Tag: Korean food

Activists Call for South Korean Lawmakers to Ban the Sale of Dog Meat

| July 11, 2023

Korea will have come a long way if lawmakers end up banning dog meat:

From left, Reps. Han Jeong-ae, Nam In-soon, Ko Min-jung and Seo Young-seok of the Democratic Party of Korea, Seoul City Councilor Kim Ji-hyang and HSI Korea Executive Director Chae Jung-ah hold a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, Monday, calling for a legislative ban on the consumption of dog meat. Newsis
From left, Reps. Han Jeong-ae, Nam In-soon, Ko Min-jung and Seo Young-seok of the Democratic Party of Korea, Seoul City Councilor Kim Ji-hyang and HSI Korea Executive Director Chae Jung-ah hold a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, Monday, calling for a legislative ban on the consumption of dog meat. Newsis

Lawmakers and animal rights advocates joined forces, Monday, to urge the National Assembly to introduce a legislative bill that will permanently end the consumption of dog meat and eliminate the cruel industry. 

The group of four lawmakers, all of whom are from the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, one Seoul City councilor and an animal rights advocate delivered their message in a press conference at the Assembly in Seoul, one day ahead of this year’s “chobok,” which marks the beginning of the hottest part of summer.

Traditionally, Koreans consumed dog meat on the day to replenish their strength against the hot weather, but this practice has been on a sharp decline, and more people opt for samgyetang, a soup containing chicken and ginseng.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but I can remember the years prior to the 2002 World Cup where the boshintang restaurants could be easily spotted. However, because of the international attention of the World Cup these restaurants became much more discreet. Now a days I hardly ever see them as Korean consumers have largely given up on eating dog meat.

My biggest problem with dog farming in South Korea is that some of these farmers are very inhumane with dogs raised in small cages and then beaten to death to better tenderize the meat.

ROK Military to Improve Food Menus for Its Troops

| March 8, 2023

It will be interesting to see how much these regulations will improve morale for troops eating in ROK military chow halls. I have eaten in ROK Army chow halls before and the food wasn’t bad, but if I had to eat it every day with no variety I can understand why Soldiers would complain:

South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Monday announced a new food service modernization program for this year that meets more of soldiers’ preferences, so that they could enjoy more varied options at barracks starting from the next month.

The new plan seeks to end the previous military policy of providing meals to around 500,000 enlisted soldiers based on standardized menus and ingredients that were unilaterally imposed by the military authorities without considering soldiers’ predilections for food.

South Korean troops have so far designed a daily menu to meet the allocated amount of food ingredients that must be supplied to soldiers. For instance, the existing food service program mandates that a soldier should consume 8.84 grams of white radish, 1.54 grams of green pumpkin, and 3.41 grams of napa cabbage per day.

But the new policy — which will be implemented this April — enables military units to independently select menus to reflect the preferences of enlisted soldiers as long as meal plans cover their nutritional needs and are within budget.

The South Korean military will also renounce its mandatory consumption rate of livestock products. For instance, troops are currently required to allocate 15 percent of pork loin and 22 percent of pork foreleg when stir-frying pork.

But according to the new program, the units will be able to freely choose livestock products within the budget.

The frequency of providing unflavored milk, which is not popular among soldiers, will be reduced. The military will instead supply flavored milk products, soybean milk and juice to soldiers to reflect their preferences.

The South Korean troops will also be able to provide various brands of processed food products, including tofu, sugar, salt and cooking oil. Military units do not have the option to choose brands as only a single company is selected as a provider.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Is Korean Hanwoo the Best Beef in the World?

| August 27, 2018

That is what the USA Today publication is claiming:

Korean beef, not Japan’s wagyu, “might be the best meat on earth,” according to an article in USA Today last week that seems to reflect fresh global recognition.

“Wagyu from Japan is often held up as the best beef in the world,” says an article by Bloomberg’s published in March last year. But the headline asked “Is Wagyu the World’s Most Overrated Steak?”

Wagyu is loved for its tenderness, but some complain that it is too soft and buttery and does not have enough flavor. On the other hand Korean beef, or hanwoo, is said to have great flavor as well as texture to the palate. They are both highly marbled but are distinctively different in taste.

The key to the difference in taste is the fat-to-protein ratio. Wagyu ribeye is about 70 percent fat and 30 percent protein, whereas hanwoo ribeye has 40 to 50 percent fat. It strikes a fine balance between the strengths of wagyu and less fatty and tougher American or Australian beef.  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read more at the link or the original USA Today article at this link.