Happy New Year's SADDONEANS!!!!

[Gandalf]

Im a picky eater at the best of times, so some of the more traditional Korean fare is not to my pallete. Their national dish is this thing called Kimchi and its like a pickled cabbage marinaded in chilli and a few other ingredients. Im not a big veggie man so I dont really like it. The worst time was teaching at my old public school the morning after a night out. If a student breathes that on you and you have a rancid hangover, life can be very difficult! They eat a lot of noodles and stews. Chilli powder is omnipresent!

The Korean stuff that I really like is mainly meat stuff. They do this great stuff called "galbi" which is beef off the rib marinaded in garlic, soy sauce and some other things and you cook it on the fire in the middle of your table and it tastes great! They also do great barbecue chicken and it comes with a sauce that seems unique to Korea. Its very spicy but at the same time has a sweetness. Ive never tasted this outside Korea. Tastes really good. In the baking summer Korean men like to eat Samgyetang which is basically a whole chicken boiled in garlic, pepper and heavy with ginseng. Apparently its good for stamina! It takes some getting used to but tastes fine.

The Koreans eat a lot of kimchi and rice goes along with that. Koreans eat a lot of side dishes. These could be things crab, chillies all sorts of things. usually marinaded in sauces of different type. The Koreans also eat a lot of fish. I actually dont like fish and its very difficult if I go to the beach because there are row after row of only seafood restaurants. The scariest one is baby octopus. They octopus comes on the plate and is dead but still writhing around. My friend went to the beach with his girlfriend a long time back and she ordered the octopus. He was understandably scared. She started devouring it but was annoyed that he wasnt eating. She offered him a piece writhing between her chopsticks. He reticently bit into it. It was still moving in his mouth and he panicked and if you dont chew quick enough the tentacles will stick to your mouth or tongue. This duly happened and my friend ended up throwing up all around the table. The tentacles did come free thankfully. Quite a popular dish herethough. That is a great story. I shall never forget it!

Love kimchi. Just didn't realize that it was the main stay there. I've got a Korean buddy that makes that S*** up & mean.

I love sushi & the likes...but not octopus...& especially not live.

I've eaten a few Japanese delicacies like live clam & squid...but that's as deep as I'll go.

Kimchi is indeed a dish that originated from here. A lot of foreigners here grow to like it too. I just cannot digest it. Like I say, Im a picky bugger!!

You are a much more adventurous eater than me, by far Wacko!!

Even my mother hates cooking for me!!! :P

And Ive heard that it isnt too difficult to find Korean food in the states. A lot of koreans have emigrated there over the years and Ive heard that there are restaurants. Im sure the food must have large resemblences to the Korean made stuff, though differences will of course occur generationally and according to the taste of the local populace...

Yep. There's a shitload of Korean immi's here.

Even in my little small a** town there's a little Korean food store...just right down the road. They got some crazy S*** in there though...parts of animals that I can hardly look at...much less eat.

In their defense though...it aint strictly Korean...but majority.

As far as food goes...the wife hates cooking for me because...no S***...I'd eat sushi every night of the week...seriously...EVERY NIGHT.

I even keep a jar of wasabi powder in the cabinet for when I eat steak & baked fish.

Im not keen on the chicken assholes. I just dont like to eat that! Korean food is really good for me just as long as there is no fish and veg is limited to potato and onion! But Gimchi, its just a no goer!

Sushi every night Wacko? Holy cow!!!

Im just picky remember!!