Koreans’ love for raw fish
Koreans love raw fish. Even though Koreans have been eating raw fish for as long as Japanese have, people know raw fish/sushi more of as Japanese food. It is very common for Koreans to eat raw sushi not to mention that it is one of the popular meals for corporate meetings. The way Koreans prepare raw fish is very different from how Japanese prepares it. While Korean style sushi is rather chewy, Japanese sushi is easier to chew and smoother. Any raw fish restaurants you go in South Korea, you will see small aquariums or tanks with live fish stock that you can pick. The fish that faces a sad destiny will be cut and prepared right in front of you at the spot depending on which restaurant you go to of course.
To begin with, the main difference of raw fish between Japanese and Korean is the names. It is called ‘Sashimi’ in Japanese and ‘Hweh’ in Korean. Unlike dipping the raw fish into soy sauce with wasabi, most Koreans dip in into a sauce called cho-jang or doen-jang. Cho-jang is sweet and spicy, and it has much stronger. Doen-jang is thick sauce that is made of dried soybeans. Depending on what sauce you use, you will see that the taste is completely different.
First, you start out with appetizers including boiled quail eggs, shell fish, sea squirt, and a few other complimentary dishes. Depending on where you go, appetizers vary. Based on my experiences, I love trying different side dishes/appetizers before the main entrée is brought out to the table. Second, the main entrée, the raw fish, comes out. Lastly, you finish up your meal with a spicy soup called maeun-tang which is made from what is left from preparing the raw fish including bones and the head of the fish.
Surprisingly, Hweh is considered as one of the expensive food to eat in Korea. They are as expensive as meat depending on where you go or what type of food you eat of course. The size of the dishes is normally divided into two types: so and dae. ‘So’ refers to a 1-2 person dishes and ‘Dae’ refers to a 3-4 person dish. Now that you have a better understanding of raw fish in Korea, do you feel like experiencing ultimate Korean culture? Then, I would strongly recommend going for some Hweh for dinner tonight.
