PRECAUTION

To all muslim....U shouldn't try all the non-halal food on this blog....Thank Q

Yakshik (약식)

A typical snack enjoyed on Deborum (대 보름), or the full moon festival, is yakshik (약식). Yakshik (약식) is brown in color and sweet in taste. Today, we are going to learn how to make yakshik (약식).

METHOD:

First, soak about two cups of chapssal (찹 쌀) or glutinous rice in cold water for a day. If you don’t soak the chapssal (찹쌀), it won’t turn out soft and sticky, so make sure to soak, soak, soak. Then, take a cup of brown sugar and a cup of cinnamon and mix it together. Add two cups of water and a tablespoon of soy sauce. Next, mix in a half cup of raisins.

Then, open a can of bam (밤). Let me give you a hint as to what bam (밤) is. “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…” If you haven’t guessed alreay, bam is the Korean word for chestnut. Drain the water out of the can of bam (밤). If you don’t want the canned variety, you can buy some raw chestnuts. However, it takes more work with raw chestnuts because you have to peel off the hard skin.

Then get about a fourth of a cup of song kwa (송과). Song kwas (송과) are pine nuts. They are yellowish in color and used in American recipes as well. For example, pine nut oil is used in making brownies. Pine nuts come from pine cones. I guess you could look for some pine cones and try to shake out some pine nuts, but a better use of your time might be to buy it at the store.

Next, grab a handful of dechu (대추). Dechu (대 추) is a type of date or jujube. (Jujube as in the type that grows on trees, not the candy.) Dechus (대추) are red and look like dried raisins. Dechus (대추) give the yakshik (약식) a natural sweetness. Dechu (대추) is used not just in yakshik (약식) but in Korean teas and medicine as well.

Put everything in the rice cooker and wait for it to cook. When it’s done, it’s ready to be served! So dig in!

Ogok-bap (오곡밥)

Ogok-bap (오곡밥) is a common dish consumed on Deborum (대 보람) or the full moon festival. What is ogok-bap (오곡밥)? It’s a dish of five different types of grain.

The most prominent ingredient in ogok-bap (오 곡밥) is chapssal (찹쌀). Chapssal (찹쌀) is glutinous rice. When glutinous rice is cooked, it becomes sticky. Despite it’s name, glutinous rice does not contain gluten. So for all of you who are on a gluten-free diet, ogok-bap (오곡밥) is perfect for you.

Pat (팥) is a type of red soybean. Red soybeans are often sweetened and consumed as a type of paste in Korean desserts. In ogok-bap (오곡밥) red soybeans are not sweetened and consumed as a bean, not as paste.

There are also black soybeans called komjung kong (검정콩). Komjung kong (검정콩) contains a lot of protein. Komjung kong (검정콩) is the most recognizable ingredient in ogok-bap (오곡밥). They are huge and scattered all throughout the ogok-bap (오곡밥).

Bori (보리), which is barley grain in English, is used to make Korean tea. Bori (보리) is also used in U.S. goods like bread and oatmeal. Bori (보리) is really healthy and known to regulate blood sugar levels.

Lastly, ogok-bap (오곡밥) contains chasusu (차수수). Chasusu (차수수) is sorghum. Sorghum is used in the US as fodder for livestock and sometimes to produce molasses in alcoholic beverages.

So those are all the grains in ogok-bap (오곡밥). As you can see, it’s really healthy. There is some salt in ogok-bap (오 곡밥), but not enough to be bad for your health. Also, ogok-bap (오 곡밥) is consumed with a stew, so it’s not consumed just in and of itself. (ogok-bap by itself would be a very bland dish!) Ok everyone, gotta go, talk to you next time.

Deborum (대보름)

Deborum (대보름) is an up-coming festival celebrated on the fifteenth of January. This festival is based on the lunar calendar and means ‘great full moon.’ The locals believe that the first full moon appears on the fifteenth of January. Like many Korean festivals, there are always traditional activities that highlight the festival.

For example there is the tradition of cracking nuts with your teeth called borum (보름). It’s thought that cracking nuts with your teeth will create a healthy set of teeth for the coming year. The origins for this tradition is unclear. However, this tradition goes back to the time when dental care was not widespread in Korea. It may have been a way to deal with unhealthy teeth. Also, nuts are a good source of nutrition and many peasants who lacked protein could stock up on it with this tradition.

There’s also the tradition called orum (오름) on deborum (대보름). Orum (오름) is an activity where a mass of people try to climb the highest mountain peak in their local village. The first person to reach the top and see the full moon is the person who will have the most luck in the coming year.

The highlight of the festival is an activity called jwi-bul-nori (쥐 볼놀이). Jwi-bul-nori (쥐볼놀이) is an activity where used cans are poked with holes and stuffed with dry grass. The cans are lighted and children whirl the cans around a field of crops. The ash from the dry grass in the cans fertilize the fields. This game is a pyro maniac’s dream. The fires are quite big and spread far into the fields. Jwi-bul-nori (쥐볼놀이) serves two purposes. One of the purposes happen to be practical. Through a game-like fashion, jwi-bul-nori (쥐볼놀이) completes an important part of the agricultural cycle. The second purpose is more entertaining. The fires caused by jwi-bul-nori (쥐볼놀이) are beautiful. They are jaw-dropping.

Here’s what I mean by the deborum (대보름) festival being a arsonist’s paradise:

U-gong I-san

Today’s post is going to feature a four letter Korean proverb for the New Year. As you know, four letter proverbs are represented by Chinese characters. Here are the Chinese characters for the four letter proverbs: 愚公移山. Let’s break this proverb down to its syllables. This character 愚 is pronounced as ‘u.’ It means foolishness. The next character is 公 and is pronounced as ‘gong.’ Now, this character could have several meanings. It could mean ‘man’ or ’sir.’ For the purposes of today’s proverb, let’s focus on the meaning for ‘man.’ The character 移 is pronounced as ‘i’. 移 (i) is the root word meaning to move or transfer. Lastly, this character 山 is pronounced as san and means mountain.

Altogether this proverb means, ‘the foolish man who moved a mountain.’ Believe or not, this is a proverb with a positive meaning. Before I go further into what this proverb means, let me tell you the story behind this proverb.

A long time ago, there was a man named ugong (우공). Ugong (우공) noticed one day while walking that there were two mountains. The two mountains were connected to each other and they formed a formidable blockade so that people had to walk around it to get to the other side. This is when ugong (우공) got the idea to gather his sons and dig a pathway between the two mountains. Every day ugong (우공) and his sons would get a shovel to try to create a pathway. The work was difficult and seasons would change with no progress in sight.

The villagers laughed at ugong (우공). They called him a foolish man for trying to perform such a difficult task. Ugong (우 공) just replied and said, “After I die, my sons will carry out the work and their sons will carry out the work when my sons die. You’ll see, there’ll be a passageway between the mountains.” Unbeknownst to ugong (우공), the spirit residing on the mountain overheard ugong (우공). He felt pity for ugong (우 공) and decided to help ugong (우공). The spirit moved one of the mountains, creating a passageway between the two mountains.

So what’s the moral of the story? The moral is, hard work pays off. With persistence and dedication, you can achieve your dreams. True, ugong (우공) had a little help from his sons and the mountain spirit, but nonetheless his goals were fulfilled. Now let’s tie this story back to 愚公移山 (u-gong-i-san), our four letter proverb. This proverb literally means, ‘the foolish man who moved a moutain.’ Figuratively it means that you can move a mountain as well, especially if you work hard. The moving of a mountain symbolizes an impossible goal or dream. Therefore, this proverb signifies that an impossible dream can be accomplished with some persistence.

Why did I choose this proverb to represent the New Year? Looking back at 2008, it looks like people had a rough year. No matter how hard 2008 seemed, let this proverb be an inspiration to everyone.�

New Years's Superstitions

The New Year is a time of insecurity and doubt for some people. To ensure a successful year Korean people may perform rituals that seem strange to Americans. Some of these rituals are performed out of habit. Some of them are performed to prevent misfortune. Whatever the reason, this post will be a combination of funny and odd practices that are sure to pique your curiosity.

You might be interested to know that some Koreans drink a type of liquor called kkwi balki sol (뀌밝이솔). This tonic is supposed to clear one’s hearing for the New Year. The tonic supposedly protects the drinker from overhearing any malicious gossip. It’s also supposed to give the drinker the ability to accept wise advice. Honestly, I’m not exactly sure of the ingredients that make up kkwi balki sol (뀌밝이솔). This drink is home-made and contains a concoction of traditional and supersitious beliefs. For example, I’ve heard that some people put a pinch of animal feces in the drinks. In some parts of rural Korea, animal feces are considered healthy and often used as fertilizer. In that case, I don’t really want to know what’s inside of a kkwi balki sol (뀌밝이솔)!

Another interesting supersition is that of jeya (제야). Jeya (제야) is the custom of staying awake on sut dal ku mum (섣달그믐) or New Year’s Eve. If the person doesn’t stay up until midnight of New Year’s Eve, it’s considered bad luck. The local legends all say that your eyebrows will turn white and you’ll age faster than normal. Since people hating aging, it’s a custom that people try not to put off. The custom of jeya (제야) is also carried out because it’s thought that being awake and welcoming the New Year will lead to a bright, healthy and happy life. Since this affects my future, I just stay awake until 12:00 am then go back to sleep at 12:01.

Another tradition involves a little story. There is a boogeyman in Korean folklore called Yakwanggy (약왕기). Apparently Mr. Yakwanggy (약왕기) likes to take trips to Korean households and steal their shoes. As a result, Korean people hide their shoes inside the house. Usually shoes are left outside of the door, but since Yakwanggy (약왕기) is the dude stealing people’s shoes, it’s just not safe to leave the shoes outside. If your shoes are stolen, it’s considered bad luck. Shoes symbolize the means or paths to a goal or aspiration. If you no longer have the shoes you basically lack the means to carry out your New Year’s dreams. Here’s the funny part: to confuse Yakwangyy (약왕기), people leave a noodle strainer outside of their doors. I guess Yakwanggy (약 왕기) is not the brightest goblin out there, because he sees the strainer and becomes enchanted by it. He spends all his time counting the individual nooks and recounts them because he gets confused. Then, finding that the sun is on the rise, Yakwanggy (약왕기) runs away. Yakwanggy (약왕기) is the posterchild for the dark so yeah, sun is not his thing.

So whatever your New Year’s rituals are, just remember, don’t take it too seriously and just go with it for the fun of it.

New Years Games

Koreans celebrate the New Year with many traditional games. Yay! Games! Seriously, who doesn’t like games?! Some of the games that I’m about to list are not actually games, they’re more like traditional activities that people perform during the New Year’s celebrations. Nonetheless, they’re quite fun and interesting, so remember to enjoy them and have fun.

The easiest game to play is paengichiki (파 엔기치기). Paengichigi (파엔기치기) is a game where players try to knock over the other person’s spinning top. The person who has the spinning top still running is the winner. First you take the spinner in your hands and let it drop to the ground. Then you take a whip to strike the spinning top so that it continues to spin. I love playing this game on ice. When the spinner is put on ice, it spins way more rapidly than the floor. It’s a challenge to play on ice because you have to concentrate on the spinning top and yet make sure not to slip on the ice as well.

If you have good hand-eye coordination, you might want to try tuho (투호). Tuho (투호) is a game where you throw arrows into a vase. The person who has the most arrows in the vase is the winner. The vases may have several holes. The main hole is in the middle. The goal is to try to get the most arrows in the main hole. The other holes don’t count so if your arrows land there it’ll just be a waste of energy!

Here’s a game you can play by yourself: jegi-chagi (재 기차기). Jegi-chagi (재기차기) is a game of hacky sack. The American version of hacky sack involves a player kicking a bag filled with beans into the air. However, jegi-chagi (재기차기) is a little different. Instead of a bag of beans, a shuttlecock is used. The tip of the shuttlecock is covered with a coin. A piece of cloth covers the coin. This allows the shuttlecock to have a light base and a heavy top. The goal is to keep the shuttlecock in the air, using just your legs. If you use your arms or let it fall to the ground, then you’ve lost the game. My legs became so sore and I had muscle spams after playing it for an hour. Jegi-chagi (재기차기) is a great form of exercise. It’s fun for all ages and easy to play. Really, everyone can participate.

Lastly, the hardest game to play is neolttwigi (널뛰기). Neolttwigi (널뛰기) is a game of seesaw. The object of the game is to stay on the seesaw through a series of jumps, without falling down. This game is physically exhausting. First you have to jump and make sure your end of the seesaw touches the floor without falling. Then the person on the other end of the seesaw has to do the same. Honestly I like the American version of seesaw better because you just have to sit and let the other person do all the work. Unfortunately neolttwigi (널뛰기) is a game of jumping so no sitting is allowed.

So remember everyone, whatever you do this New Years, have fun and enjoy yourselves!