Korean Food Translated, Moving to Korea

Pre-note: If you REALLY want to learn Korean (at least the basics), then check out my Korean Lessons Page

In case you are not familiar with the Romanization of Korean,
here are the Korean vowels:

Consonants are pretty much the same (for all intents and purposes) as English, but the syllable containing double consonants is stressed. Other than that, Korean is a non-tonal language.

"Kimchi" is the old spelling, but it probably will remain forever, because it was added to the English language before the Korean government changed the Romanization of the Korean language around the year 2000. The new spelling is "gimchi". I shall use both spellings interchangeably here.

There are many kinds of kimchi. The most popular, shown above, is cabbage kimchi, or baechu gimchi in Korean. It is made with so-called "Chinese cabbage" which is different from any cabbage we have in the West. It tastes better, too. (Of course, that is just my opinion).

Chong-gak Kimchi is made from long, white radishes. I'd estimate that they are about an inch in diameter and about 3 or 4 inches long. The spices used and the process to make it is, I believe, the same as with cabbage kimchi. The texture of the radishes is hard. They have that stringent raddishy taste, much like the red raddishes we are used to in the West.

GGak-du-gi is made from huge white turnips. The spices and process used to make it is the same as cabbage kimchi, I believe. I personally like the texture (softer) and taste (less raddishy) better than the Chong-gak kimchi. It would seem that many Koreans agree with me, because I don't see it much in restaurants these days. {Another name for this kimchi could possibly be Mu Kimchi, because the turnip is called Mu in Korean.}

Baek (white) Kimchi is a cabbage kimchi, but without the red hot chili powder/sauce (whatever they use). It is very similar to sour kraut.

There are other kinds as well: pa (green onion) kimchi, hobak nip (pumpkin leaf) kimchi, sang-chu (lettuce) kimchi, gge nip (sesame leaf) kimchi, doraji (balloon flower root) kimchi, and others, for which the names I do not know.

Romanization	English translation
¢¢ç¢¢ç
al tang	fish egg tonic/soup
bap	steamed/cooked rice (see appendix below for some linguistic-cultural tidbits about this entry: click here)
baek ban	["baek" is a Sino-Korean morpheme meaning 'white' and "ban" means 'cooked rice'] Hence, it is a bowl of steamed rice served with miscellaneous side dishes. (This meal is a staple in Korea).
ban chan	side dish(es)
bbang	From FRENCH: "pain", which means "bread" or more accurately: "baked leavened wares" (and you will notice that most, if not all, bakeries in Korea bake their wares in the French style, and even use French nomenclature for the various kinds of wares).
beon-de-gi	silk worm pupa (steamed and eaten as is)
bi-bim bap	vegetables mixed with steamed rice (usually contains minute amounts of ground pork, but can be ordered without; AND, oft times contains half-cooked egg, but you can order it without the egg if you are a vegan)
boggeum bap	fried rice gimchi boggeum bap = kimchi fried rice se-u boggeum bap = shrimp fried rice ja jang boggeum bap = fried rice w/ sweet soy sauce hae-mul boggeum bap = sea-food fried rice
bo-shin-tang	[literally] "protect-body tonic/soup"; dog-meat stew (made of dog meat) {traditionally eaten in June to beat the heat}
bu-chim gae	same as jeon (see jeon below) [Bu-chim gae is the original Korean term. Jeon is a Sino-Korean word.] [Buchida (v.) means "stick" or "glue" together, so buchim (n.) is a bunch of vegetables (and sometimes meat) stuck together in a pancake-like batter]
bul-gogi	[literally] "fire meat" {barbequed marinated meat; usually beef, unless specified otherwise; non-beef examples include: toggi bulgogi (rabbit fire-meat), or gae bulgogi (dog fire-meat}.
bun shik	[bun is a Sino-Korean morpheme meaning 'flour' and shik means 'food'] "flour food", including ddeok, ddeok boggi, ddeok guk, ra-myeon, guk-su, etc.
bung-eo	carp (not eaten, but see bung eo bbang below)
bung-eo bbang	[literally] "carp bread", a leavened bread baked and filled with red beans, and in the shape of a carp
cham-chi	tuna
je yuk deop bap	pork over rice (very spicy)
cheo bap	sushi [Jananese-English word] (raw fish over rice)
cheol-pan	[literally] "Iron Plate"; Stir-fry
dalk galbi	chicken ribs (de-boned and cooked as spicy stir-fry)
ddeok	rice cake(s) [That is how the bilingual lexicons in Korean translate it. I am NOT fond of that translation, because in America, "rice cakes" are dried-puffed rice made into the shape of a cake. Ddeok is nothing like that. I prefer to think of ddeok as unleavened rice dough. I have seen how it is made at a ddeok factory on the Isle of Gang Hwa. Raw rice is poured into a machine. The machine grinds it into a powder. Hot water is added, and it is mixed into a very glutinous dough. Then, the dough is pressed into "cakes".]
ddeok boggi	[literally] "fried unleavened-rice-dough cakes" (rice-dough cakes fried in sweet & spicy sauce)
ddeok guk	unleavened-rice-dough cake soup (not spicy)
ddon-ggasseu	[Koreanized-Japanese Word] breaded pork cutlet
doeji galbi /dweji galbi/	pork ribs (marinated, de-boned, and barbecued in front of you)
dol sot bi-bim bap	[dol means "stone"; sot means "cauldron"] vegetables mixed with steamed rice served in a HOT stone bowl (or cauldron)
doen jang /dwen jang/	soy bean paste (fermented and dehydrated, then rehydrated for eating) doen jang guk = soy bean paste soup doen jang jji-gae = soy bean paste stew
eo-muk	fish bar [Leon's word]; [SEE ALSO: o-deng {Japanese-Korean Word} ] I believe that it is made the same way a frankfurter (wiener) is made, but the ingredients are all parts of fish.
galbi	ribs
gamja tang	potato stew (contains: potatoes, pork spine, and chili powder)
ge	crab ggot ge = common variety rock crab
ggueong	pheasant
gim	laver (pressed seaweed)
gim bap	rice-laver roll (steamed rice, ham, & vegetables rolled in laver)
gimchi	fermented vegetables (usually cabbage & usually spicy)
goang-eo /gwang-eo/	flatfish (all kinds, including halibut) (eaten raw)
guk-su	[literally] "soup water"; broth
gul	oyster(s)
gye ran	chicken egg(s)
hae-jang guk	Hang-over soup (said to be excellent for relieving hang-overs; there are various recipes. Some recipes contain heart of either pig or cow (probably pig))
hae-mul tang	sea-food stew (spicy)
hoe /hwe/	raw fish
hot dog	/say: haht dohg/ = frankfurter on a stick (usually covered in batter and deep fried; very greasy)
ja jang myeon	soy sauce and noodles (for more info, see appendix)
jeon	[literally] "grilled food" (Korean pancake, which contains chopped up vegetables) [Jeon is a Sino-Korean word]. It is usually served as a side dish. (see also: buchim gae)
jjam bbong	[literal meaning: hodge podge] A Korean dish served only in Korean-Chinese restaurants, which contains sea-food in noodle soup (very spicy) {Notice: the word does NOT come from Chinese, and that is because it is NOT a traditional Chinese dish}.
jji-gae	stew (there are various kinds of jji-gae, most common are kimchi jji-gae and dwen-jang jji-gae)
jjol myeon	a VERY spicy egg noodle dish, served cold
jju-ggu-mi	??? (a really small species of the octopus family) [Served as a spicy stir-fry]
kong namul	bean sprout
kong namul guk	bean sprout broth
kong namul guk bap	broth of bean sprouts and steamed rice, served boiling hot in a stone bowl with a raw egg placed on top and rice on the side. One is supposed to put the rice in the broth and mix. The egg quickly becomes cooked because the broth is so hot. [Culture: Koreans love their food, soups and drinks hot... really HOT!]
L.A. galbi	beef ribs (marinated, de-boned, and barbecued in front of you)
man-du	dumpling(s) [only no fruit inside]; usually vegetables and/or meat are inside a pasta-noodle-wrap-like thing I would call them: wonton(s) [Cantonese-American word]; [Note: in Han-Chinese, the word is: jiao³ zi.]
mae-chu-ra-gi al	quail eggs [served hard boiled as a side dish]
mo-mil	buckwheat noodles (served in Japanese-style restaurants and eaten dipped in a kind of soy sauce)
muk	"jello" (an edible gelatinous substance); [NOTE: there are various kinds of muk: dotori muk = acorn jello (brownish in color) maemil muk = buckwheat jello (greyish color) nokdu muk = green bean jello (greenish color) ? muk = jellyfish jello (whitish in color)
myeol-chi	anchovies (eaten dried, or rehydrated as a side dish)
myeon	noodle
nakji	??? (small species of the octopus family which is unknown to me, and Yahoo bilingual dictionary)
neng myeong	cold noodles (noodles served over ice or in ice-cold water)
nu-rung-ji	rice crust (from the rice pot) served in boiling water. (Koreans don't waste anything. The pot containing the remaining rice crust is filled with water and boiled. Then, it is served as a dessert. Koreans love it. I don't particularly like it, but I don't hate it either.)
o-deng	[Koreanized Japanese word] "fish bar" [See also: eo-muk]
o-jing-eo	cuttlefish or calamari (sometimes called squid, but this is incorrect, because squid is much bigger)
o-jing-eo deop bap	cuttlefish or calamari legs over rice (quite spicy)
omu-rice	omelet over rice
ra-myeon	noodle soup; [ALSO, in America, 'Ramen', which is a word borrowed from Japanese] (Korean variety is more spicy than the Japanese variety)
sa-cheol tang	[literally] "four-season tonic/soup"; dog-meat stew (made of dog meat, same as bo-shin tang) {NOTE: probably the name was invented to increase sales in other seasons besides June}
sam-gye tang	[literally] ginseng & chicken tonic/soup {NOTE: When you find your energy zapped due to the Korean heat, try some chicken 'tonic' soup. I don't know if it really works to fight the heat, but it can give you energy, because it contains very healthy ingredients, such as ginseng, Chinese dates, chestnuts, all of which are considered to be very healthy in Korea.}
sam-gyeop sal	[literally] 3-layer flesh (Korean BACON) served barbecued and eaten with vegetables and rice.
saeng-seon	(fresh) fish (i.e., fish meat, not living fish)
saeng-seon ggasseu	breaded fish cutlet
san chae	[literally] "Mountain Vegetables" or "Wild Vegetables"; Mountain-grown vegetables
san-chae bi-bim bap	mountain-grown vegetables over rice [NOTE: the idea is that the vegetables grown in the mountain are supposed to be more healthy, probably because they are organically grown.]
san-nakji	raw (small) octopus [try it! the legs are still moving and the suction cups sick to the inside of your mouth. It's great!]
seol-leong tang	ox-bone broth; a tonic broth made from boiling chopped up cow bones (considered extremely healthy), usually contains noodles.
se-u	shrimp wang se-u = prawns [literally: king shrimp]
ssal	raw rice
tang-su yuk	sweet & sour pork [in this case "tang" means: 'sugar' and/or 'sweet']
tubu	tofu [English word is borrowed from Japanese]; bean curd sun tubu = a soup made of soft tofu
twi-gim	deep-fried food; [AKA: tempura {Japanese-English Word} ]
u-dong /oo-dong/	Japanese style noodle soup
yeot	pumpkin nougat (click here to learn about Korean culture related to this specific food item)
yuk-gae jang	BEEF & noodle soup (very, very spicy!. It is great in the winter, because the red-chili pepper powder increases circulation and makes you feel very warm.)

Romanization	English translation
¢¢ç¢¢ç
An-dong so-ju	[literally: "burning liquor from Andong"] rice brandy unlike "regular" soju (see below), which is made from sweet potatoes, Andong soju is made from rice. It is akin to Japanese sake. [Note: sake is NOT a rice wine as it is commonly known. It is a rice brandy. To learn the difference between wine and brandy, see my liquor page].
baek-se-ju	[literally: 100-year liquor] a wine made of 10 herbs; mostly ginseng; It's not called "100-year liquor" because it is aged 100 years, but rather because it is supposed that frequent drinkers thereof, shall live to be a 100 years old. I asked a native Chinese about the meaning of the Chinese characters, and she said that the meaning was that the drinker would live to be a 100 years old. So, I guess the Koreans got it right.
bok bun ja	[a brand name, which literally means: "pot-pisser", 'cause (so I'm told), the drink makes one piss a lot, but it never made me piss, so I think that whoever told me that doesn't know the real origin of the name of the drink] raspberry wine
cha	tea nok cha = green tea hong cha = red tea (in English: black tea)
dong-dong-ju	a kind of rice wine (not like Japanese sake, similar perhaps, but sake is 20% alcohol and dong-dong ju is probably around 10% alcohol).
long tea	Long Island Ice Tea
mak-keol-li	a kind of crude rice wine, like dong-dong ju, but dong-dong ju is sweeter and has a higher viscosity
maek-ju	beer
Picari Sweat	An ionized drink (not sure how it's made)
podo ju	[literally] "Grape Liquor"; Grape Wine
pok tan ju	[literally: "bomb liquor"] a mixture of one or more HARD liquors with BEER.
shik-hye	rice water (made by boiling rice and dissolving malt into the mixture, and served cold)
so-ju	[literally: "burning liquor"] usually: sweet potato whisky
sam-da-su	[literally] Three-abundances Water; from the Isle of Three Abundances (AKA: JejuDo), my favorite brand of bottled water (actually from JejuDo).
su-jeong-gwa	persimmon tea; soft drink made of persimmons, ginger, honey and cinnamon, served COLD!
yang-ju	[literally] Western liquor; generally Corn (Scotch) Whisky, but can also refer to grape wine and brandy.

The Korean-English / English-Korean bilingual dictionaries are often wrong about the translations of some foods. Here are a few of the corrections:

[CULTURE: When a Korean asks (in his/her mother tongue), "Have you eaten steamed rice today?", it means: "Have you eaten a meal today?"; and it is more a formality than an actual question. If you say, "No," The Koreans are often left wondering what to say, and usually end up saying, "Well, you'd better eat." Some Koreans might feel obligated to feed you, if you say, "No." So, if you don't want to put a Korean through the trouble of feeding you, it is best to say, "Yes."]

[CULTURE: Superstition indicates that if eaten right before taking a test, the eater will score well on the test. So, right around final exam time, one can see lots of yeot venders on the street.]

ja jang myeong = From the Chinese: Ja Jiang Mian, which means: "[?] - sauce [+] noodles"

After living in China for a year, it has come to my attention that EVERY restaurant in China serves Ja Jiang Mian. AND, although I asked several Chinese people, nobody seemed to be able to tell me what Ja means. One guy told me that it meant nothing, and I thought that he meant that it meant "nothing", but I now realize that what he meant to say was that he didn't know what it meant, but was too proud to admit it. Every Chinese character has some meaning, even if that meaning changes by conjugating with another Chinese character. Another person told me that Ja Jiang is just the name of a type of sauce (Jiang meaning sauce). Mian means noodles.

The Korean version of Ja Jang Myeong is much sweeter than the Chinese version (which is quite bitter); AND, therefore, the Korean version is much more suited to my tastes, although the Chinese version is not all that bad.

nok cha = [literally] green tea (made from the same leaves as black tea, but the leaves are dried immediately, retaining their green coloring) [Koreans are very proud of this tea, which to my knowledge, is a Korean original & is very popular in Korea. They are especially proud of it for its cancer-preventative qualities]

hong cha = [literally] red tea (in English => black tea) (the leaves are first fermented in water then dried, hence the red color)