For thousands of years, the center of Korean cuisine was bap and side dishes. Arirang TV's "Tales of Hansik" introduces the secrets of Korean cuisine, now attracting global attention as healthy slow food.
On the "guk" episode of "Tales of Hansik," we talk about Korea's unique guk, hot soup that is always present alongside bap and kimchi.
We talk about Koreans' preference for having soup with bap, and why Koreans say that hot soup tastes "cool."
We also take a look at the history of guk, traditional spoons and bangjja yugi bowls that are used for guk, and the evolution of seaweed guk as a symbol of rites of passage.
We explore Korea's diverse guk culture by looking at specific varieties - gukbap, seolleongtang and gomtang, spicy fish guk, mallow doenjang guk, beef radish guk, and bean sprout guk - as well as the process of making the broth.
Koreans today eat haejangguk to cure hangovers. Learn about hyojonggaeng, the origin of hangover guk, as well as other types of guk that are popular for their healing properties.