Korean cuisine facts for kids
| Korean cuisine | |
Hanjeongsik, a full-course Korean meal with a varied array of banchan (side dishes)
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Quick facts for kids Korean name |
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| Hangul |
[한국요리 or 한식 ] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)
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| Hanja |
[韓國料理 or 韓食 ] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)
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| Revised Romanization | Hanguk yori or Hansik |
Korean cuisine came from very old traditions in Korea. It has developed through many environmental, political, and cultural changes. There are special rules for eating meals in Korea.
Korean cuisine is mostly made up of rice, noodles, vegetables, and meats. Most Korean meals have many side dishes (called banchan) along with their steam-cooked rice. Kimchi is usually eaten at every meal. Sesame oil, doenjang, soy sauce, salt, garlic, ginger, pepper and gochujang are ingredients that are often used in the food.
In different provinces of Korea, its ingredients and dishes are different, too. The Korean royal court cuisine used to serve all the best dishes from each province for the royal family. People follow special rules when they eat meals in Korea.
Dining manners
The oldest people are usually served first, and it is thought rude to pick up chopsticks or eat before the oldest people do so. In Korea, unlike in China and Japan, the rice bowl is not lifted up from the table. Spoons should not hit bowls while eating. Some rules are now not important. For instance, talking used to be discouraged, but today people usually talk together at meals. Also, men usually ate at a different table than women, but now they eat all together.
In Korea, they have both spoons and chopsticks, and together they are called sujeou (pronounced soo-juh). Usually, before they eat, people say, "Jalmukgessemnidah" (to show appreciation to the person who prepared for the food). Soups and stews must be set on the right side of the person who is eating.
List of Korean dishes
- Meat Dishes
- Bulgogi: a popular dish of beef cooked on a grill
- Galbi: pork or beef ribs, thicker than bulgogi. It is often called "Korean BBQ"
- Samgyeopsal: Bacon, served like Galbi. It is often cooked with onions and garlic, and is eaten wrapped in lettuce. When it is wrapped in lettuce it is called ssam
- Fish dishes
- Hoe (pronounced 'hweh'): raw seafood dish dipped in sauce and eaten wrapped up in lettuce or sesame leaves
- Sannakji: Raw octopus, it is usually served alive
- Soups and stews
- Grain dishes
- Usually made with rice, which is the main meal
- Snacks or Simple Foods
- These simple foods can be bought at shops on the street and are usually thought of as snacks rather than meals
- Bindaetteok: Meaning mung-bean pancake
- Bungeoppang: A popular fish-shaped cake pastry
- Kimbap: Cooked rice and other ingredients that are rolled in dried sheets of nori seaweed
Sweets
Traditional rice cakes like tteok are eaten as treats during holidays and festivals. Tteok means all rice cakes made from pounded rice, pounded glutinous rice, or glutinous rice that has not been pounded. It is usually filled or covered with sweet mung bean paste, red bean paste, raisins, or a sweet, creamy filling made with sesame seeds, pumpkin, beans, pine nuts, and honey. Tteok is usually eaten for dessert or as a snack.
Images for kids
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Silver spoon and chopsticks entombed with King Injong in 1146
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Budae jjigae, a spicy stew originated during the Korean War.
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Korean chicken dish (Jjimdak) in Sydney, Australia
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Kongguksu, a cold noodle dish with a broth made from ground soy beans
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Tangpyeongchae, a dish made with nokdumuk (a mung bean starch jelly) and vegetables
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Marinated galbi before grilling
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Miyeok guk, a soup made from the sea seaweed, miyeok
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Gaegogi Jeongol
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Japchae, a kind of Korean noodle dish made with marinated beef and vegetables in soy sauce and sesame oil.
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Bulgogi, a grilled Korean dish; the meat and vegetables shown here have not yet been grilled.
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Namul
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Jokbal : pig's feet, a type of Anju.
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Daechu cha (jujube tea)
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A bowl of makgeolli, a type of takju
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Various hahngwa
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A traditional meal in Kaesong, North Korea.
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Korean temple cuisine at Sanchon, a restaurant located in Insadong, Seoul.
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Closeup of the ingredients in goldongban or bibimbap
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Korea Street Food tteokbokki (떡볶이) and Eomuk (어묵/오뎅)
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A single-person bapsang (meal table). Each person was given a table in a traditional dining setting.
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Korean chopsticks and spoon made of stainless steel.
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Anapji Lake in Gyeongju, the capital of Silla Kingdom.
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A model of the royal kitchen in the Dae Jang Geum theme park, South Korea.
See also
In Spanish: Gastronomía de Corea para niños
