Ask A Waeguk, Vol. 6.3

The third question comes from A. Christopher Garskey, formerly of Lindsay, Ontario. Mr. Garskey writes:

Dear Waeguk,

What is kimchi, and why would schoolchildren complain when it is dry? Also, I’ve heard positive reviews of Korean barbeque, but have never experienced it myself.
Have you indulged, and if so, what are your thoughts?
Also, have you noticed any seasonal changes in the local food?

The Waeguk Responds :

Kimchi is a staple of Korean cuisine. It's spicy pickled vegetables (most commonly cabbage), and is served with almost every meal. Most of my students will eat kimchi for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's typically quite moist, and thus if it were dry schoolchildren would likely find it offensive to their finely honed palates.

As for Korean barbeque, it's one of my favourite types of food here in Korea. At the Korean barbeque restaurant I frequent most often, pork is the meat of choice. It's an almost bacon-like cut, brought raw to the table on plates piled high. Each table has its own little charcoal grill, and the meat is cooked with onions, hot peppers, garlic, and sliced potato. When done, one removes the bacon and vegetables from the grill and wraps it in mint or other leaves along with one's sauce of choice. It can be a bit messy at times, but is really quite delectable.

As for seasonal changes in the local food, I haven't noticed many as of yet. The persimmons and clementines are in season, and are being sold on the street along with the standards of fish and bananas, but I haven't yet detected any huge differences in the eating habits.