A few things I thought I probably wouldn't eat before I came here, but then did:
1) Sundae 순대
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundae_(Korean_food)
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| image credit: http://www.buhaykorea.com |
This was the only thing that I had predetermined I would absolutely not touch before my plane landed in Incheon Airport (well, never say never.) Open minded or not, as a recent non-vegetarian, it was too much to think about.
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| it's less appealing in this format image credit: http://roadsandkingdoms.com/2012/sundae/ |
Sundae is a blood sausage stuffed inside of a pig's intestine. The first time I tried it was at a dak galbi 닭갈비 restaurant and my coworker wouldn't tell me what it was. And you know, it wasn't half bad, but as soon as it was in my mouth, I remembered my conviction and that I had chanted, "Sundae, sundae," in my head before I came so that I'd remember what it was. Anticlimactic ending; the texture is a little bit chewy, due to the noodles inside, but it's pretty innocuous if you don't think about it. My favorite tteokbokki 떡볶이 place serves their curry tteokbokki with sundae chopped up in it. The first couple of times, I just went for it and consumed the whole thing. The power of the mind is strong, though, and I can't not think about the bloody flavor. So I've learned how to say "without sundae" (anyone speak korean: bego? I can't find the word I'm looking for in the dictionary, it keeps telling me to use "없이." In any case...) The woman who works there also knows me by now, so she tends to omit the sundae without my asking. I did eat a piece again last night at dak galbi, and in comparison to the following entry, it was grand!
2) Dried bug guys. Silkworm Pupae 번데기
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beondegi
This wasn't even my first venture into bug eating, but I can't force bravado here. I've tried these little guys twice and I think that's the limit. When you bite into them, their insides squirt juicily into your mouth. Not to mention the aftertaste is very strong, and to me tastes distinctly buggy. I don't think my stomach loves them, because both times I ate merely one bug and was burping up bug flavor for hours afterwards. I also tried these for the first time at a dak galbi restaurant. The woman was standing over us, cutting up the meat, and for some reason I thought this was a perfect time to try it.
"Not delicious?" she said, laughing at whatever face I made.
I tried it again last night. I just can't get over how particular the taste is. Give me sundae any day. Still, worth the venture.
3) Chicken off the side of the road
Maybe this shouldn't be an entry in and of itself, but I ate chicken on a stick from a food truck on the side of the road. Ya know? My L.A. instincts were fighting me, but it was pretty good and I'm still here to tell the tale.
I tried to think of one more entry, but to be honest, everything else is very palatable; I like seafood and I eat meat now. Today, I was invited to attend my coworker's wedding, where I tried a myriad of new treats that had no names attached to them. One thing I recognized but hadn't tried until today was dessert tteok (which had a sweet sauce, sesame seeds, and sesame oil inside, I think.) It was very nice. Every day is a new adventure.
Sort of. That's a fib, let me be real; for dinner I ate a cheddar cheese sandwich from the block of cheese my coworker brought me from Costco. It was delicious.
2) Dried bug guys. Silkworm Pupae 번데기
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beondegi
 |
| image credit: http://upinthecloudsisay.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/spiced-beondegi/ |
This wasn't even my first venture into bug eating, but I can't force bravado here. I've tried these little guys twice and I think that's the limit. When you bite into them, their insides squirt juicily into your mouth. Not to mention the aftertaste is very strong, and to me tastes distinctly buggy. I don't think my stomach loves them, because both times I ate merely one bug and was burping up bug flavor for hours afterwards. I also tried these for the first time at a dak galbi restaurant. The woman was standing over us, cutting up the meat, and for some reason I thought this was a perfect time to try it.
"Not delicious?" she said, laughing at whatever face I made.
I tried it again last night. I just can't get over how particular the taste is. Give me sundae any day. Still, worth the venture.
3) Chicken off the side of the road
Maybe this shouldn't be an entry in and of itself, but I ate chicken on a stick from a food truck on the side of the road. Ya know? My L.A. instincts were fighting me, but it was pretty good and I'm still here to tell the tale.
I tried to think of one more entry, but to be honest, everything else is very palatable; I like seafood and I eat meat now. Today, I was invited to attend my coworker's wedding, where I tried a myriad of new treats that had no names attached to them. One thing I recognized but hadn't tried until today was dessert tteok (which had a sweet sauce, sesame seeds, and sesame oil inside, I think.) It was very nice. Every day is a new adventure.
Sort of. That's a fib, let me be real; for dinner I ate a cheddar cheese sandwich from the block of cheese my coworker brought me from Costco. It was delicious.
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