Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Explat]

Welcome to the land of ginseng (not that other countries don't grow ginseng, but here it is a national obsession, right up there with green tea)!

How do I take thee? Let me count the ways.

Ginseng tea, canned ginseng chicken soup, freeze dried instant ginseng tea, raw root, ginseng tincture, boiled ginseng root, red ginseng, bottled red ginseng, red ginseng candy....

Help me out, here. What else?

So the question is,

Do you take ginseng root?

How often?

How much?

Does it help?

Does it make you sick?

What kind?

Did you take ginseng before you came to Korea?

Has anyone ever given you ginseng?

What do you think of the flavor?

[pocariboy73]

I take it now and then but it doesn't seem to do anything for me. Just a waste of money, if you ask me.

[smurfetta]

I don't take ginseng. It is dangerous for pregnant women to take it. I would have voted but you don't have an option for this reason.

[IncognitoHFX]

I had these little powder packages of it, where you just threw it in your mouth and chased it with some water. I took a few dozen over a period of two months, then when I ran out I never bought it again. What are the health benefits?

[BreakfastInBed]

I voted for the now and then option but it has nothing to do with being tired, wish that part weren't there. I eat samgye tang a couple times a month and have grown fond of the ginseng in it. My girlfriend usually lets me eat the lion's share. Any medicinal value is secondary to the interesting flavor for me. What exactly is it supposed to do for me? I'm sure I've heard it's "good for man," anything more specific?

[brento1138]

I love ginseng, and I'm one of the few weigooks that actually like it. Some of my friends say it tastes like dirt. Anyhow, I usually eat ginseng "oil" which is the most potent/compact form of it. I stir it in hot water and make tea out of it, add a little honey, and I think it tastes great. I voted for several times a week. Sometimes once a week, sometimes seven times a week, depending on my mood...

As for health benefits, I am not sure it really does anything, but I can't see it being bad.

[OnTheOtherSide]

I've been taking it since I was 14 or 15. As well as gingko, yohimbe, valerian, skullcap, kava, kombucha and tons of other herbs which I usually ingest in the form of teas. Ginseng is my favorite and I especially like the extract.

If you make a concoction of ginseng, gingko, yohimbe and ground kombucha and put it in some black or green tea. ZANG! You'll be feelin groovy.

[cheeseface]

It smells like cockroaches..........

[OiGirl]

Where do you get the oil or extract and what is it called?