Winter winds make city life this time of year just a little more miserable, but out along the coast, they help create a variety of natural, open-air dried seafoods.
Tagseafood
Consider the Oyster
Oysters are curious, divisive creatures, beloved by some, despised by others.
Jeoneo: Spotted gizzard shad
Mention jeoneo (전어, spotted gizzard shad) anywhere in Korea, and someone is bound to bring up the popular saying “전어 굽는 냄새는 집 나간 며느리도 돌아오게 한다.”
Ggot-gae: Kind of blue crab
Ggot-gae (꽃게) is Korea’s best-loved crab, prized for its sweet flesh and soft shell.
Bajirak: littleneck clam
If saejogae is the king of clams, then bajirak (바지락) is the humble but hardy peasant, a clam as common as air.
bburi trip: Sorae Port, Incheon
Hi! Sonja here. Seoyoung and I both live in Seoul, which has its own great fish market, but this day we decided to head 45 minutes westward to Sorae Port (소래포구) in Incheon.
Saejogae: egg cockle, bird clam
Saejogae in English is “egg cockle,” but literally translates to “bird clam” in Korean, since the meat inside the shell resembles a bird’s beak.
Hwangtae: open air freeze-dried pollock
Of all the fish in the sea, myeongtae, or walleye pollock, has a special place on the Korean table