Korean Job Discussion Forums

[cheeseface]

Well do they?

I know the Japanese are considered evil for hunting whales, but do Koreans also eat whale meat? I've never seen anything in any Korean guild books about whale meat being available. However my current boss has told me it is available and he enjoys eating it when he goes to the coast.......

[bobbyhanlon]

yeah, there are restaurants for it in haeundae, busan. if you want to try it, ask for gorae-gogi (고래고기). also you can eat horsemeat in jeju-do. i haven't tried either, but would probably give it a go if invited.

[Ginormousaurus]

There's a little stall on the street in Shinchon that advertises it. It's right beside the elementary school, across from a Family Mart.

[spliff]

It's pretty good, you should try some.

[saw6436]

If they can catch it Koreans will eat it.

[definitely maybe]

i was fed whale by my host family when i was studying in copenhagen. in fact, i liked it enough that they served it to my entire family when they came to visit durning thanksgiving! i'll always remember the conversation we had leading up my first meal of whale:

me: Wow! That smells great! What's for dinner?
host mom: Whale steaks.
me: I'm sorry. Did you say whale steaks?
host mom: Yeah! Weird?
me: Well, I've never eaten whale before.
host dad: You've never had whale? Why? Whale is delicious!
me: Well, it's not exactly available where I'm from.

the conversation goes on like that. the smell was amazing, but it ended up being a little tough. a lot like roast beef, but a bit gamier. i think it was probably because the meat was frozen and sent over from greenland. i'd certainly give it another try though. then again, i'm willing try just about anything that's strange and uniquely ethnic, from boshintang in korea to duck embryos in the philipines to scorpions on the street in cambodia . . . you get the picture. have at it activists!

[skindleshanks]

Yes, it's on the menu at the touring festival restaurants out here on the East Coast.


The only times I've ever had whale was in Canada--we save it for special occasions like Christmas Eve, though.

[MissSeoul]

[cheeseface]

Do Koreans hunt whales too? Or just import it?

[Hollywoodaction]

[skindleshanks]

I doubt if the fishermen would "intentionally" catch the whales in their nets--it' probably more trouble than it's worth.
My grandfather would catch belugas (once every couple years) in the nets he set for char along the coast of Hudson Bay. The muktuk was shared with family and friends, but really it took so much work fixing the nets he was happier to just catch the fish.

[Smee]

In an issue of the Joongang Ilbo last week they did a profile on whaling off the coast of Ulsan. At the end of the article they gave some recommendations on where to find whale meat in Ulsan: