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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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PatrickBateman
Joined: 08 Jun 2009
Location: American Gardens Building, West 81st Street
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 Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 7:01 am Post subject: |
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| Maybe I didn't go to a proper Buldak location. If anyone knows of one in Seoul, please let me know. |
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samd
Joined: 03 Jan 2007
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 8:05 am Post subject: |
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| halfmanhalfbiscuit wrote: |
Korean food only gets 'sandy' or syrupy from chilli flakes or gochujang before it gets genuinely hot.
As said before the raw garlic at bbq houses is the hottest thing. |
If the hottest thing you and Vanislander have in Korea eaten is garlic, then you really need to get out more.
OP, people will often tone down the spice on 불닭 because they think foreigners can't handle it, so be sure to ask for it hot.
I second Sindang 떡볶이 Town, had some stuff there that's almost inedible.
I also agree with the comment that when the hottest dishes from various countries are compared, then it's close, but just the mass consumption of kimchi three times a day alone means that Koreans eat far more spicy food that most others. |
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PatrickBateman
Joined: 08 Jun 2009
Location: American Gardens Building, West 81st Street
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 10:55 am Post subject: |
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| samd wrote: |
| halfmanhalfbiscuit wrote: |
Korean food only gets 'sandy' or syrupy from chilli flakes or gochujang before it gets genuinely hot.
As said before the raw garlic at bbq houses is the hottest thing. |
If the hottest thing you and Vanislander have in Korea eaten is garlic, then you really need to get out more.
OP, people will often tone down the spice on 불닭 because they think foreigners can't handle it, so be sure to ask for it hot.
I second Sindang 떡볶이 Town, had some stuff there that's almost inedible.
I also agree with the comment that when the hottest dishes from various countries are compared, then it's close, but just the mass consumption of kimchi three times a day alone means that Koreans eat far more spicy food that most others. |
Yeah, that's part of the problem. I'm not fluent by any means in Korean and don't know what to say. I have a hard enough time ordering the meal. |
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digsydinner
Joined: 24 May 2009
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:34 am Post subject: |
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| PatrickBateman wrote: |
| samd wrote: |
| halfmanhalfbiscuit wrote: |
Korean food only gets 'sandy' or syrupy from chilli flakes or gochujang before it gets genuinely hot.
As said before the raw garlic at bbq houses is the hottest thing. |
If the hottest thing you and Vanislander have in Korea eaten is garlic, then you really need to get out more.
OP, people will often tone down the spice on 불닭 because they think foreigners can't handle it, so be sure to ask for it hot.
I second Sindang 떡볶이 Town, had some stuff there that's almost inedible.
I also agree with the comment that when the hottest dishes from various countries are compared, then it's close, but just the mass consumption of kimchi three times a day alone means that Koreans eat far more spicy food that most others. |
Yeah, that's part of the problem. I'm not fluent by any means in Korean and don't know what to say. I have a hard enough time ordering the meal. |
i can't stress this enough...but make some korean friends...food is a great way to get to know people better. |
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benji1422
Joined: 02 Jun 2009
Location: Los Angeles & Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:58 am Post subject: |
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| PatrickBateman wrote: |
| benji1422 wrote: |
Nakji bokum bap (spicy octopus on top of rice) or any nakji bokum for that matter is AWESOME! (you might cry though )
Everytime I order this, Korean restaurteurs try to STOP ME from ordering it, fearing my safety  |
Can I get this anywhere, or do I have to go out of my way to find it? What's the verdict on octopus? |
Go to the food court of any large shopping mall (i.e. Coex, Yongsan) and just order it from one of the food stalls. There are also specialty restaurants that usually have a pic of an octopus on the sign. These places are usually more expensive. |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 2:00 pm Post subject: |
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| samd wrote: |
If the hottest thing you and Vanislander have in Korea eaten is garlic, then you really need to get out more.
OP, people will often tone down the spice on 불닭 because they think foreigners can't handle it, so be sure to ask for it hot.
I second Sindang 떡볶이 Town, had some stuff there that's almost inedible.
I also agree with the comment that when the hottest dishes from various countries are compared, then it's close, but just the mass consumption of kimchi three times a day alone means that Koreans eat far more spicy food that most others. |
as a Korean, you are in the unique position to possibly know more about it, but being Korean also means the bs meter of national pride may be speaking for you
i eat Korean food out in restaurants four or five days a week, and have done so for years, always when i travel, always ask for hot, have had plenty of Koreans introduce me to supposedly the hottest dish they know, and never gotten close to very hot.
and no, korean food is by no means the hottest in the world, in terms of hottest dish nor average, not even close, unless one looks at percentage of dishes consumed that are mildly hot (red pepper pasted)
I will follow advice of samd and digsydinner and welcome any other attempts to direct us to some truly hot korean food - i am continually on the hunt for spicy food (more specific the directions the better please) |
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halfmanhalfbiscuit
Joined: 13 Oct 2007
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 2:21 pm Post subject: |
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| samd wrote: |
| halfmanhalfbiscuit wrote: |
Korean food only gets 'sandy' or syrupy from chilli flakes or gochujang before it gets genuinely hot.
As said before the raw garlic at bbq houses is the hottest thing. |
If the hottest thing you and Vanislander have in Korea eaten is garlic, then you really need to get out more.
OP, people will often tone down the spice on 불닭 because they think foreigners can't handle it, so be sure to ask for it hot.
I second Sindang 떡볶이 Town, had some stuff there that's almost inedible.
I also agree with the comment that when the hottest dishes from various countries are compared, then it's close, but just the mass consumption of kimchi three times a day alone means that Koreans eat far more spicy food that most others. |
Saying that garlic was the hottest thing I'm come across was just saying that nothing is hot!
And nothing is that hot because the base ingredients are not hot, so you can slather as much gochujang on something as you like or keep adding huge spoonfulls of gochukaro but nothing really happens.
I've had buldak a few times-meh. Two-Two(?) fried chicken had a hot one with a bit of tingle, but that's about it.
If anything Korean food is probably getting sweeter, not "hotter" |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 4:44 pm Post subject: |
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| halfmanhalfbiscuit wrote: |
Saying that garlic was the hottest thing I'm come across was just saying that nothing is hot!
And nothing is that hot because the base ingredients are not hot, so you can slather as much gochujang on something as you like or keep adding huge spoonfulls of gochukaro but nothing really happens.
I've had buldak a few times-meh. Two-Two(?) fried chicken had a hot one with a bit of tingle, but that's about it.
If anything Korean food is probably getting sweeter, not "hotter" |
exactly, the spicy garlic of some samgypsal places (not the standard garlic the serve) falls in the hot category, not 'very hot'
in America and Canada there are three basic levels of spicy hot: MILD, HOT and VERY HOT and the vast majority of supposedly hot and spicy Korean dishes fall into the MILD category back home, with only a couple in the HOT category and none int he VERY HOT category, though i'd sure love to have someone show me exactly where i'm wrong
when koreans say they have the hottest food int he world they are simply doing another of their 'we're #1' raves with no knowledge of what they are talking about
the funniest thing is the constant looks of shock us foreigners get when we eat the 'oh very spicy' korean dishes, they not realizing that most of the men in Texas could eat them under the table in a spicy food eating contest, and that at the very least, one-third of people from where i'm from like spicy food
btw, domino's pizza in korea discountinued its 'hot and spicy' pizza but the domino's in okpo on geoje brought it back because the foreigners - over a 1000 locally - kept asking for it, not the locals (the hottest thing at domino's these days is the spicy ribs, it being in the hot category though not very hot)
the scoville scale of hotness for peppers have plenty of much hotter peppers then ever found in korea (most korean hot spicy food is about 1500 on the scale i bet):
| Quote: |
Scoville scale Scoville rating Type of pepper
15,000,000�16,000,000 Pure capsaicin[3]
8,600,000�9,100,000 Various capsaicinoids (e.g. homocapsaicin, homodihydrocapsaicin, nordihydrocapsaicin)
5,000,000�5,300,000 Law Enforcement Grade pepper spray,[4] FN 303 irritant ammunition
855,000�1,050,000 Naga Jolokia[5][6]
350,000�580,000 Red Savina Habanero[7][8]
100,000�350,000 Habanero chili,[9] Scotch Bonnet Pepper,[9] Datil pepper, Rocoto, Jamaican Hot Pepper, African Birdseye, Madame Jeanette
50,000�100,000 Thai Pepper,[10] Malagueta Pepper,[10] Chiltepin Pepper, Pequin Pepper[10]
30,000�50,000 Cayenne Pepper, Aj� pepper,[9] Tabasco pepper, some Chipotle peppers
10,000�23,000 Serrano Pepper, some Chipotle peppers
2,500�8,000 Jalape�o Pepper, Guajillo pepper, New Mexican varieties of Anaheim pepper,[11] Paprika (hungarian wax pepper)
500�2,500 Anaheim pepper, Poblano Pepper, Rocotillo Pepper
100�500 Pimento, Pepperoncini
0 No heat, Bell pepper |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scoville_scale |
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AgDragon01
Joined: 13 Nov 2008
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 5:11 pm Post subject: |
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[quote="VanIslander"]
| halfmanhalfbiscuit wrote: |
the funniest thing is the constant looks of shock us foreigners get when we eat the 'oh very spicy' korean dishes, they not realizing that most of the men in Texas could eat them under the table in a spicy food eating contest, and that at the very least, one-third of people from where i'm from like spicy food
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Hells yes we can! Oh, and Indian food is really spicy if it's authentic, especially South Indian food. Unfortunately most Indian restaurants in other countries dumb down their spices for the locals. I've noticed that at every Indian restaurant I've been to here in Korea. I'm sure there are hot foods here (my local ddak galbi place makes a very hot dish) I just haven't explored all Korea has to offer. |
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PatrickBateman
Joined: 08 Jun 2009
Location: American Gardens Building, West 81st Street
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 10:52 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for all the help. This weekend I'll be sure to try something new out and get back to you guys.  |
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emilylovesyou
Joined: 14 Oct 2008
Location: here
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:20 pm Post subject: |
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| I had haemul jim, super spicy, where I was crying by the end of the meal. Sometimes you can get it mild or spicy, but certain places you can order it super spicy. But a warning: if you don't like being adventurous with the food you eat (and I'm not just talking about spicy-ness...i'm talking about what's in the food), then haemul jim is not for you. |
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Tiberious aka Sparkles
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Location: I'm one cool cat!
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:55 pm Post subject: |
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| emilylovesyou wrote: |
| I had haemul jim, super spicy, where I was crying by the end of the meal. |
I've had that in Okpo and Hakdong Geoje, in Tongyeong, in Busan, in Suncheon, in Seoul and on Ulleungdo and always, always ask for the hot and while I do like it, it's only hot for someone who usually doesn't like hot food.
It is good!
I certainly am not one to diss Korean food. I actually cried my first three months here from joy, believe it or not, as dish after dish I have loved, about 20-30 of the fav-100 foods I have EVER eaten are korean. it's just, not very spicy.
(here's hoping this thread never dies. More directions to SPECIFIC restaurants that might prepare dishes hotter than the average way Koreans do) |
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PatrickBateman
Joined: 08 Jun 2009
Location: American Gardens Building, West 81st Street
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:57 pm Post subject: |
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| emilylovesyou wrote: |
| I had haemul jim, super spicy, where I was crying by the end of the meal. Sometimes you can get it mild or spicy, but certain places you can order it super spicy. But a warning: if you don't like being adventurous with the food you eat (and I'm not just talking about spicy-ness...i'm talking about what's in the food), then haemul jim is not for you. |
I'm pretty much up for eating anything(within reason).
Care to elaborate on the contents in the haemul jim? |
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PatrickBateman
Joined: 08 Jun 2009
Location: American Gardens Building, West 81st Street
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| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:58 pm Post subject: |
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That looks delicious.  |
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