Tosokchon's Black Chicken Samgyetang So...many of you might be looking at the above picture and thinking, "what does black chicken taste like?" It tastes just like regular chicken but a bit of complexity. I can't really describe the taste but there is an elusive flavor there. Most people don't eat it for the flavor- they eat it for the miraculous healthy qualities it is supposed to pass on to the diner. It's a dish that I will have a couple times a year because I do feel something after eating it. I wouldn't say that I feel like Popeye after eating spinach- I would say it is more like spending a nice day in the sun after eating a very fresh salad. I feel something more psychological- I feel more optimistic like if an anti-depressant kicked in. Tosokchon is a place famous for their chicken and ginseng soup. Often there is a line outside the door with Japanese tourists waiting to get in. I went there with a tour because one of my guests said they were ...

Whole Fried Chicken Yesterday (July 19th), was Cho-bok 초복: the hottest day of summer. On this day it is customary to eat Samgyetang (Chicken and Ginseng Soup.) During this time, you'll find most Samgyetang restaurants packed. Koreans eat this dish because it is supposed to relieve fatigue from the blaring hot sun. It might do that, I don't know. What I do know is that I love eating this dish because it's like a mini Thanksgiving Dinner with chicken soup. It's a mutant fusion dish like my favorite submarine sandwich from Delaware: the Bobbie. This is a sandwich with pulled turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mayonnaise and tons of black pepper. This dish is like that because it has a whole young chicken stuffed with Asian stuffing (rice, chestnuts, ginseng, and ginko) and Asian cranberry (jujube). There are three days of Cho-bok (the 3 hottest days of summer). The next one will be on July 29th (according to Chinese Calendar) and the last cho-bok will be on August 8t...