By Valerie Boje
Pretoria - Food may be a necessity, but when travelling it should become part of the fun of learning something about the country one is visiting.
I travelled recently to Seoul, South Korea, and despite there being familiar international fast food outlets available, I was keen to eat like the locals.
Over the course of a week I got to try a wide variety of food. The only time I opted to look - rather than taste - was when bombarded with the sights and smells of a food hall at Dongdaemun market where ox head slices and pigs' feet were a leap too far for my palate.
More inviting was Myeong-dong, in the heart of the city, packed with people and street stalls between gleaming departmental stores offering traditional snacks late into the night. My favourite such snacks proved to be gimbap - rice (bap) mixed with vegetables rolled in thin sheets of seaweed and cut into bite-size rings, and kkochi, or skinny skewers of meat.
I was fortunate to have as my day-time companions two young Koreans, Rachel Cho and Eunice Sung, happy to make suggestions and share meals with me. We ventured into a variety of establishments, trying out everything from traditional Korean food to other cuisines popular among city residents.
They were keen to get me to understand some of the flavours which set Korean food apart, starting with my first experience of fermented kimchi cabbage. Some say there are 100 types of kimchi, others put the number at 200, but key is the stock made of onion, garlic and chilli powder, among other ingredients. Kimchi, with diced pickled radish, was served as a side dish to many of our meals and one quickly becomes accustomed to the spicy taste.
Other treats on the must-eat menu were bimimbap, an attractive and delicious dish made of steamed rice topped with vegetables, meat and egg, which is then mixed with a chilli paste; guksu, a spicy soup; bulgogi, a marinated and grilled beef dish, Korean noodles in hot or cold broth, and mandu or dumplings.
My companions pointed out that Korean food, aside from being pleasing on the eye, is balanced and extremely healthy. All elements of the meal are brought to the table simultaneously, make for easy sharing.
A highlight was a set menu in Gyeonggi-do, a pretty region outside of the capital.
There at a traditional restaurant we sat on the floor and were served a variety of dishes including a beef patty which puts fast-food hamburger patties to shame, as well as a royal-style meal with a variety of meat, seafood, rice and vegetable, side dishes, sauces and desserts at a traditional restaurant in Seoul.
It was not all Korean food though: we also had Japanese style sushi, a Chinese meal and ended our culinary experience at a barbeque restaurant where shortrib was braaied right there on the table.
Aside from breakfast at the Plaza Hotel where I was staying, I abandoned Western cutlery for the week in favour of the lightweight metal chopsticks popular in Korea. However, one morning I watched in fascination as a young boy at a nearby table deftly managed a traditional English breakfast using chopsticks.
Back home and Korean National Day provided a chance to have some favourite snacks again.
For those who'd like a taste of South Korea, the upcoming Korean film and food festival on October 22 at Open Window in Centurion provides the perfect opportunity.
The event features Korean music (from 4.15pm), a K-pop dance performance, Korean films (My Paparotti is at 6pm), traditional games, mask making, and an exhibition.
The food festival includes a Korean food market offering everything from royal to street food and Korean drinks.
To find out more, call 012 460 2508, visit the Korean Embassy on Facebook or e-mail [email protected].
Pretoria News