Sample Translations
Mi-kyeong Yu
Looking Inside Doenjang, or Soy Bean Paste E ng l i s h
Book Information
Looking Inside Doenjang, or Soy Bean Paste (된장인사이드) Korean Studies Information Publishing corp. / 2012 / 26 p. / ISBN 9788926802793 03520, 9788926802809 08520 For further information, please visit: http://library.klti.or.kr/node/772 This sample translation was produced with support from LTI Korea. Please contact the LTI Korea Library for further information. library@klti.or.kr
Looking Inside Doenjang, or Soy Bean Paste Written by Yu Mi-kyeong 1 Looking into Korea’s Iconic Fermented Food, All about Doenjang, Tastier than wine, and more wholesome than cheese
Doenjangsal & Doenjanghim
In ancient Korea, doenjang was used as a first-aid treatment for bee stings and animal bites. Though this may seem bizarre at first, this emergency folk remedy has been found to be scientifically viable, as doenjang has been proven to promote anti-inflammatory reactions, contain antioxidants, and reduce risk for certain cancers. Korean expressions such as “Goryeochwi” (the smell of Goryeo), meaning the smell of doenjang, or “doenjangsal” (flesh made from doenjang) and “doenjanghim” (strength from doenjang) meaning a healthy body, reveal the key role doenjang has long played in the Korean national identity.
All Else Aside, Brown is the Best Color for Doenjang On the front page of my online doenjang store, KoFood, I offer a wide variety of doenjang products, classified by manufacturer. I aim to help my customers compare colors, prices and production methods for various doenjang products so that they can make the most informed
choices. The color of doenjang, though always a shade of brown, can vary in hue from the light to dark brown, auburn to maroon to nutmeg. Each product is unique, and no two colors are exactly the same. Prior to starting my business, although I knew that different brands of doenjang could taste differently, I had no idea doenjang could come in such a rainbow of colors. Soybeans change color during the maturation process as the nutrients decompose into amino acids and sugar. The color can also be affected by oxidizing enzymes. Whether the browning occurs by a non-enzymatic or an enzymatic process, the beans produce a brown polymer called “melanoidin.� Although you may prefer a lighter, yellowish doenjang, properly fermented doenjang should be brown. These brown substances are created as the nutrients are decomposed by microbes and play an important role in eliminating the sulphofication and active oxygen. The darker the doenjang, the better it is for your health, as the antioxidant effects of doenjang are directly proportional to the melanoidin content.
The Magic of Doenjang
We soak apples or potatoes in brine to keep them from turning brown. However, once potatoes have turned brown, soaking them in brine is useless. This is not the case with doenjang. Consider an earthen jar storing doenjang. Beneath the dark brown layer on the surface, the rest of the mixture maintains its original yellowish color. If you stir and mix the darkened surface with the inner yellow paste, the two colors will mix. After some time, however, the surface layer will again darken to brown while the lower layer becomes yellow once again. This magic is caused by the antioxidant enzymes in doenjang, which work as powerful deoxidizers. The color of beef changes from red to brown over time. At the butcher, we can sometimes see
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that the inside of a roll of meat is brown while the surface is red. Sellers will roll the meat up at times to conceal the brown parts. Unfortunately, once meat goes through the browning process, it is impossible for it to return to red. Doenjang and beef both change color during the same oxidation process, but only doenjang is able to recover its original hue. Doenjang is one of the best antioxidants one can serve at the dinner table. In order to maximize the deoxidizing effects of this fermented condiment, it best to consume it in its natural paste form. It is particularly good for people suffering health disorders to eat doenjang in this natural form, which is rich in enzymes. Methods of preparing doenjang including eating it as ssamjangi, as a stew in doenjang-jjigyeii or as a soup in doenjang- gukiii.
Choosing the Doenjang with the Right Color
I often hear people say that they developed an appetite for doenjang as they grew older. I have to admit that I belong to that group. When I was young, I was not a big fan of doenjang. I did not appreciate the doenjang my mother-in-law made in the early years of my married life. Perhaps I was not the only one, as I have seen numerous other housewives buying doenjang at the store despite having plenty of home-made doenjang from their mothers-inlaw. They complain that the home-made version is too dark and salty. The major antioxidant substances in doenjang include daidzein from soybeans, antocyanin, a black pigment found in black beans, and melanoidin, which gets darker as the doenjang ferments. These antioxidants prevent the oxidation of the lipoids in doenjang. The antioxidizing effect of doenjang is really amazing considering the environment in which the paste is fermented. While fermenting, doenjang is exposed to the elements to accelerate the browning—such elements include lots of heat, oxygen and sunshine. As doenjang jars are stored at outdoor temperatures, they are exposed to the sun, and, through the micro-pores in
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the Korean earthenware, oxygen is able to flow freely in and out of the jar. This is an important aspect of doenjang, as it is vital to control the oxygen flow properly for fermentation. It might seem reckless to ferment anything exposed to air. However, under this harsh fermentation environment, the bacteria in doenjang produce a strong antioxidant to protect the paste, from which a variety of functional substances are produced. These substances have benefitted the Korean people for hundreds of years. Soybeans are naturally yellow, but during the fermentation process, they transform into a brown color. Researchers say the brown pigment is excellent for its antimutagenic activities against aflatoxin, and, furthermore, these substances can selectively kill liver cancer cells. In addition, it has been proven by experimentation that doenjang is highly effective in killing the active oxygen which has been linked to human aging and cancer development. Doenjang also promotes the body’s resilience against viruses. It is for these health benefits and more that we have to choose doenjang that is colorful and has been fermented to perfection over the course of one to three years.
Did You Know?
Phytochemicals are chemical compounds that occur naturally in plants. Some are responsible for plant colors and scents and can help deter oxidation in the human body. Phytochemicals include carotenoid (found in carrots), lycopene (tomatoes), polyphenol (wine) and capsaicin (chili peppers), to name but a few. Doenjang contains melanoidin (the brown pigment), which has strong antioxidant properties.
Doenjang’s Diverse Colors
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“The dark hue of doenjang implies a mature fermentation.”
The History of Doenjang
As the colloquial Korean expression goes, “Ugly is Mejuiv.” Meju, a form of dried, fermented soybeans, is also considered ugly in China, as can be seen in Chinese paintings. As more meju products arrive on the Korean market, meju is being made into more attractive round or square shapes. I had the privilege of learning more about Chinese meju through email exchanges with a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. One important thing I learned was that the doenjang in China differs from the doenjang in Korea—though there is soy sauce in China. If doenjang soup is served at a Chinese restaurant, the owner is most likely an ethnic Korean living there, according to the researcher. Whether it is Koreans in China or a few Chinese that make doenjang there, I would like to take a moment to discuss the recipes for meju and doenjang made in China, so that we can compare them with their Korean counterparts. Traditionally, Koreans made jang, that is doenjang and ganjang (fermented bean paste and soy sauce), by the third day of the third month of the Lunar Calendar. In contrast, the Chinese made jang no later than the second month. This is most likely because the temperature in China, at least in Beijing, is higher than in Korea on average. In Korea, meju is tied up with straw strings and hung from the eaves to dry, whereas in China there is no such process. After being hung to dry, Korean meju is then dried in the sun for one day, while Chinese meju is dried in the shade for 3 to 4 days. After keeping meju for fermentation, Chinese meju is wrapped with cloth, while Korean meju is placed in a lidded earthen jar. Korean meju is stirred several times a day. We may assume that Chinese meju is not stored in “breathable”
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jars, as it is in Korea. Of note, the Chinese recipe directs the maker to put salt in the bottom of the jar, presumably to prevent the doenjang from going bad. Korean doenjang and soy sauce do not need stirring once they are put in separate jars. Actually, the root of the word doenjang is “doeda”v, which means “to be.” This signifies that the paste is so thick that it is not possible to stir it; it must simply be. The Chinese paste is good to eat after about a month’s fermentation, whereas Korean doenjang needs at least six months before it is good to eat. Although both countries make doenjang from soy beans, the products are quite distinct from each other. There may be more to Chinese doenjang, but it seems that the Chinese way of making doenjang is not as sophisticated or mature as the Korean method. A Chinese medical doctor from Shanghai says that ordinary Chinese do not eat doenjang and do not even know about it.
Meju in Foreign Countries
Chinese record, Bowuzhi (博物誌) on Meju
Bowuzhi (博物誌), an ancient Chinese record covering diverse topics, was completed in the 3rd century by Jin Dynasty scholar Zhang Hua. Bowuzhi is an important encyclopedia on ancient culture, covering not only information on flora and fauna but also a wide range of traditions and customs. It is written in the book that “there is a method of making Shi, or meju, in other countries.”vi People of that time must have known that boiled beans, which can go bad if left as they are, stay edible longer when fermented. According to Bowuzhi, meju originated in a foreign country (ie, not China). Which country could that have been? I wonder if it could have been a country to the northeastern part of China, where an ancient Korean
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tribe known as the Eastern Barbarians lived, with a culture as developed as China’s and an environment appropriate for fermentation.
Doenjang Dates Back to the Iron Age
The Chinese believe that the history of Chinese fermented paste dates back more than 3,000 years, based on existing records on the paste, jang (酱), in the writings known as Zhouli (周禮), The Rites of Zhou. It should be noted, however, that the fermented paste here refers to salted meat or fish, which is called meat jang (肉醬). The salted meat or fish, like Korea’s salted shrimp, is a simple fermented food, and the recipe is simply to salt and store the food item. The recipe for fermented bean paste, however, is long and complicated. Bean paste is possible only when the required conditions are met. First, it must be possible to boil hard soybeans. It is only when the beans are softened by boiling that meju, the basis of bean paste and sauce, can be created from the fermentation process and then separated into soybean sauce and doenjang paste for deeper fermentation. This is an extremely complicated fermentation process that occurs over a longer period of time. The oldest piece of literature that references soybean paste is Lunheng, written by Wang Chong in AD 90: “In making soybean paste, people around the world store the paste when, hearing the thunders, they do not hope to keep the soybeans until spring.” This implies that the paste is not to be made during the rainy season for fear of it going bad in the heat and humidity, thus revealing when it is good to make the paste.
Did You Know? How to make Chinese soybean fermented paste, dajiang (大醬) 1. Boil soybeans until all the water evaporates.
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2. Grind the soybeans and let them dry. Then shape the paste into brick-size meju blocks on a cutting pad or table. Shaped while hot, the loaf will be harder and thicker. 3. Wait until the meju blocks cool completely. Wrap them with paper. It is said that Chinese meju blocks should be made before February 2 on the lunar calendar. Store them at the proper temperature (23°C) and an appropriate humidity until April 8, 18, or 28 on the lunar calendar. 4. Break the meju blocks into small pieces, and check that mold has formed on both the inside and outside. If mold is found, cleave the meju into smaller pieces and dry them in the shade for three to four days. Soak the meju in brine, at a ratio of 1 to 3, and cover it with a cloth to block out dust and insects. 5. Stir the meju for 10 minutes three times a day every day. Remove the foam from the surface with a large spoon. Repeat for one month before eating.
The Best Doenjang Is the Original Doenjang
Most people assume that the present-day form of doenjang dates back approximately 2,000 years. This is because it was reportedly introduced to neighboring countries as “Goryeojang (fermented paste of Goryeo)” or Goryeochwi (the smell of Goryeo),” meaning the smell of doenjang. Here, “Goryeo” refers to Goguryeo, one of the ancient kingdoms on the Korean peninsula. Goryeochwi may have been a pejorative term used to refer to the people of Goguryeo. However, as a word referencing the fermented food that the people of Goguryeo enjoyed, it is a compliment about eating a food fermented by microbes. What is notable here is that the first step in making fermented soybean paste is boiling the soybeans. An earthen steamer was not suitable for boiling the soybeans, as the beans are low in water content (12%). A fireproof, watertight cauldron made of cast iron was essential for this purpose. With this in mind, it is possible to assume that the people of Goguryeo ate fermented soybean
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paste at a time before the Iron Age. Academics assume that Korea’s transition from the Late Bronze to Early Iron Age began around the turn from BC to AD, shortly after the Goguryeo Dynasty had been founded. If you look at the painting entitled “The Kitchen” in an ancient tomb mural of Goguryeovii, you may appreciate what is meant by “the significance beyond an iron caldron.” Recently, a TV program in China aired a segment introducing Korean doenjang. The host presented the fermented paste as an essential aspect of the Korean diet, adding that doenjang and gochujangviii have remarkable anticancer properties. Not long after the program aired, a Chinese newspaper noted that, “The history of Korea’s doenjang and gochujang dates back to the beginning of Korean history” and that “a good number of the people living in Sunchang county, the largest producer of Korea’s iconic fermented food, enjoy lives of over 90 years.” These press coverage of the effects of doenjang led to a rise in the popularity of Korean food within China. If the taste, nutrition and effects of doenjang are promoted well, Korea’s bean paste can easily make a name for itself as a health food in China. Doenjang is Korea’s original traditional condiment, a product of her unique environment. However similar the varieties of doenjang may look, there is an insurmountable gap between the value of the original doenjang and its imitations.
Choosing Soybean Yeot, Traditional Korean Taffy, over Chocolate
It is interesting to note that the word for “bean (豆)” is contained within the Chinese character for “head (頭).” How did the Chinese language, a pictographic one, derive knowledge about the relationship between the brain and beans? It was only with the development of modern science that we found that the nutritional components of beans are the same as those that make up the brain and body. Some say the character “bean (豆)” originally meant ritual bowl,
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not beans, but it still is surprising. The major components of the brain are fatty substances, which are mainly composed of lecithin. Lecithin makes up 30 percent of the brain, not including water. The fact that lecithin is the major component of the brain signifies how important it is to take it in as food regularly. Koreans often are credited as the smartest people in the world. A university in Switzerland studied the correlation between IQ and GDP from 185 nations around the world. The result of this research showed that the wealthier a country was, the smarter the people typically tended to be. Hong Kong topped the country IQ ranking, followed by South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Germany, China and Singapore in that order. It is no exaggeration then to call South Korea the smartest country in the world, given that Hong Kong is now part of China. The report also noted that countries around the Pacific Ocean generally ranked highest on the IQ test. It would seem, then, that the smartest countries are the ones in which people consume the most beans. After all, is there any common link between these Pacific-coastal countries other than the lecithin they consume in beans? (Of course, it doesn’t follow that the smarter countries are the happier countries any more than it does the smarter people are the happier people.) In the recent International Technical Olympics held in Japan, Korea had the honor of taking first place again. It is Korea’s fifteenth victory in all 39 competitions—a remarkable record indeed. Koreans have no reason to be disparaged for an alleged overemphasis on elite education or an overzealous focus on technical education.
Did You Know?
Brainy Food
Fifty dementia patients were injected with a certain amount of phosphatidylserine (PS), a
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chemical which is found in great quantities in beans. The results showed that their memory improved by 13.9 years, their learning ability by 11.6 years, their recognition by 7.4 years and their ability to memorize 10-digit numbers by 3.9 years. Based on this research, PS has been used to treat dementia in the U.S. for more than a decade. Soybean-based foods are the best source of PS. 11 Food Good for the Brain
It has been reported that Asians are intelligent because they have been farming rice for a long time. (The author of this report, however, does state that having an IQ higher than average does not necessarily mean being more creative or scientific.) The link to farming here is that Asians had to develop high levels of intelligence to control rice farming, an industry which is more labor- and planning-intensive than wheat farming is. In a nutshell, the intelligence of Asian people is the result of their having strived to use the brain to overcome their environment. The intelligence of the Korean people then can be traced to the Korean diet. A study conducted by American neurologists found that PS extracted from soybeans enhances brain cells and prevents cell destruction. The age of the old saw “strength is power� is long past. We live in the Information Age; information is power. This age requires the ability to process information quickly and effectively. As society diversifies, work increasingly requires the ability to make intelligent decisions when faced with massive amounts of information. Given such circumstances, children must consume sufficient foods with proper nutrients for the brain. Soybeans are one of the best such foods, as they are rich in lecithin, which brain cells need. Soybean-based foods have been the source of lecithin intake for a long time in the East; in contrast, those in
Western countries take lecithin as a nutritional supplement. Soybeans serve as a natural source of PS, a kind of lecithin that supports a healthier brain. This is where the importance of soybean foods comes in.
Did You Know? 12 Lecithin Acknowledged by Korean Authorities
Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety acknowledges the benefits of lecithin. Whereas beans may not be advertised as a health functional food, lecithin has received approval. Lecithin is publicly recognized as beneficial to health for four reasons: first, it is the building block of cell membranes; second, it improves blood circulation; third, it is used in forming the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which has been found to improve memory; and fourth, it also works as a powerful antioxidant. Lecithin contributes greatly to maintaining healthy cells by blocking active oxygen.
Korean Bean Yeot or Chocolate?
It is crucial to consume plenty of soybeans rich in lecithin for a healthy brain. This is vital to ensure children’s academic growth, and essential for the elderly, as lecithin-rich beans can prevent dementia and forgetfulness. However, we cannot expect the amazing benefits from lecithin if we only take one type of food, like tofu, every day. [Tofu is an extracted form of protein from soybeans, which leaves behind all other nutrients for another form of tofu, known as bizi.] Besides soybeans, lecithin can be found in many other foods, such as meats, fish and eggs. The best source, however, is soy beans, as they contain three to four times as
much lecithin as meat or eggs do. Indeed, although lecithin takes its name from the Greek word lecithos, which means egg yolk, people think of soybeans first when they hear the word lecithin. Soybeans’ affordability and accessibility further make them the most popular source of lecithin. In Korea, there is an interesting tradition of giving yeot,ix Korean taffy, to someone preparing for a school entrance exam, to wish them success. Lecithin is also abundant in barley malt, the basis of yeot. Therefore, eating yeot before an important exam is not a mere superstition. Bean yeot would be the best confection for test-takers, because it is a combination of soybeans and barley malt, the two major sources of lecithin. In this regard, a recent trend of giving chocolates and candies instead of yeot is deplorable. These sweet substitutes cannot boost memory as lecithin does. [Here, I would like to point out that among the highest-IQ countries Germany is not a big soybean consuming nation. However, as Germans drink much beer made from malt, they may be benefiting from other sources of lecithin.] In conclusion, soybeans are the best source of lecithin, which enhances all the functions and activities of the brain. You should serve soybeans at the dinner table every day, as Koreans do. They should come in diverse forms of tofu, bean sprouts, doenjang, soybean sauce, cheonggukjang (fast-fermented bean paste) and gochujang (chili pepper paste).
Bio-food
Bread, rice, and rice cakes grow mold of different colors when left at room temperature for extended periods. Just as living things are named after their diverse forms and natures, so microbes—though invisible to the naked eye—have names as diverse as other creatures have. Fungus forms mycelium, which is relatively easy to notice. Bacteria, on the other hand, are tinier than fungus and not as noticeable, as they do not make mycelium. After a time in brine,
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the fungus and bacteria in meju go dormant, and yeast starts to work, generating alcohol. In the past, our ancestors called the microbes in soy sauce, “floating fungus,” as the yeast looked like white flowers floating on the soybean sauce. When adequate oxygen is supplied, yeast can act independently. However, when oxygen is scarce, yeast cells gather together into a bigger unit for communal activity. Koreans used to say, “You can smell sweetness near the jars of fermented paste,” which I guess implies the existence of active yeast.
Strong Bacteria in Doenjang
People cannot live without microorganisms, as the human body consists of over 100 trillion cells and just as many microbes. Most bacteria in our body are neither “good bacteria” nor “bad bacteria.” These “neutral bacteria” become beneficial bacteria under a good environment and turn harmful under a bad environment. [This micro-universe reminds us of the real world—no man is 100% good or 100% bad.] Indeed, it is relieving to know that only one percent of bacteria is bad, an insignificant percentage for health. Lactobacillus is one type of bacteria that is beneficial for our health. It keeps the intestines healthy by producing antibiotic substances. What matters, however, is how these bacteria can survive the gastric acid in the stomach. A recent study points out that even dead lactobacillus bacteria are good, because they serve as food for other active lactobacillus in the intestines. [This might explain why yogurt manufacturers in Korea are eager to advertise that their product contains lactobacillus that goes into the intestines alive.]
Though the word lactobacillus comes from milk (lacto-), some lactobacillus species are found in doenjang, cheonggukjang and kimchi. That there are countless live lactobacillus in the
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intestines means that there are a lot of “strong bacteria’ winning the survival game. Lactobacillus in doenjang is tolerant to salinity and can survive in 20% brine solutions. It is also thermo-stable and can endure temperatures of 100°C. Even dead lactobacillus is beneficial to our health. It’s clear then that the Korean people have not taken such an enormous quantity of delicious doenjang jjigye (stew) to no avail. 15 After brine is poured on meju, yeast begins to foam. After 40 to 60 days, liquids and solids separate through the fermentation process. The liquid becomes soybean sauce and the solid doenjang. When separating, all visible yeast and impurities should be removed, as excessive yeast can make doenjang taste sour. Yeast in winemaking becomes active at 20-25°C and the yeast on the surface produces alcohol. All living things slowly burn glucose to generate energy. Too much oxygen will hinder fermentation, yet it is also important to know that the microorganism will die if there is no oxygen. Fermentation is, in short, a process of producing alcohol and organic acid by the imperfect combustion of glucose when oxygen levels are insufficient. The unique tastes of doenjang and kimchi are made by the lactobacillus and yeast during fermentation.
Meju and Malt
Since ancient times, Koreans have used aspergillus to expedite the fermentation process in making wine and jang. To make malt, we use rice, millet or wheat to accelerate and facilitate saccharification. Various grains are used to make malt for wine or gochujang today. For traditional jang, meju made from fermented beans is invariably used. What are the differences between malt and meju? First, the main ingredient of malt is fungus, while meju contains both
fungus and bacteria active together. Second, malt may be made from different grains, while meju is made solely from soybeans. Third, malt and meju seem to act as fermenting accelerators, but meju has more nutrients that microbes can consume.
Meju develops fungus on the surface and bacteria beneath. When it is soaked in brine, the yeast activates. It seems natural that traditional Korean jang, which makes use of a diverse range of natural microbes, has three times as much efficacy in its anti-cancer properties and thrombus resolution than does Japanese doenjang, which uses single cultured bacteria. Meju’s optimized environment for microbes allows it to provide a wealth of health benefits. Indeed, the old traditional doenjang deserves great recognition as a bio-food.
How to Succeed in a Lifelong Diet
How could we best survive a winter on a deserted island with just a bag of beans to feed us? Well, during World War II, it is reported that just such a situation occurred, as a bag of beans was the last provision for the Japanese military. Whether the story is true or not, it reminds us how powerful beans are as a super-food.
Diet may refer to the “regulation of food” or a “limited meal for weight control or health.” In a more realistic sense, it may mean “losing weight” or “eating less.” Recent diets include the “One Food Diet,” referring to eating only one item, such as apples, graham crackers or yogurt. One of the most popular, is the Atkins’ Diet, or the “Emperor’s Diet” as it was called in Korean—eating only protein. The advocate was Robert Atkins, who was 180 cm tall and
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weighed 116 kg , and who ended up having a heart attack and high blood pressure, and dying at the age of 72. For the long term, a one-food diet is woefully inadequate from the perspective of modern nutritional science, which advocates maintaining a balanced nutritional intake. [Excess carbohydrates and fats are transformed into protein, but protein is converted into carbohydrates and fat. This seems to have triggered the rise of the protein diet. However, excessive intake of protein results in deficient calcium intake, kidney failure and an increase of ketone bodies. Caution is needed to avoid excessive protein intake.]
Nutrients In Bulk
If we choose five essential nutrients for today’s diet, they must be protein, carbohydrates, fat, vitamins and minerals. As the spirit of the times changes with the era, different nutrients have been emphasized at different times. When I studied nutritional science, proteins—especially animal proteins—were almost the single most important aspect of any nutritional plan.
Today pork and chicken are reasonable in price, and beef is available at more affordable prices from abroad, so it is no big deal to find meat on a regular dinner table. In the older days, planning a menu for a company or family was a challenge for dieticians, who had to devise a balanced menu that included animal protein and plants at a 1:3 ratio. Securing a sufficient daily intake of animal protein at an affordable price was the most challenging daily task . Today, protein is still regarded as an important element, but there is greater awareness of the need for vitamins and minerals as supplementary nutrients. Once, carbohydrates were regarded with the utmost importance in ancient Korea, as revealed by the old saying, “We live by the strength of rice.” These days, carbohydrates are seen as something to be avoided,
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as they are believed to be fattening. At meat restaurants, women often eat only meat and vegetables as the main dish, and finish with just a couple of spoonfuls of rice. Fat can be problematic when taken together with animal protein. It is important that one not favor certain nutrients over others. All major nutrients, including proteins, carbohydrates and fats, are essential in plentiful amounts, and it is important to consume vitamins, minerals and fiber on a daily basis in small quantities. The essential nutrients should be taken in bulk, as in a loaf of dough.
Excessive Nutrient Intake Is Risky
It is said that, strictly speaking, it was in the 20th century that human beings were first able to eat to their hearts’ content. This means that until the 20th century, the world—both East and West—was in hunger. Of course, the world today is not all well-fed, but today’s problems are simultaneously excessive nutrient intake and insufficient nutrient intake. In the 19th century, the average lifespan was 40 to 45 years; today it is 80 years. It is true that human beings today enjoy longevity, but that does not always mean health—hence the Korean saying, “living in a hospital bed for 10 years.” If people suffered from malnutrition (due to lack of food) in the past, today they suffer from malnutrition in the form of excessive food intake. One rising illness from malnutrition is obesity. Excess protein and carbohydrates are stored as subcutaneous fat. A proper diet doesn’t come just by avoiding carbohydrates and fat, but by consuming an appropriate amount of protein—contrary to our false belief that the more protein, the better.
Daily required nutrients number at some 40 to 50, including 10 kinds of amino acid, 3 kinds of essential fatty acid, 13 kinds of vitamin, 16 kinds of mineral and fiber. As to soy beans,
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over 40% of their contents is protein, which contains all the essential amino acids, as well as bountiful levels of essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals and fiber. Compared to meat and eggs, which are composed of only 26% protein, beans are far superior.
How Much Protein is Enough? 19 The protein nutritive value, or portion of protein absorbed into the human body, is higher for animal-based foods, like eggs, milk and meat, than for beans. Proteins from beans increase in efficiency when taken together with grains, animal products and nuts. Let’s look at daily protein requirements. Dieticians recommend that humans acquire 15 to 20% of their total daily energy needs from protein, 60 to 70% from carbohydrates and 15 to 20% from fat. The general diet pattern for Westerners, consisting of a large steak, a small bread roll and a handful of vegetables, may lead to excessive intake of protein and fat with deficient intake of vitamins and minerals. According to the Aging Research Institute of Seoul National University, the typical Korean diet, which consists of “a lot of vegetables and a little meat,� is more ideal than the typical Mediterranean diet of fruit and olive oil when it comes to balancing carbohydrate, fat and protein intake. Korean nutritionists recommend one gram of protein per kilogram of weight. Thus, a person who weighs 60 kg needs 60 grams of protein. One pizza with a generous amount of cheese, a few sliced pickles and a bottle of coke means too much animal protein. Maintaining such a diet may lead to obesity and thrombosis.
Food Made with Beans
Until not too long ago, the Western world did not even know of the existence of soybeans.
Though Westerners do know now, the typical Western diet does not include soybeans to be eaten as they are. That’s why food and nutritional science, which originated in the West, have limited knowledge of the beans. Findings on beans are typically from peas or kidney beans, which are just 12% protein.
It is not easy to measure how much protein is being taken in meals. So let’s look at how much protein there is in bean-based foods in the Korean diet. A person weighing 60 kg needs 20 grams of protein for each meal of the day: 15 grams of vegetable protein and 5 grams of animal protein. The protein content of a bowl of rice with peas is 8 grams, while that of a bowl of dried pollock and bean sprout soup is 21 grams—enough protein for one meal. The traditional Korean menu, which allows for a variety of bean foods, is ideal in preventing excessive intake of animal proteins or fats, and is guaranteed to provide balanced nutrition. Having one of the diverse bean foods on your table daily is the most certain way to ensure a successful lifelong diet.
Protein Content Food
Protein Content (g)
Carbohydrate
8
Bean sprout soybean soup
6
Soybean jorim (a small saucer)
8
Tofu jorim
10
Oyster tofu jjigye
11
Cheonggukjang
12
Bean Sprout bibimbap
14
Dried pollock bean sprout soup
21
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Recommended Daily Intake of Beans
I don’t believe anybody does not know the health value of beans. However, I often wonder whether we eat too many or too few beans. The FDA in 1999 defined how much bean protein Americans are recommended to take. Interestingly, its definition was for bean protein content, not beans. The FDA used the term ‘bean protein’ in its statement that “25 grams of bean protein is good for patients with arterial diseases.” The history of beans in the West is not long, but it is thanks to advanced Western science that the science of beans has become known to the world. Western science revealed to the world that beans are essential for good health and longevity.
One Spoonful of Soybean Jorim + One Spoonful of Doenjang + A Third of a Tofu Block
To take 25 grams of bean protein, you need to consume 60 grams, or 4 spoonfuls, of beans. [This is about a third of a cup.] Thanks to the American report on the efficacy of beans, “25 grams of bean protein” is a standard reference.
To compare the daily bean intake of Korean, Chinese and Japanese people: Chinese people typically consume 10 grams, Koreans 25 grams, and Japanese 30 grams. Until quite recently, the Korean daily intake was approximately 20 grams, but it has recently risen thanks to increased press. Still, there is a big difference in individual intake, and there are still some not taking even a single spoonful a day. This book is written for those whose bean intake is below average and who need to be encouraged to consume more beans.
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Based on data from The Korean Dietetic Association, the recommended daily bean intake is about 40 grams [including beans and bean-based foods].
The Low Rate of Colorectal Cancer in Asian Peoples
The citizens of Okinawa are known to consume the most beans in the world. Their daily intake averages 60 to 120 grams, three times as much as Koreans consume. The oldest Okinawans consume a diet of half vegetable and half animal proteins, and eat beans in the form of doenjang or tofu 4.3 times a week, on average.
Traditionally, Asians, who consume more beans than their Western counterparts, are known to have fewer cases of hormone-dependent cancers like colorectal cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. In the US, colorectal cancer is the second highest cause of death among cancers after lung cancer. In Korea, cases of colorectal cancer are rapidly increasing as the Western diet, which emphasizes more meat and fewer vegetables, becomes more popular. [It is clear that colorectal cancer develops with excessive intake of animal fat and insufficient fiber.]
Various Asian countries that have high bean intakes have dramatically lower rates of death from heart disease and genital cancers than Western countries do. For example, the Korean mortality rate from breast cancer is just one-tenth, and prostate cancer one-thirtieth those of Americans. For Koreans, who eat beans whole, the American recommendation of bean protein intake is meaningless. However, as Koreans increasingly adopt Western diets and
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thereby increasingly fall victim to Western health problems, they must review how much beans they take daily and how.
Beans Are a Health Food, not a Trend
Tofu is a bean-based processed food filled with bean protein. It has a high protein content (70%, or double that found in beans). Old Korean records show that ancient Korean made tofu hard enough to tie with straw string and which presumably resembled a hard cheese. The people of Okinawa obtain two-thirds of their daily bean intake from tofu and the rest from miso soup, soy milk, or bean powder. The Japanese and Chinese enjoy soft tofu, whereas the Korean people prefer hard tofu. The people of Okinawa enjoy hard tofu in fried dishes.
A recently developed form of soybeans other than tofu and soy milk is chunggukjang powder and chunggukjang pills. Some enjoy ‘fresh’ cheonggukjang, like nattō (uncrushed beans), though others cannot eat it regularly. There are many new ways to eat ‘fresh’ cheonggukjang, such as in kimchi rolls or with dried seaweed, or mixed with rice in bibimbapx. The idea of cheonggukjang pills seems to come from injin mugwort Pillsxi, and cheonggukjang powder from misugaruxii. Cheonggukjang pills were once found in hair salons and supermarkets in their heyday, but seem no longer as popular. [If you think you are not eating enough beans, you’d better look for a way to start eating them right away.]
Eat Beans Whole
When the Western world became enlightened to the benefits of beans, it attempted to extract
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the nutritional benefits, which included bean protein, bean fat, bean lecithin, and bean isoflavones. Doing so, however, they missed many important parts of the bean. If they could only learn to ferment beans and eat them whole, as Koreans do, they could gain much more from beans than simple extracts.
To take as an example cheonggukjang, made from fermented beans: there are a few extra nutrients which are lost in the extraction process—in particular, Vitamin B complex. Vitamin B1, which is water-soluble and vulnerable to heat, is typically lost during heating. In contrast, it increases by 50% during fermentation. Then there is Vitamin B12, which is not found in beans before cooking. Nicknamed the Energy Vitamin, Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient for patients with pernicious anemia, a disease which often attacks strict vegetarians. Vitamin B12 is typically found in animal-based foods. The fact that beans boast B12 content is good news for those who are passive takers of animal protein. This is another reason why cheonggukjang and Korean doenjang should be introduced to people who dislike meat, or to the vegetarians of the world.
Is Okinawa the Gold Standard?
The FDA’s recommended daily bean protein intake of 25 grams is equivalent to the 60 grams of beans the Okinawans reportedly eat. We cannot tell whether the FDA took the Okinawan case as a model for its recommendation. If this is modern science’s ideal recommended daily intake of beans, Koreans must double their present consumption. To do this, their daily menu has to include rice with beans, doenjang soup, bean sprout namulxiii, tofu, and cheonggukjang, consumed in turns. If this sounds impractical, you may consider the alternative of taking
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cheonggukjang pills, cheonggukjang powder or soy milk. For children who do not enjoy beans, it might be an idea to develop snacks like cookies with soy milk, or hamburgers made with cheonggukjang patties.
For my Nephew with Atopy 25 One older nephew of mine, whom I met after a long time, is now already a father, but still suffers from atopy. He has scratches on his arms, legs, neck and even face, all caused by his atopy. A survey shows that some 30% of Korean children suffer from atopy today. It is serious enough to rival obesity in the West. While obesity takes time to develop, and is somewhat controllable with willpower (to exercise or diet), atopy is not curable unless one builds up immunity against it.
Healthy Intestines are Our First Priority
There are various arguments over the causes of atopy: it comes from artificial substances, or it is a biological response to the environment. The most direct cause known for atopy is foods which generate antigens. If atopic dermatitis is caused by problems in the immune system, then putting on ointment, killing mites, or using new soaps are not long-term solutions. Traditional Asian medicines regard the skin as the body’s second intestines. To cure atopy, the first step is to make sure the intestines are healthy. It is essential for atopic patients to stop eating meat, instant foods or MSG, and consume only natural foods as a rule. Recommended foods include brown rice, doenjang, kimchi, vegetables and fruits. As these are all plant-based, some worry about malnutrition. In this sense, beans are the best source of protein and a cure
for atopy. For children allergic to beans, start with fermented foods like doenjang, soy sauce and cheonggukjang. Bean intake can be further supplemented with rice and beans, tofu and soybean jorim.
Probiotics
Researchers at the University of Helsinki, Finland, announced that a prescription of probiotics for children with atopic dermatitis led a 30% improvement in symptoms. Probiotics are a type of beneficial bacteria that include bifidobacteria and lactobacillus, which change harmful bacteria in the intestines into beneficial bacteria. Kimchi, doenjang and cheonggukjang are good examples of foods containing probiotics.
Traditional Korean foods, like doenjang, kimchi and cheonggukjang, are rich in lactobacillus. While all have beneficial lactobacillus, doenjang in particular eliminates toxins that cause infectious diseases. It also boosts the body’s natural immunity, and is powerful in strengthening the intestines. Doenjang is 50% linolic acid, an essential fatty acid with powerful anti-inflammatory effects, which has a remarkable effect on atopy. [A joint research team from the Korea Food Research Institute and the Medical College at Yonsei University announced in their findings that an extract from doenjang led to a significant increase in immunity. These immunity boosters were not found in cooked soybeans, only in doenjang.]
Children’s Diseases Caused by the Departure from Soil
There is a pastor in Hwacheon, Gangwon Province who makes “country doenjang” with
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dozens of disabled people. In his book, An Amateur Doctor’s Sweet Bitter Advice, he shares an exceptional interpretation of atopy as “a disease caused by children departing from the soil” and as “a disease developed from a diet lacking fermented food.” There would be fewer atopic patients if people lived closer to the soil, and had food from the earth, as they did in days past, he writes. Though not a professional, he regards himself as “an amateur doctor” because he has had enough practical clinical experience with children over a long period.
The origin of the word atopy is a Greek word meaning “strange.” Atopy is a strange disease, attacking only those people with weak immunity, all from a similar environment with a similar diet. To cure people of atopy, it is advised to find causes of pollution in clothing, residences and diets. But it is from food that we can expect the most direct relationship.
What correlation is there between atopic patients, soil and doenjang? Living close to the soil may mean living exposed to various microbes. Being in touch with various microbes, our body naturally develops antibodies against them, which leads to greater immunity. Consider the environment in which doenjang is fermented. Tying meju with straw string is to add live hay bacillus into the meju, making a sort of vaccination. Hay bacillus [bacillus subtilis], a bacteria living in dry grass, is bacteria from the soil. It is resistant to both high and low temperatures—a “strong bacteria” indeed. However, hay bacillus is the very essence of the taste and scent of doenjang. Taking doenjang with live hay bacillus naturally leads to immunity against germs. It should be a necessity, not a choice, to educate all children to eat doenjang, especially children with atopy.
Why Are Beans Good for Atopic Patients?
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To improve the environment in the intestines, a great amount of lactobacillus is required. What if a child with atopy dislikes doenjang and kimchi? Then yogurt can be an alternative. But commercial yogurt products contain sugar and food additives in addition to lactobacillus, and thus are not perfect for atopic patients. Then you may want to consider a food that increases lactobacillus within the intestines and is rich in protein. A good alternative is beans. Oligosaccharide, which is plentiful in beans, is not decomposed by human digestive enzymes, but is a source of nutrients to the beneficial bacteria in the large intestine. It means that eating beans leads to a selective increase in beneficial bacteria, and suppression of harmful bacteria. With vegetables, it is advisable to use traditional doenjang or soy sauce rather than mayonnaise or tomato ketchup, which contain various additives. Korea’s traditional jang is highly digestible, rich in minerals, and perfect for healing the stomachs and intestines of atopic patients.
To be honest, I was the one who first introduced pizza, hamburgers and ice cream to my nephews when they were young. When I was living with my sister’s family, I liked to treat my nephews on my pay day. I don’t know what the kids’ diet was like after my two-year stay at my sister’s house. The fast food I bought may not have been wholly responsible for my nephew’s atopy, but I do feel guilty at least for having influenced them. I am more worried about my nephew’s baby suffering frequent sicknesses from colds and diarrhea. This reminds me that I should send him some doenjang I made last year...
Did You Know?
Immunity Boosting Substances
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According to the Korea Food Research Institute’s Sin-Yang Choi, extracts from doenjang have been confirmed to significantly increase B lymphocytes, which are an important part of the immune system. This immunity boosting substance is not found in cooked beans, only in doenjang. It may mean that it is developed during the fermentation process, driven by diverse microbes living in the natural world.
Basillus Subtilis
As a Korean saying goes, “It is just proper to make meju with beans.” As beans are boiled, made into meju, tied with straw string, and hung from the eaves, the microbes, aerobic bacteria, start to grow. The reason meju is tied up with straw string is to promote the growth of hay bacillus, which thrives in dry hay and grass. Hay bacillus is a stubborn thing that survives until it arrives in the intestines. Bifidobacteria, well-known to us from yogurt ads, is short for bacillus bifidus.
Our ancestors placed meju blocks on the heated floors of traditional Korean homes. The pungent scent perplexed foreigners during the Joseon era, and led to the expression, “the smell of Goryeo”. Today, most Koreans buy jang instead of making it at home. The professional meju making process happens in a clay room, where temperature and moisture controls are used to create the perfect fermentation conditions for meju. The resulting meju looks clean and has a more delicate scent. In the old days, after the first full moon of the Lunar calendar, it was a common sight to see meju blocks with a fungus of white, yellow or blue in every household.
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Four-stage Fermentation Process
Drying Meju is the first stage of fermentation when making jang. The meju blocks are then placed in a warm room and covered with a cotton blanket for further drying. Heating the floor, we kill almost all the miscellaneous bacteria, and only those viable at high temperatures survive. This is the second stage of fermentation.
After the fermentation processes, the meju blocks are kept at room temperature, and, in the spring, are washed with water, and put in earthen jars to soak in brine. Then begins the third stage of fermentation, in which fungus and bacteria halt their activities, and, in turn, the yeast begins to produce alcohol. The mixture is left for 40 to 60 days before being separated into doenjang and soy sauce, which then enter separate maturation processes—the fourth stage of fermentation. The soy sauce is home to microbes that thrive in liquids; the doenjang to microbes that thrive in chunky substances, giving it its own taste.
Isn’t it surprising to know that the doenjang we eat every day is a product of a four-stage process? But more surprising is that this amazing product is not given the grand respect it deserves. Is it because we are humble? Or do we still feel inadequate in sticking to our traditional, unscientific doenjang making processes? Sure, if acquiring bacteria cultured in a laboratory for doenjang is scientific, Korea’s traditional way of making doenjang may be unscientific. However, consider the fact that doenjang is a product made via a high-level fermentation process. Moreover, if the outcome has so many enzymes and functional substances, it is already a science! The issue is how to promote “the science of doenjang.” As traditional doenjang is made in many different ways by use of different microbes in our
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houses, “home doenjang” is indeed a reservoir of rich living resources.
All Three Microbes Are Necessary
The Korean expression, “looking like meju,” refers to a person with a poor appearance, but the meju in traditional doenjang has great value. Meju provides the perfect habitat for microbes to thrive. Our ancestors had to ensure the ideal conditions for the survival of the microbes at each stage, and always used the yeast produced.
Taking this opportunity, I’d like to look further into the fourth stage of fermentation, and to compare it with the fermentation processes for cheese and wine. Cheese is made from milk proteins. The milk is made into lumps and fermented with fungus. The Indonesian fermented bean, tempeh, a favorite of many Westerners, uses fungus, while the Japanese nattō uses nattō bacteria. Bread and wine use yeast, and cheese uses fungus. All of these fall into the category of “single stage fermentation.” Doenjang is the only product derived from a complex fermentation process, taking advantage of fungus, bacteria and yeast. [Kimchi uses two microbes: lactobacillus and yeast.]
The following poem about fungus maturing cheese describes so precisely how fungus work, and could be understood as “a poem about fungus fermenting doenjang.”
Poem
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Tying a Meju Block with Straw String 32 Bacteria may be divided into three groups according to their form: ball type, spiral type, and rod type. The bacteria used in fermenting cheonggukjang are of the rod type, or bacillus— bacil being the Latin word for rod. Bacillus bacteria are aerotropic and have a high resistance to heat, proliferating best at a temperature of 40 °C. Heating meju blocks for the first stage of fermentation is meant to accelerate the process, by encouraging the bacteria to grow at the optimal temperature. But too high a temperature risks exposure to strong ultraviolet waves or a deficiency in moisture, which can prevent bacteria growth. This may cause the bacteria to produce spores or to stop activity for dozens or even hundreds of years. However, when the conditions become right once again—with the right temperature and moisture—the spores resume germinating and grow once more. Korea’s traditional jang makes use of bacteria that stick to the meju naturally, and at the moment when the meju blocks are tied with straw string, the life of the hay bacillus starts. Hay bacillus produces powerful protein-resolving enzymes, which in turn produce various amino acids. The hay bacillus is heavily involved in the deep taste and scent of Korea’s traditional doenjang, soy sauce and cheonggukjang.
Did You Know?
The Power of Hay Bacillus
At the end of the 19th Century, John Tyndall, a British physicist, discovered that the spores of a bacterium from hay were many times more resistant to heat than were other microbes. The spores were not killed even after being boiled for five and a half hours. Ferdinand Cohn, a German botanist, supported this claim by announcing that the bacteria living in hay had a particularly strong resistance to heat.
Mak-jang and Mak-doenjang
The exact name of the doenjang we enjoy today is mak-doenjang, which means ‘what is left without soy sauce.” It is not known when the prefix (mak) was taken off, but I am glad it was, because it could be easily confused with the term mak-jang. Mak-jang refers to a sort of quick form of doenjang, made by mixing boiled barley with powdered meju, and soaking the mixture in water with salt and chili powder. It is ready to eat in two weeks. The recipe differs from region to region. It seems to have originated from a desire to use the meju crumbs left after making doenjang to create a quick version of the more authentic paste.
When the soy sauce is not separated from the doenjang, it is called to-jang. It is mysterious how to-jang may taste thick in the beginning, but does not stay good over the long term. Separated soy sauce and doenjang stay good for years. Soy sauce, in particular, can stay good for many years, and there is even an expression, “one-hundred-year-old soy sauce.” [It may stay good indefinitely, as long as the jar is not broken.]
Jip-jang refers to jang kept in a heap of manure during the summer when farmers start to
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make manure. There is a manufacturer of jip-jang in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province. Jip-jang, similar to, but more moist than mak-jang, is made from the meju of wheat or beans, and fermented with radish, chili, Chinese cabbage leaves or other early-autumn vegetables. Jip-jang is most commonly found in the Gyeongsang Provinces and has a slight sour taste.
Cheongtae-jang is made by steaming beans in the steamer, siruxiv. The steamed beans are molded into tteok,xv Korean rice cakes, patterned, and covered with bean leaves. Jire-jang, or jireum-jang or jjieum-jang, is made by pounding meju into a powder that is then fermented in kimchi or dongchimixvi liquid to speed up the fermentation process. As we can tell from “jire,” which means “quickly,” jire-jang is good to have as a side dish to rice.
As indicated in a list of 30 food masters recognized by Korea’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, there are those who have obtained a prestigious title for traditional jang-making. The first jang Master of Korea is Mr. Byeong-Nyeong Kim, who reinvented sukhwang-jang. Sukhwang-jang is made from black beans and whole wheat boiled and mixed together with silver grass, or artemisia japonica thunb, and made into meju blocks. A mountain herb called deodeokxvii, balloon flower roots and kelp are then added to the blocks. The second jang Master is Mrs. Sun-do Ki, who owns a Goryeo Traditional Food restaurant in Damyang, South Jeolla Province. She makes doenjang and soy sauce with bamboo salt.
Dambuk-jang is a favorite of the Chungcheong Province in winter. It is a kind of processed food based on cheonggukjang. Simply put, it is a “seasoned cheonggukjang;” a jang seasoned with chili powder, garlic and salt to eat cooked.
Ppageum-jang refers to the jang made when doenjang has almost run out in the early spring.
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It is made by pounding the left-over meju crumbs that have stayed through the winter. The powder is kept mature in the heat of Korea’s traditional kitchen stove, buttumakxviii. For a speedy maturation process, dongchimi radish, cut into cubes, or kimchi liquid may be added.
In a recent annual food master’s festival in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, first prize was awarded to a company which made a ppageum-jang jjigye (stew). Ppageum-jang is similar to jirye-jang in that it is made by expediting the fermentation process by adding kimchi liquid or other substances. Jirye-jang is a quick doenjang made of meju crumbs. It is consumed while the doenjang is maturing, whereas ppageum-jang is eaten when people have run out of doenjang or before the doenjang has matured.
Saengchi-jang is a jang made with pheasant meat, a kind of meat jang unlike other bean jang. To make yuk-jang, clean 3 to 4 hen pheasants and boil them. Discard the skin and bones, and grind the meat well until it becomes sticky like clay. Drain the water in a sieve, and add marten powder, ginger juice and soy sauce to one’s taste, and pan fry. As pheasant is scarce these days, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find saengchi-jang.
According to Dr. Ji-Hyeon Jang, professor at Sungsin Women’s University, there are over 120 kinds of jang in Korea, of which most (save doenjang, ganjang, gochujang, and cheonggukjang) are no longer made.
Chapter Two Makers of Doenjang: Stories of Beans, Salt and Jars
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Makers of Doenjang
A jang recipe handed down from the Joseon era has six elements: water, salt, a jar, meju, chimjang, and chicheongjang. Chimjang refers to the way of making jang, particularly in regards to the ratio of water to salt and meju. Chicheongjang refers to the way of removing the soy sauce (cheongjang) from the jang. It is important to note that the recipe refers to meju in these elements instead of beans, most likely because meju is more specific to jang, and includes beans in the term.
Various Names of Beans
Tracing the history of beans, we meet one of the world’s four famed masters: Confucius. The first reference to beans in literature dates back three thousand years. In the Classic of Poetry [詩經, written between the 11th and 6th century BC], the words 菽(bean) and 豆 (beans) appear for the first time. There are 92 poems in the Book of Poems, of which there is one sijo from the Zhou Dynasty entitled 生民, in praise of Hujik (后稷). From childhood, Hujik planted beans and tended them every day, even during playtime, and all he planted grew well: “He looked for food and started to eat. Then he planted beans, which grew wild.”
Beans Stolen?
According to the Guan Zhong’s Guanzi [written between 725 and 645 BC], one of China’s
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most reputed statesmen, the “Duke Huan of Qui brought yungsuk (戎菽).” It stated that beans had come from a barbarian country and had been spread all over the world. That “barbarian country” is most likely the present Shenyang region of Manchuria. What the Qi nation stole must not have been wild beans that grew everywhere. Wild beans are small, and the peas are shelled naturally, so there’s no reason to argue about stealing. Therefore it is presumed that the yungsuk Qi took were a type of bean grown specifically to make up for the disadvantages of wild beans.
From a historical perspective, it is a significant that Qi spread beans across China. Indeed, there is even the phrase, yunggeo 戎車, or the wagons of Yung. Like cars in modern times, wagons were a remarkable invention of the Iron Age. The Yung nation ate the supreme beans, and used the supreme tools. Yung are understood to be the Eastern barbarians. Then where did the Yung proliferate? This leads us to conclude that it is time for world’s food scholars and historians to collaborate in a joint project to ascertain the history of the ancient powerful country of Yung.
The Culture in the Word 豆 (Beans)
To compare 菽 (beans) and 豆 (beans), one can smell the wild scent in 菽 (beans) and the culture in 豆 (beans). The character 菽 comprises the characters 艸(grass), and 叔 (uncle, or to pick up). 叔 indicates picking up from the grass, and we can easily imagine how the wild peas opened naturally and fell in the grass. To ancient people, the start of agriculture was the art of picking things. The word “culture” shares roots with both “to cultivate” and “agriculture.” With the start of bean agriculture, the word 叔 may have been discarded.
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Beans are seeds and, at the same time, fruit. Unlike rice or wheat, beans do not need any support from tools, and planting beans merely means throwing them into the soil, with no need of pre-cultivating the earth. That beans can grow anywhere can be used to test any barren or reclaimed land for agricultural use.
The Roots of Beans Are Deep
There is in Korean a word that does not exist in our neighboring bean-sharing countries of China or Japan: 太 In most literature from the Joseon era, beans are described using the word du (豆), but in some old pieces, beans are referred to as tae (太). In over ten agricultural books where specific species were recorded in detail during the Joseon era, the first book that records bean as tae is Geumyangjapnok (衿陽雜綠, 1491) This book was written by Heemaeng Kang, who lived during King Seong’s reign. Kang retired from government at the age of 52 and lived like a hermit in Geumyanghyeon, an area now known as Gwacheon. In the book, he recorded his dialogues with local farmers and his own experiences.
It is interesting to note that the central area of Shenyang, known as the residence of the Yung Nation, is Taewon (太原). Does it mean that Taewon is the native birthplace of beans? Shenyang was a part of Goguryeo, later known as Balhae, and a place Gil-sang and Seo-hee (from the novel, The Earth) visited during the Japanese Colonial Period. Why was the word tae used instead of du? Nobody has yet explained this. What we do know is how deep the roots of beans are, as they reach to the beginnings of 叔, 豆 and 太.
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Translator’s Footnotes
i
Goryeo was the Chinese name for what was known as Goguryeo in Korean
ii
A sauce made of a mixture of traditional Korean condiments with doenjang and gochujang
as majo[???] iii
A way of cooking as well as a particular kind of dish, similar to a Western stew
iv
A way of cooking as well as a particular kind of dish that is served with rice as a set,
similar to a Western soup v
Blocks of dried, fermented soybeans that form the base for Korea's essential foods,
doenjang, gochujang, or ganjang, vi
Adjective describing an extremely thick liquid
vii
One of the three Kingdoms of Korea, from 37 BC to 668 AD.
viii
A fermented Korean condiment made from red chili pepper, glutinous rice, fermented
soybeans and salt. ix
Steamed rice, glutinous rice, glutinous sorghum, corn, sweet potatoes or mixed grains are
boiled then fermented in a large pot for a long time, and made in either liquid or solid form, as a syrup, taffy or candy. x
Literally"mixed rice," Bibimbap is a bowl of warm white rice topped with seasoned
vegetables and gochujang. It is mixed thoroughly before it is eaten. xi
In Korean food culture, mugwort is famed for its plant proteins and cell walls which are
believed to help detoxify any lingering waste in the digestive system. xii
Made of glutinous rice and other ingredients such as barley, Job's Tears, brown rice, black
rice, alda beans, black beans, corn, white beans, millet and sesame seeds, ground, roasted and/or steamed, then mixed together. Misugaru is commonly added to water or milk and stirred to make a drink.
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xiii
A general term for a Korean seasoned-vegetable dish.
xiv
Traditional Korean kitchenware, used for steaming rice cakes (tteok). Usually made of
porcelain or clay. xv
A type of steamed Korean rice cake, made with glutinous rice flour.
xvi
A variety of kimchi consisting of daikon, Chinese cabbage, scallions, fermented green
chili, ginger, Korean pear and brine. xvii
A variety of bonnet bellflower. The roots are used in Korean cuisine.
xviii
Korea’s traditional, multi-purpose heating and cooking system.
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