Eat like Koreans do

A typical Korean meal is composed of rice, the main dish (which is usually meat) and lots and lots of side dishes termed as "pan chan" (반찬). We were on our way to Busan to attend the gala night of World Ocean Forum. It was past noon so we decided to munch on food available in one resto at the bus terminal. We had 5 side dishes mainly composed of beans, radish, lettuce and one leafy vegetable each picked differently. 

Contrary to common knowledge, kimchi does not only refer to pickled lettuce. In fact the word "kimchi" means "pickled" itself. This means there could also be types of kimchi other than lettuce. The fifth side dish was the soup which is often considered a side dish too. Last August 2009, I went to the countryside of Anda and experience the traditional "chuseok", also called as thanksgiving day. My labmate's mother stated that historically,  Korean side dishes are usually picked using chopsticks while spoon is exclusively used for rice and soup. Modern practice uses chopsticks for rice too. Korea's chopstick are unique because they are made of metal and flattened, opposite to the round and wooden chopsticks of the Vietnamese, Chinese and Japanese.

According to my Professor, Koreans suffered a lot during the 19th century. During this time people barely eat and life expectancy was very short. To make up for the hard times, the all new extravagant Korea made each meal into a feast. The many side dishes made them feel they eat like the kings. Since they are served to people in excess, most of these are wasted indiscriminately. There had been notions by the government to pass an ordinance to minimize the pan-chan served in restaurants, food shops and the like. Food establishments worry that costumers may give negative feedback, thinking they were not served right. This lifestyle became a tradition up to the present. Maybe Korea has little to worry since solid waste management is prioritize in the country. Part of the scheme is a heavy out pour of funds on bioethanol production. The solid waste management lab in  MMU, a lab next to ours, was doing the exact thing. My friend used to gather food waste from the school cafeteria. Ingenuity indeed.