Taste Of Korea

Many of the traditional foods of Korea date back thousands of years. The tale of how Doenjang was created is preserved as part of Korea’s Buddhist tradition. It runs as follows. During the period of Old Choson (2333 BC~108 BC), there lived an enlightened master. He was always pondering as to how human beings might commit fewer bad deeds, and accumulate less bad karma. The master reached a simple conclusion: people do bad things because their minds are not at ease. Since all b

Coronary heart disease used to be a ‘rare’ condition. Nowadays, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the US (and most of Europe). That’s not good. You want to hear something that is good? The FDA has recognized since 1999 that soy protein reduces the risk of the disease. You want to know something else that’s good? The protein content of soybean is about 40%, the highest level among all crops. On top of eight essential amino acids. MIC DROP. But protein how

If you want to know about Korean food, you need to know about Doenjang. First up: it’s not Miso. What Miso and Doenjang do have in common, is that they are both made with soybeans. Soybeans first appeared in 2,000 B. C. in southern Manchuria (which – fun fact – used to be part of Korea). They were later introduced to China in 7th century B.C., and Japan in the 8th century A.D. While based on the same ingredient, Miso and Doenjang are prepared very differently. What makes Kore

There is a Korean saying, “Friendship and the taste of jang [fermented soy products] improve with age.” 70% of Korean food is naturally fermented. This includes kimchi, numerous other pickled vegetables, the popular rice drink shikhye, various types of salted seafood preserves, and the three major sauces (soy sauce, soybean paste, chili pepper paste). The 3rd century AD Chinese historical work Records of Three Kingdoms records that the people of Koguryo (one of the three Kore