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Royal Cuisine of The Joseon Dynasty |
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 The
style and system of royal dishes developed very
elaborately, and the representative royal foods such as
sinseollo (fancy hot pot) and gujeolpan (nine-sectioned
dish) were served in an austere manner. Well-trained
court ladies prepared them from the best quality
agricultural produce and seafood that had been presented
to the king from all corners of the country.
Royal court foods were not much different from those of
outside the court because they influenced each other
because of intermarriage between the two societies. The
main difference was that royal dishes were less salty or
spicy.
In times past, even the
highest ranking Koreans were not allowed to have a
maximum of twelve side dishes at a meal, in addition to
the rice, Kimchi and soup. In modern days, diners can
get a glimpse (and a taste) of royal court cuisine when
they order hanjeongsik (full-course Korean meal) served
in traditional Korean food restaurants. |
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Sinseollo |
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 Sinseollo
is a colorful dish for a party. Strips of beef,
pan-fried liver and tripe, mushrooms, carrots, sliced
sheets of separately fried egg yolks and whites, are
placed in layers in a spoke fashion. They are garnished
with meatballs, walnuts and ginkgo nuts and boiled in
meat broth. |
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Gujeolpan |
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 This
nine-sectioned dish goes with wines. Eight different
foods are arranged in a circle, and in the middle crepes
are placed. The eight foods can be carrots, cucumbers,
watercress, mushrooms, egg yolks and whites, beef and
other items; they are wrapped in a crepe to form a
bite-sized morsels. |
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Temple Food |
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 Buddhism
has been the religious mainstay of Koreans for 1,600
years. Korean temples developed unique foods suitable
for a secluded life in quiet surroundings.
As Buddhist precepts forbid harm to animals, no animal
food is taken except milk. Among vegetables, strong
stimulants such as garlic, chives, onion, scallions and
asafetida are avoided. These vegetables are believed by
the hermits in the mountain to sway the peacefulness of
the mind and arouse sexual desire. The temple diet
consists of various delicacies made by rather simple
ways of cooking, such as mountain vegetables and seaweed
seasoned, deep fried, pan fried, or simmered in soy
sauce. Yet temple food is well-balanced nutritionally by
the inclusion of perilla oil, a good substitute for
animal fat, and bean curd and beans, both rich in
protein. It has therefore become a popular wholesome
diet for the prevention of geriatric diseases. |
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