Korea Is Enjoyable Part 1

When living in another country you have phases of enjoyment and phases of acute dislike during your time there.

When you feel acute dislike expats usually will have a few pointed discussions with themselves and close friends/other expats:

*why did I move here
*when can I leave and go somewhere else/home

Currently, Joseph and I are having these conversations but more importantly we are taking steps to feel better about being expats.

We are choosing to focus on the good and the positive rather than the annoying and negative.

That thinking led me to this post. 

What do we truly enjoy and like about living in Korea? 

The first think we thought about was the food.  It is impossible to live here for any length of time and not try Korean food.  Korean food is a juicy, flavorful, and thoroughly satisfying food group.  It has it outliers but for the most part the food is savory and delicious. 

When most Korean and expats leave Korea for vacation they will talk about (with fellow Koreans/expats) what dish they want when they return.  It never fails.  All Koreans and Korean expats have this conversation.  For us, a good baekbang (beck-bawn) place is always our go to. This is the famous Korean food with rice, meat, and many, many side dishes all over the table.  It. Is. The. Best.  Each person gets their own rice and then the entire table shares the rest.  There is enough food for 2-4 people and the side dishes are ENDLESS. For FREE.
Healthy options, mostly vegetables, and oh so good.
If there is meat or fish, there is a fee should customers wish for more of them, but overall, all side dishes are free refills.
At about $4--$15 a person that's not too shabby.

Dalkgalbi (dawk-gall-be) is another go to.  This is a spicy chicken dish that hardly disappoints.  It is not appropriate for children or people who are sensitive to spices, because depending where you go you'll need that glass of water or cold beer to help you through.  Cabbage, lettuce, spice, chicken, spice, dalk (rice cakes), and more spice are the just beginning of this magical digestion journey. 

It comes with a few side dishes such as soup, lettuce, and maybe a steamed egg dish but overall you don't really need anything to go with this.  Add cheese, rice cakes to the steaming table pot and enjoy!  At the end of your meal if you still have some left you can call for 밥 (rice) and they will cook/mix your leftovers with the rice making fried chicken rice with spices.  SO YUMMY.

Bibimbap/Dosot bibimbap are the next most delicious food dish we enjoy eating.

It is a bowl of rice and fresh vegetables that you mix together with gochujjang [go-chew-jang] (red pepper paste).  Dolsot simply means "hot pot" so it comes piping hot with a raw egg yolk on top that you mix in.  Cooks immediately and is really good.

There are other dishes we enjoy but these are our top ones that tell us, "We live in South Korea."  It's our Expat Comfort Food.