Rice rice rice~

[javiskefka]

oh! but my real favorite thing is when we cook at the table on a burner and we just have a big wok with a bunch of vegetables and some kind of meat and spicy stuff and sometimes 떡 or even ramen in it and then we all just kind of eat out of the wok. is there a name for food like that? i don't know. i suppose it would depend on what was in it..

Sounds like 부대찌개. The point is that it can have a great variety of things in it. The name means something like "Troop Soup". After the war, meat was hard to come by in the city, so people that lived around the US military base and had access to hot dogs and spam would use it in a stew thrown together with whatever other ingredients they could get that day. It's still served today, even though the ingredients have become somewhat standardized.

[holdfast]

yeah, i've seen it made with spam too. very interesting! every time we've had it it's been different ingredients, but just the idea of everyone (like 8 people) sitting around one big table eating out of the pan we cooked the food in on the table... i like that, no matter what the food actually is!

[Keith]

부대찌개 is magical. It's everything that's delicious in one pot! Amazing stuff. Definitely recommend it to anyone if they ever have the chance

[Bouks]

Since this thread started out about rice...here is an amusing note I found at the bottom of a Korean rice recipe (I don't think the writer meant to be funny, but it made me laugh):

Generally speaking, if Americans are to be served, use
1/2 cup uncooked rice for each person. Double the
amount if cooking for Koreans, especially Korean men.

Straight and to the point!

[steved]

That is very funny.
Koreans have an innate belief that they cannot survive without rice. They find it difficult to imagine living on bread or another grain as a staple.

Speaking of rice... rice prices have skyrocketed where I live. In fact, medium/short grain is out of stock at the warehouse stores (costco/sams). But I understand that Korea isn't feeling the world rice shortage much at all. My sister-in-law says that prices are the same as ever (which have always seemed high compared with the U.S.) and supply is good. Any thoughts as to why?

[rooraa]

Yeah, I know what you mean! The price for rice has indeed rose. My friend's mom immediately went out and bought a whole bunch! As for why the cost in Korea hasn't rose, I haven't the slightest idea....but lucky for them!

[austinfd]

My shot in the dark guess is that Korea's rice growers haven't been hit by whatever is causing the shortage. Koreans would much prefer to use local rice, so perhaps there isn't any wild change in the market.....

[Keith]

I'm not sure if Korea can be self sufficient in terms of rice, but people want to support Korean farmers. But that's an interesting question. When food runs out... everyone move to Korea! (And I'm only half-joking!

[javiskefka]

Well, as far as I know, the US Dept. of Agriculture provides substantial subsidies for corn and soybean producers. This keeps prices for those products in the domestic market quite low, and it's why corn syrup is used as a sweetener so widely and soy lecithin is used so widely as an emulsifier and lubricant. Our rice on the other hand, comes primarily from overseas, so it is subject to price fluctuations on the international market.

In this case, the effect of weather conditions reducing the harvests worldwide in rice-producing countries and rising gas prices increasing the cost of production have had a huge effect on many agricultural products on the international market, rice being only one example.

South Korea, for historical and cultural reasons, has had a policy of subsidizing rice production, so the domestic market for rice would be more insulated from price fluctuation on the international market. That would explain why the price of rice at the supermarket has not increased there very much.

As for me, I can't eat as much rice as is served at Korean tables. it just makes my stomach feel like exploding.

[SiEd]

Rice prices are crazy around here, especially for the long-grain types such as jasmine. As for short-grain types, the prices aren't so bad. And I much prefer short-grain.

[sierras3]

I love 만두!!! I love dumplings from any culture... dim sum... mandu... gyoza... ravioli? ^_^

I also like 잡재, 김치전, 비빔밥... and all barbequed pork... ^_^

Rice prices also rose, where I come from. It's crazy... it's more than a 50% increase... and I CANNOT live without rice... my family and friends call me the 'rice bucket' cos I eat so much rice. When I was in school, I used to eat 3-4 meals of rice a day. These days I only manage 1 or 2 since I can't find a place selling rice 24 hours... hehe! And also cos if i still eat like a did during my adolesence... I'd get very, very fat... But I still eat like 2 bowls per meal...

I love short grain too!!! The rice in China, Japane and Korea and mostly short grain... they look like pearls... love them!!! YUMM!!!

I should write a song about rice...

[Keith]

I love 만두!!! I love dumplings from any culture... dim sum... mandu... gyoza... ravioli? ^_^

I also like 잡재, 김치전, 비빔밥... and all barbequed pork... ^_^

Rice prices also rose, where I come from. It's crazy... it's more than a 50% increase... and I CANNOT live without rice... my family and friends call me the 'rice bucket' cos I eat so much rice. When I was in school, I used to eat 3-4 meals of rice a day. These days I only manage 1 or 2 since I can't find a place selling rice 24 hours... hehe! And also cos if i still eat like a did during my adolesence... I'd get very, very fat... But I still eat like 2 bowls per meal...

I love short grain too!!! The rice in China, Japane and Korea and mostly short grain... they look like pearls... love them!!! YUMM!!!

I should write a song about rice...

thats some real passion for rice!!!

[SiEd]

thats some real passion for rice!!!

Yeah it is... Are Koreans squeamish with the idea of eating noodles with rice, i.e. starch on starch?

[sierras3]

Hehe... yea... I'm famous for my passion for rice I find that even when I'm stuffed, I would want to finish my rice, instead of the dishes... Is there a name for a person like me in Korean? ^_^

I dunno about Koreans... but in Malaysia... sometimes we do that... we have these places where they sell rice and dishes buffet style. You take a plate of rice, or noodles or vermicelli, and you add like 3-4 dishes to it (meat, vegetables, tofu...) and you pay like $2-$3. I've seen people fill their plates half with rice and the other with noodles. I do that sometimes, when I feel like eating both

I think I'm mostly crazy about food... could be a Chinese trait... but then again... I have friends who don't eat much. I think that's weird... hehe!