Parenting is a full contact sport and there is never a break or a half time. They should put potential parents through a boot camp to see if they are able to handle the task, but I think this would halt human reproduction. You never get a break while parenting. Well, I guess there is one when they sleep, but that’s when you need a break. Your body and mind will just go into recharge mode. It’s not the physicality of it that is what is tiring, it’s the mental, philosophical and societal factor as well. You are responsible for your kids and others judge you if it looks like you are doing it wrong. And if you are really doing it wrong, you will end up in jail or worse. But at the end of the day nobody knows if they are doing it right or wrong. All we can do is try to keep them fed, well, and “happy.” And happiness is a relative term here, for me and for them. For example, I am happy when we are running around with them playing games, when they are eating a meal I cooked, or w...

Avocado Toast in Korea So trying to predict the next new food trend is like trying to figure out what the next world-hit, k-pop song is going to be. It seems impossible...sorta because there are certain variables that should be considered. Avocados are like mangosteens are like limes are like dragonfruit, blueberries, aged beef, dry red wine, IPAs, coffee beans and bananas. They start out as new things that many Koreans don't know much about but will buy based on value and appearances. They are thought to be exotic, premium and healthy. So many foods become food hits each year such as quinoa, teff, fava beans, black garlic, etc. Each item becomes a craze and then is incorporated into different foods to add value such as adding green tea to pork belly, moon pies, seaweed, ice cream, shaved ice and much more. Then the food fad is gone because the food was not really understood for what it was. For example, let's look at avocados and mangosteens. The outside shell makes i...

Dear World, Woe is me. I live a life of decadence, a quite sedentary life where I shoot food, eat and talk about it at great length. The world of a food writer is for the young and hungry. Now when I started, I had a metabolism and I could eat and not gain a pound. Now I must decline invitations in droves for dining out every night can be devastating for the waste line. When you think and live food all the time, you are inclined to eat. You are conditioned to eat past the point of satiety. This is not a good thing. Anyway, I have decided to give it up.  Just kidding. But I am making some changes. I am exercising in the morning and the evening and I walk as much as I can. I have found my tools to fight the bulge to be a kettlebell and a fitbit walking tracker. The first few days with the kettlebell were tough for I realized that I haven't used some muscles for a long time (especially in the ab and stomach region). I am finding youtube to be a good trainer and as I get s...

How healthy is instant coffee? Brew. Java. Cup of Joe. Whatever you prefer to call your café noir, it may be the healthiest way to start your day. Coffee has been linked to preventing cavities, healthier moods and relieving headaches. A cup of coffee also significantly reduces the risk of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and diabetes.  But how healthy is  instant  coffee, the most beloved beverage of Korea? Instant coffee is drink revered by Koreans, and tolerated, and at times, loathed by (most) ex-pats. Even if instant coffee is not your cup of tea, it continues to be the closest to a drinkable ambassador of Korea (in company with the spirited Soju, of course).   Instant coffee, and more specifically coffee mix packets - a blended triumvirate of coffee powder, cream and sugar- are one of the most consumed drinks in Korea. According to Nielson findings, an average Korean guzzle 300 cups of instant coffee a year. Instant coffee is relatively ...

Hmmm...a new era has passed and I wonder what that means. Six years ago when I was first going to come to Korea, I was under the impression that the country was still at war. I was warned countless times that I should always carry my "American passport and get out of the country if the North Koreans came attackin." That's what my Tennessean father told me. Being a rebel, in the December of 2004, I seriously considered coming to Korea. But then the tragic Daegu fires happened and countless videos of suitrd South Korean politicians fighting during the law making sessions aired in America. I put my plans to come here aside. After a year of working to pay off a car and student loan, the itch to travel to Korea returned. This time being overworked, stressed and unhealthy was the push I needed to pack up and head to Korea. I was a bit scared but I had gotten rid of my worldly possessions and jumped on a plane to Korea. I had little to lose. I mean I had maxed out my ...

Written by Daniel Gray Picture from various sources. Click on the pictures to find the source Korean Food in Hawaii With all this talk about "globalizing Korean cuisine" I think that we need to give props to those that are already doing it their own way. These Korean chefs are striking out on their own and localizing the food or promoting dishes that the locals already find appealing. One of my guests called me the "Taste Whisperer" because before I start the tour I ask food related questions and try to find the taste that people are searching for. I do that or I try and pick dishes that are exciting and delicious for them. Now each guest is different and it is a kind of a game for me to try and pick dishes that will excite them. The last few months have been fun because we have been getting a number of Hawaiian visitors on our tours (I don't know who has been recommending us, but thank you!). These guests had tried Korean food- or they thought. They ev...

Here is an interesting post my friend sent me over. It was published in the Joongahn a while back. The gist of the story is that single men tend to hang out at nice restaurants, instead you'll find them at your regular, greasy BBQ house. Dan Greasy ribs and soju: Food for shy men November 03, 2005 When a group of single women get together in Korea, the conversation naturally boils down to one thing ― where do the nice single men hang out? A friend once noted that the only handsome single men she glimpses are in cars, driving away. This is true in a sense. The traffic lanes for single men and women in Korea don’t always merge. For example, you don’t see men and their buddies hanging out in the posh restaurants where women hang out with their girlfriends. And they never go to movies with other men either. I took an informal survey of male friends, and most agreed that they would never do so, even to see a great film. They would rather download it online and watch it at ho...

Sadly, this is Lindsey's last column for Seoul Eats. I'm sad to see her go, because her articles have always been full of insight and thought. Lindsey, I wish you the best of luck on all of your endeavors.  Sincerely, Dan Rice Battered, Deep-fried Hotdog Written by Lindsey Huster The word meal came up as a vocabulary word a few weeks ago. When explaining this word to my students, I talked about the meals you eat throughout the day. For example, you eat consume different foods for breakfast, than you do at lunch, and at dinner. The idea of eating "different foods," however, did not register with most of my students. Many of them looked bewildered and confused. Some even laughed. I was told that no, this is not the case with some of my students. When I asked my students what they had for breakfast, most of them said rice. And for lunch? Rice. And dinner? Rice again. (Of course, many of the meals also included kimchi). In a number of Korean homes, there ...

Ox Blood Hangover Stew (Haejangguk) Most people drink, and some people drink too much. In South Korea, with the social pressure to drink with coworkers, there is even more cases of drinking (and over drinking). The result? A hangover. For those not familiar with the ailment, the feeling is akin to a hammer is being continually slammed against your head. Others consider it an overwhelming feeling of fatigue and grogginess that you can't seem to shake. However it resonates, it feels neither good nor invigorating. Regardless of the after-effects, most people continue to booze week after week (even day after day), knowing full-well how they will feel come the next morning. Thankfully, there are a few remedies out there. In South Korea, the answer is (해장국) haejangguk, or the infamous "Hangover Soup." I stumbled upon my first batch (in a similar condition described above) one Sunday afternoon. The word haejangguk actually means "to detoxify," and rightly so. With...

Persimmons by Lindsey Huster October in Korea. This season is known for its foliage- a glowing exterior that resonates just as warmly as cherry blossom season. Colors like cinnamon, crimson, and golden rod adorn trees. An unmistakable orange hue, however, also comes into fruition this season. Ah yes, the color of a persimmon. I cannot conjure a better produce-personification of Korea- or for that matter, South East Asia. I can even recall my first persimmon encounter in Korea. It was  fall, my first weeks in Korea (which also happened to be my first few weeks without a proper sandwich). As I cut thick slices of what I believed to be tomato, I uncovered rather the delicately sweet, but also tart treat. As a fruit, it does appear to be a kissing cousin of the tomato. Although a bit oversized and with a pointed bottom, some persimmons carry the familiar red hue and skin consistency of a tomato. Others tend to be more orange and smaller shaped.  Both grow, however, o...

Made in China Written by Lindsey Huster Here's another insightful column by our own Lindsey Huster. This column discusses how even the youth of Korea have a distrust of Chinese food products.  Thank you Lindsey for your contribution and I think its definitely something we should keep in mind when we shop and eat. Dan Made in China: a three-word phrase that doubles as a quip in some Korean classrooms. When something breaks in my classroom- be it a pencil, pen, or book bag- a common reply from my students is that it's, "Made in China." Usually, an eruption of laughter follows as the flawed quality of the product is readily displayed by the hapless student/consumer. Even at a young age, some Korean students have developed a keen awareness regarding a familiar controversy surrounding Chinese exports. Although it remains laughable for some, for many Koreans, it leaves uncertainty and suspicion about many products.

Warung Indonesia in Ansan Written by Lindsey Huster Although South Korea may feel (at times) a bit homogenous, the food culture is showing signs that may uproot this notion. According to a recent article, the number of international restaurants operated by foreign owners has risen by more than 10 times in the last 10 years. Send your gaze down a popular alley of Seoul, and perhaps will you see what I mean. Alongside kimbap and galbi restaurants lay a sundry array of foreigner restaurants and shops. Around the Jung-gu area, one can stumble into "Mongolian town" and "Russian street." Venture even more southwest, and you are sure to enter Itaewon, an infamous foreigner district that caters to most gourmands palates. Itaewon, stands out as a hub that serves an assortment of African food, including Nigerian, Ghana and Ethiopian. Venture even more south near Gangnam, and you will stumble into a French district that offers pastries that rattle even the most dev...

What is Making Korean Children Fat? Health classes are moving a few Korean students in a healthier direction this summer. For an hour a week, students participate (voluntarily) in a workout or dance session. According to a recent article in the JoongAng Daily, students of all levels are participating in such a program to fight childhood obesity. Even though an hour a week hardly suffices as exercise, it's progress. In 2007, the Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development reported that one out of every 10 Korean students was obese. Not only did this figure increase with age, boys also showed higher rates of obesity than girls.  Currently,  obese students are increasing at a 1 percent rate annually. Although Korean food is relatively healthy, a number of Korean students remain overweight.  With such a strong emphasis on studying, many students are shuttled to after-school classes. Rarely is there time for dinner until late at night. To curb hunger pangs, stud...

The Elusive Mulberry While visiting a friend in Suncheon this weekend, I crossed paths with the elusive Korean mulberry. Thinking back to previous mulberry experiences (really lack thereof), I can only recall singing about such fruits rather than eating them. "Here we go 'round the mulberry bush," remained a staple of daycare sing-alongs, and until recently, I didn't even know what a mulberry looked like. Upon a first glance, the mulberry (오디 in Korean) vaguely resembles a raspberry. Upon further inspection, however, the mulberry is longer in shape and darker in appearance. The taste, too, is less sweet than that of most fruit. Unfortunately, this taste has been erroneously labeled "bland"- what a misconception. My first taste of mulberries remind me of my first bites of dark chocolate, or sips of coffee, all of which seem wonderfully strange at first, but gradually became an acquired and sought after taste. Thankfully, mulberries will be in seas...

Venture outdoors, and in moments, you will feel the heat. Such heat and humidity create conditions fit for damp clothes, sticky bodies, and worst of all, parched mouths. Such heat demands extra nourishment. For me, nourishment tends to come in a bowl or cone, and is likely dipped in chocolate. Koreans, however, try to “beat the heat with heat” with spices rather than sweets. Boyangshik are special foods prepared and eaten during the hottest 30-day period in the lunar calendar called sambok. This time period is also referred to as 복날, bok nal, which means the “dog days of summer.”  According to the lunar calendar, Sambok is marked by three days: chobok (beginning), jungbok (middle), and malbok (last).  This year, chobok was on July 20, junbok on July 30 and malbok was recently on August 9.  Sambok is rooted in Korea's agriculture. At one time, majority of Koreans were farmers, so families worked together to grow and harvest food. When it got too hot to work, Koreans wo...

By Lindsey Huster Monastery cuisine conjures images of the most meager and bland food on Earth: rice porridge, sparse vegetables and no fruit (reminiscent of Oliver Twist). For my summer vacation, I traveled to Mihwangsa Temple, hoping to prove such notions were false. Mihwangsa is located in the Jeolla province. The monastery is nestled on Dalmasan (Dharma Mountain), a ridge that stretches for 10 kilometers towards the sea. The three-day-four-night experience shook up a few misconceptions of monasteries, especially when it came to Korean food. A basic precept of all Buddhism is non-harm to sentient beings. This of course applies to food. Monks maintain a strict diet of vegetarian food, although it is more accurate to say vegan since rarely any animals products are used. My first meal at the monastery was bibimbap, which included a small amount of gochujang paste, two handfuls of rice, and plenty of mountain vegetables, but without the usual fried egg. The same could...

In Korea, it’s not just what you say that gets attention. It’s also what you eat (and then say in between chews).  Most languages become linguistically altered by important culture features. And Korea is no exception. Such Korean alterations, however, have appeared with a focus towards food. A common greeting among Koreans translates to, “Have you eaten rice?” Such phrases show the importance of providing food for others during times when it was not readily available. Until the last half century, Korea did not enjoy the luxury of food stability. According to author Su  Yon Pak, ongoing conflicts against neighboring countries, Japanese colonialism, and the Korean War created a substantial burden for Koreans that affected food supply.  Even now, North Korea still suffers from hunger problems.  Life and food thus become fused  together. According to linguist John Newman, the verb for eating (mok), is also many times interchanged with the verb for living (sal)...

Going organic isn't easy, but it's steadily growing in Korea. So far, the Korean government has certified over 32,000 Korean farmers as organic and environmentally friendly. Not only is the green movement growing, but its gaining more publicity and approval. This month, the Korea Organic Farming Association (KOFA) hosted its 9th Annual Seoul International Organic and Natural Products Show. Additionally, the government has been known to make public service announcements, which tell consumers to eat organic. Such actions have propelled Korea into a well-being movement the last decade. More and more Koreans exercise, especially in the form of hiking and yoga. Additionally, Koreans are trying to eat healthier, which for many mean eating organic. Outside of this trend, the most prominent reason Koreans- and other residents of Korea- should eat organic has to do with large amount of pesticides used in produce. According to the Korean Organic Farmers Association, Sout...

 A female subway user sits across from me, wearing a cheerful t-shirt that pictures a sun. The happy, yellow orb states in a playful font “I am so hungover I wish I was dead.” This does not phase me. In a previous column, I have discussed the drinking culture of Korea. A large portion of Korean activities, especially work-related, focus around the consumption of alcohol well beyond the point of intoxication. Another not-so-surprising detail is a new study recently released that claims Koreans are drinking more. According to an article in the Korea Herald, the National Tax Services released a study that show Koreans have consumed an increasing amount of alcohol over the past ten years. In particular, beer, wine, whisky have increased the most. The biggest increases have been seen in the consumption of wine and whisky. The amount of wine consumption last year reached nearly 46 million liters, more than six times 1999’s figure of 6.4 million liters. Makgeolli, too, has gaine...

Here's another great post from our own Lindsey Huster. If you would like to contribute to Seoul Eats, please send me an e-mail here.  Dan I visited Daegu this weekend, and found myself in uncharted food territory. Every Korean dish was there, but somehow different- still side dishes and meals, yet slightly altered. Bibimbop was no longer rice and vegetables; now there was boribap , a hybrid of barley and rice, mixed with vegetables (a few unfamiliar ones), sans the fried egg.   Also my familiar mandu pickings were replaced with Napjak mandu. This flattened dumpling looks more like a pot sticker and is filled with Korean leek, carrot, cabbage and green onion; rather than the kimchi and pork.   Although it's easy to believe that living in Seoul results in the ultimate exposure to Korean cuisine, untested foods exist just over those mountains, rivers and seas.   The answers Korea diverse cuisine lies in its geography. Since Korea stretches most...