The main characteristics of the Korean diet: high protein, many vegetables, preferring light, avoiding greasy, and the taste is mainly cool and spicy. Koreans have taken rice as their staple food since ancient times. Dishes are mainly stewed and baked, basically do not do stir-fry. Koreans like to eat noodles, beef, chicken and dog meat, do not like to eat steamed bread, lamb and duck.
Koreans generally love coleslaw. Gazpacho is made by cutting vegetables directly or blanching them in boiling water and mixing them with condiments. There are also dishes such as raw mixed fish and fish and shrimp paste. Raw fish is sliced raw meat and fish with seasonings and julienned radishes and pears, and topped with vinegared sauce or hot sauce.
Soup is also an essential part of the meal, and it is usually prepared with a variety of ingredients such as vegetables, mountain vegetables, meat, dashi, salted salt, and miso.
Koreans love chili peppers and put them almost exclusively in their home cooking. Koreans have a diet of four meals a day, scheduled in the morning, noon, evening and night. Koreans eat with spoons and chopsticks. Everyone has their own rice bowl and soup bowl, and all other dishes are placed in the center of the table for everyone to enjoy. Koreans are also very particular about the use of rice bowls, which are used by men, women and children. Koreans are very frugal and try to eat as much as possible, both for themselves and for the poor.
Korean food
While many people often say they love Korean food, their knowledge of Korean food is limited to barbecue, ginseng chicken soup or kimchi, and the rest of the food culture and etiquette can be said to be unknown.
Since ancient times, Korea has emphasized etiquette, in terms of language, the young must use respectful language to the elders, as for food, food or rice, but also to be handed to the elders, and even special single table, by the daughter or daughter-in-law respectfully served to them in front of the old man, waiting for the old man to lift the stick, the other members of the family can dine. As for the pouring of wine on the table, it is also necessary to follow the order of age, from the eldest to the youngest, and only after the elders have raised their glasses can the younger ones drink. In addition, there is also a traditional custom that men and women do not sit together at the age of seven, and that girls do not sit in the same room with any men (including their fathers and brothers) after they reach the age of seven. However, this custom has gradually broken down in the big cities and is still occasionally seen in the countryside. In the old days, Korean families used to place the rice dish in the center of the table, the vegetables in bowls and place them around the table, and each person had a long rounded spoon, a pair of chopsticks, and a dish of cold water to bring the rice directly to their mouths, the chopsticks were used to hold the vegetables, and the cold water was used to swish the spoon around. Modern Koreans have changed their eating habits considerably, with many using food trays, where each person's portion of rice is served on a plate, while some more modern families no longer use food trays but bowls to serve their meals.
Korea has a long history and has retained much of its traditional culture. Korean tables are small and low, and people sit cross-legged at the head of the table. Young people will kneel on the soles of their feet in front of their elders and never stretch their legs out, otherwise they will be considered rude. If the room is too small, the dining table can be placed in the courtyard and a mat laid on it. However, modern Koreans are becoming more and more attached to foreign trends, and are moving further and further away from tradition in both table and food etiquette.
Eating in Korea
Nationals who return from Korea as gourmet foodie countries can't help but complain about the food there. This type of compatriots, I met more than once. On the eve of going to Korea there are people "warned" me: "eat a good meal, this go will not want to have a good meal." The result of my practice is very different from this. Although I did not stay long, the Korean drinking dishes and the Korean way of eating left a good impression on me.
Talking about tableware, Koreans use chopsticks as we do, but they use mostly metal chopsticks, and you can't see a pair of bamboo chopsticks in a restaurant, let alone disposable "convenience chopsticks". When I asked them about this, they replied that metal chopsticks are sharp, hygienic and durable, while disposable chopsticks are too wasteful, consuming resources and polluting the environment. This alone, I think, is something we should emulate.
Koreans, like the Japanese, are accustomed to sitting on the floor and eating cross-legged. Their traditional diet is relatively simple, the staple food for the rice, love to eat kimchi, kimchi exports are said to be the world's first, the variety of I see can also take the title, because every meal has it on the table in a dignified manner, exquisite dishes can be set out a lot of fancy: cabbage, radish, pepper, and we do not call it famous, both appetizing and tasty. They obviously have more vegetarian dishes on the table than we do, because of their proximity to the sea, there are quite a lot of seafood vegetarian dishes. The other thing that they have in abundance is sauces. Our "sauce jar culture" in the influence there, probably has reached the point of "green out of blue and better than blue", they have a special sauce used to mix with vegetables mixed with the ground rice, I tried it, the flavor is very good. I am afraid that the above "three more" constitute reasonable factors in their diet of low sugar, low fat, in line with the requirements of nutrition. We note that not many Koreans are obese, and generally middle-aged and elderly people are able to keep fit and healthy, is this not related to good eating habits?
Koreans are just as warm and considerate as we are, but they don't show their generosity with a table full of "big fish and meat". From official to private banquets, from Korean to non-Korean food, at least we don't enjoy the "big, big, big" that we often encounter at home. Their meat dishes, such as roast duck, are also very authentic, with a thick layer of lean meat, not too fatty, not too greasy, smooth and delicious. Eating method is different from ours, they do not use bread to wrap the duck meat, but wrapped in leaves, green lettuce with onions and garlic, seasonings, sandwiched between the roasted duck pieces, color, aroma and taste are all good. There is another kind of leaf that we would not have thought of: sesame leaf. The host especially introduced that this is the current fashionable food, new scientific research results, sesame leaves contain a variety of substances needed by the human body, as well as anti-cancer, anti-cancer effect. Later, I saw in the store "sesame leaves canned" sold, but also back to the fashion.
The most famous Korean food is barbecue. "Teppanyaki" is used not only for cooking but also for stir-frying noodles. The most interesting, is a "stone barbecue": a pile of cobblestones in the iron frame on the electric heat, the first stall meat, to a certain fire and then use long clippers will be a large piece of meat twisted into small pieces, spelled ZuoZhou to the rolling stone to go, a short while on the sound of squeaking out of the aroma, you can feast on it. It is said that the pebbles are imported, since they can store heat and equalize the temperature, so that the meat is not burnt, and also remove the oil and fishy. We tasted this rustic yet modern dish at a restaurant called "Sea Breeze" in Incheon and were very impressed.
The frugal and scientific nature of the Korean diet is also evidenced by the "miniature paper cups" that are designed to be used with water fountains. That is a kind of only the middle finger long, two fingers wide small pieces of paper, after special treatment, take on the hand into a very small cup, put into the faucet will be able to catch water. Than the kind of transparent plastic cups and ordinary paper cups, has its own tiny, simple superiority, the streets of South Korea and fast-food restaurants can often be seen.
Korean food rituals
Chinese and Koreans both talk about food culture, which shows the close relationship between food and culture. Food rituals are one of the ways to express food culture, and it is a kind of common sense that you may not follow, but don't forget, or you will make the locals feel unhappy.
There are two types of structures inside Korean restaurants: the use of chairs and the removal of shoes to the bed. When eating on the kang, men sit cross-legged and women stand on their knees - this is only used when wearing hanbok. Nowadays, Korean women don't usually wear hanbok, so they just sit with their legs tucked together.
After you sit down and order from the menu on the wall or from the menu placed on the table, it won't be long before a restaurant lady comes to you with a tray, from which she removes the cutlery first, then the meal. Of course, some restaurants already have the cutlery ready on the table. But in the more sophisticated restaurants, the dishes are served in person: chopsticks in a paper coat, a spoon with a face - a round paper bag the size of a spoon's head, with a drawing of a smoking gun and a hat - the Korean aristocracy of the past! The Elephant Class of "Two Classes". Initially I felt fresh and used to collect it, but then I realized that restaurants in several big cities in Korea use this pattern and I was not surprised.
Chopsticks and spoons are made of brass, in addition to silver, which is used as a gift for weddings and for fear of being murdered. But these two kinds of chopsticks are not common, and the common people always use stainless steel chopsticks with flat tips. Wooden chopsticks are disposable, and I've observed that Koreans generally use them when eating Japanese noodles and nori rice rolls. I have never seen Koreans using bamboo chopsticks, ivory chopsticks, plastic chopsticks, and so on. The spoon has a long handle and a big round head, so I was afraid of hurting the corners of my mouth when I first started using it.
Chinese and Japanese people have a habit of picking up their rice bowls to eat, but Koreans consider this behavior unruly. So you must remember that you can't touch the rice bowl on the table with your hands, and you can't touch the bowl with your mouth either. Then you will notice that the bowl is made of stainless steel (or ceramic at home or in a fancy restaurant) and sits on the table with a rounded bottom and a lid, with no handle for your hand to hold. Combined with the heat that the rice transfers to the bowl, it makes sense not to touch it. As for the lid, you can remove it and leave it on the table as you please.
Since you don't serve the bowl, your left hand must obey and hide honestly under the table, and must not "show its hand" on the table. Your right hand must pick up the spoon first, take a mouthful of soup from the water kimchi (when there is no water kimchi, it is okay to use other soup instead) and finish it, then eat a mouthful of rice with the spoon, then take a mouthful of soup with the spoon, and then eat a mouthful of rice and then you can eat whatever you want. This is the order in which Koreans eat.
In the above, you may notice that Koreans drink soup and eat with a spoon. This is different from the eating habits of Chinese and Japanese. The use of both spoons and chopsticks by Koreans is not a recent invention, but has its roots in ancient times. I have seen iron spoons and chopsticks from the Baekje era placed together in the National Gongju Museum. In the Korean language, in addition to having separate words for spoon and chopsticks, two letters are used to mean both spoon and chopsticks together.
The spoon is more important than the chopsticks in the Korean dietary life. It is responsible for serving soup, fishing for vegetables in the soup and serving rice, and when not in use, it has to be set up on a rice bowl or other eating utensils; as for the chopsticks, they are only responsible for pinching vegetables. No matter how much the bean sprouts in your soup bowl can't be fished out with a spoon, you can't use chopsticks. This is firstly a matter of etiquette, and secondly, the soup may run down the chopsticks and onto the table. When chopsticks are not being used to hold food, the traditional Korean practice is to place them on the table to your right, with the two chopsticks together, 2/3 on the table and 1/3 off the table - this is to make it easier to pick them up and use them again. Koreans do not use chopstick holders. This practice, which some feel is unhygienic unless the surface of the table is wiped clean, has been changed to placing the chopsticks on a small dish. Finally, when you're done eating, it's still a good idea to put your spoon and chopsticks in the same shape as they were in the beginning, with a beginning and an end.
Chinese people use chopsticks to eat and spoons to drink soup; Koreans use spoons to eat and drink soup and chopsticks to pick up vegetables; and Japanese people use chopsticks to both eat and drink soup. Why don't Japanese people have spoons in their eating life? An old Japanese man once told me: "Spoons only spread from China to the Korean Peninsula, and because the sea separates the Korean Peninsula from Japan, spoons did not reach Japan." What I later read in "Traveling Around the World - Korea" (1995 edition) was something like this: it is said that in the past, Japan used to eat with their hands, and Koreans felt quite sorry for them, so they taught the Japanese to use chopsticks, but they did not teach the Japanese to use spoons. Korea is a mono-ethnic country, so the whole country is like one big family, as evidenced by the **** food dinners.
Chinese people may not use communal chopsticks and spoons at home, but when they eat at restaurants, they use communal utensils to put food into their own bowls and plates. The Japanese do the same except for portions of rice. However, the situation in Korea is different. Koreans use their own utensils to eat directly from communal soups and dishes. Koreans are a sentimental people, and when they show their feelings through **** food, I think that people should give them full understanding.
Korean hospitality attaches great importance to etiquette
South Korea is a single Korean nation, general Korean (also known as Korean), Buddhism, Christianity, Catholicism, Taoism and other religions, customs and habits unique and interesting.
Korean hospitality attaches great importance to etiquette, male meet to bow to each other, warm handshake, and said "hello". Heterosexuals generally do not shake hands with each other, and express their greetings by bowing, nodding, smiling and saying "good day". When parting, shake hands and say "goodbye", if the guest with their own together to leave the guest will say "you good to go", if the guest does not leave the guest will say "you good here". When entering or attending a certain place, guests and elders should be asked to go first; when having a meal, guests and elders should be asked to sit first; when handing over things to guests or elders, they should bow first, and then stretch out their hands.
When dating Korean friends, it is important to contact them in advance. Although Koreans do not demand punctuality from their guests, they are strict about keeping time themselves, so guests should also be punctual to show their respect for their hosts. When visiting a Korean's home, it is a good idea to send a bouquet of flowers or a small gift, and hand it to the host with both hands when you meet him or her to thank him or her for his or her hospitality. When you enter a Korean friend's house, you must take off your shoes beforehand. When you talk, you should speak softly and gently, do not laugh or joke loudly, cover your mouth with your hand when a woman laughs, do not blow your nose in front of the crowd, and greet your host when you smoke, otherwise you will be regarded as being impolite and not understanding etiquette.
Koreans host business guests in restaurants or bars and serve Western food. Non-business interactions, more often in the home dinner, with traditional meals. Koreans love spicy food, and chili peppers and garlic are often found in their staple foods. The staple food is mainly rice and noodles, and the favorite traditional noodles are chili noodles and cold noodles. Koreans make cold noodles with buckwheat noodles and put a lot of chili peppers, sliced beef, and sliced apples in the broth, which is served chilled, making it cool and refreshing to eat, but after a while, it will make your body hot. Famous dishes in the side dishes include sashimi, roast beef, dry-roasted cinnamon fish, crispy suckling pig, oil-soaked shrimp, crispy fried chicken, crispy beef and nine, soft fried chicken, cold platters, and so on. Koreans should have a dish of hot and sour dishes for every meal, especially hot and sour cabbage is the most refreshing. At formal banquets, the first course is served on a nine-fold board with nine different foods, of which there must be hot pot, followed by the rest of the dishes; at home, all the dishes are served at once.
During the meal, the host always invites the guests to taste the traditional beverages - low-potency turbid wine and sake. Turbid wine, also known as agricultural wine, used to be home-brewed by the farmers, is simple to make, has a long history, and is made by fermenting the grain by crushing and fermenting it under the brewery's brewing quartz. For guests who don't drink alcohol, the hosts often use persimmon juice to entertain them. Persimmon juice is a traditional refreshing drink, the persimmon cake (can also use pear, peach, orange, pomegranate and other fruits), cinnamon powder, pine nuts, honey, ginger in the ice to boil, to be cooled and filtered off the slag skin can be tasted sweet, spicy and refreshing, family members drink on New Year's Eve, and usually used to entertain guests. Some people also use traditional foods such as pancakes, muffins and oil honey fruit to entertain guests from afar.
In addition, Korea has many Western and Japanese restaurants, hamburgers, fried chicken, hot dogs and other fast food is popular, so that Koreans to fish, vegetables and rice-based traditional meal structure tends to be convenient, fast and diverse. There is no habit of tipping in Korea, and guests do not have to send tips for eating, shopping, or staying in hotels.
Korean customs
The Republic of Korea is located in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula in East Asia, with an area of 9.9 million square kilometers and a population of more than 40 million. The entire population is of a single Korean ethnic group, and the Korean language is commonly spoken. Historically, it has been greatly influenced by the culture of the Tang Dynasty. The national flag is the Taiji flag, the center of the white field is red and blue Taiji pattern, surrounded by four groups of eight trigrams symbols. White on behalf of the land, taiji and bagua from our country, symbolizing the eternal movement of the universe, balance and coordination, reflecting China's "I Ching" on behalf of the Oriental philosophy. By our country's Buddhism, Confucianism is y influenced by the inhabitants of Buddhism, Christianity and Confucianism, the capital city of Seoul, the Temple of Literature every spring and fall will be held in the festival of Confucius. South Korea's economic growth rate among the world's top, the level of economic development among the top in Asia, export-oriented economy is more developed. Korean culture is a blend of Eastern and Western cultures.
Korean food style is between China and Japan, and most people use chopsticks to eat. The diet is based on high-protein foods, supplemented by vegetables. People like soup and rice (beef soup, rib soup, etc. and rice), hot pot, noodles in soup, cold noodles, sashimi, raw beef, assorted rice, etc. They also like hot and spicy flavors. They also like hot and spicy flavors. At banquets, Koreans are accustomed to pouring wine for each other and drinking cups of wine; they should not refuse to drink when they are advised to do so; they should leave some wine in the cup when they are not able to drink; they have a tolerant attitude towards the drunken. When being honored with a dish, one should politely make two excuses before accepting it for the third time. You should not refuse to sing when you are invited to sing after a meal.
Korea's national costume is: men wear jackets, kangs, pants, robes, up and down a color, and more white; women wear jackets, skirts, robes, skirts are long and fat, plump and smooth. Modern men and women also often wear Western-style clothing and dress. It is their traditional custom to take off their shoes when entering the house. They also use kangs, which are heated by hot water pipes.
Koreans emphasize etiquette. They must greet each other when they meet, and men bow slightly when they meet, shake each other's right hand or both hands, and bow when they break up. Men are not allowed to take the initiative to shake hands with women. The first meeting, exchange business cards. Koreans often treat their guests with soft drinks, and guests must accept the refreshments offered by their hosts. Koreans chat together, do not talk about their country's politics, economy, wife and family and other topics, but like to ask about their personal situation. They have a strong sense of self-esteem and do not allow themselves to be openly criticized or disagreed with. In social situations, men and women must be separated. In public, men must be allowed to go first, and speakers at all meetings put "gentlemen" before "ladies" in their speeches. Respect for teachers and elders, the use of honorifics, not in front of the elders to smoke, wearing glasses. It is customary to bring small gifts with you on your visits, but not to send foreign cigarettes; you must use both hands when you receive things, and not to open the gifts on the spot. You can't sit with your legs crossed on any occasion.
Korea has many festivals. The festivals from the first day of the first month to the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar calendar are similar to the Spring Festival in China. The 15th day of the first month of the lunar calendar is the Lantern Festival, and the traditional food is seeded fruit (chestnuts, walnuts, pine nuts, etc.), medicinal food, rice with grains, and Chancha rice. April 8 on the lunar calendar is the Buddha's Birthday Festival and the Chunhyang Festival, which celebrates women. The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated on May 5 of the lunar calendar, and families celebrate the festival by eating green rice cakes and hanging calamus. The Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated on August 15 of the lunar calendar, and the Chung Yeung Festival is celebrated on September 9 of the lunar calendar. Tomb-sweeping is done at Ching Ming, and winter solstice porridge (small bean porridge mixed with sorghum dough) is eaten at the winter solstice. In addition to the traditional festivals mentioned above, Koreans also celebrate Christmas, Children's Day (May 5), and the Eunsan Besshin Festival (March 28-April 1), among others. The popular sports activities include archery, wrestling, tug-of-war, swing, springboard, kite flying, Go and chess.
Koreans prefer odd numbers and avoid even numbers. It is taboo to use " four " ( Korean pronunciation is the same as " death "). Avoid pointing at people with one finger. You can't stand up and talk with your hands behind your back. Women must cover their mouths when they laugh.