtae :) After this repeated process, their flesh becomes soft and chewy like sponge.

Seasoned and roasted hwangtae (황태구이)

Muktae-gooi (먹태구이), roasted black pollack. When pollack turns
black during the freezing and drying process for hwangtae, it is called 'Muktae', which means 'Black pollack'

5. Kodari (Semi-dried pollack), 코다리

Kodari-jjim (코다리찜), Spicy braised semi-dried pollack

6. Nogari (Full dried juvenile pollack), 노가리

Juvenile pollacks

Nogari (Full-dried juvenile pollack), 노가리. Nogari is one of drinkers' best friends and a great side dish for beer :)

In the next Myeongtae article, I will tell you about some Korean dishes that use pollack and egg :) To be continued.

Bon Appétit!