Koreans savor their grill culture. The cut from the pig’s belly called samgyupsal is popular in Korea. Interestingly, this is one of the cheapest cuts elsewhere around the globe but here, it will set you back a few times more than the premium tenderloin and sirloin. Samgyupsal is so tasty when grilled with a sizzle on the spot. It’s quite fatty, which doubles the joy of grilling. Sampyupsal from around the world seems to be hoovered up and consumed in this country. They don’t stop at samgyupsal though, eager to grill any and every meat or cut and in fact doing so. When asking friends to hang out, people routinely ask “should we go grill some meat?” No need to recall the primitive ages, the act of grilling tends to be universally liked. While I was living abroad, my landlord’s kids would get extremely excited when their dad suggested “let’s go out to grill some steak,” and scramble to change and head out. Humans are wired that way.

In grilling meat, Korea may fall behind in quantity– Koreans still aren’t heavy eaters – but lead in techniques, methods, and trends. Overnight, a new store boasting a novel grilling technique would sprout up along a popular food alley. In the Cheonggyecheon area that sells essential utensils to open a restaurant business, there’s a shop specialized in grill pans; even a quick count will yield over 200 types. Barbeque restaurants as expected claim the biggest share in the restaurant industry and of course, the support industry supplying the tools and techniques is large as well. Designing a grill pan that turns out to be a smash hit can have you sitting on a pile of money. Historically, Korea embraced various meat grilling cultures through interactions with the northern region and China, and they ended up gaining explosive popularity. Worried about the over-the-top meat consumption culture, Joseon, a dynasty from a few centuries back, laid down a strong law to prevent cattle slaughtering, making the act punishable by death - but it did little to curb the people’s appetites. Nothing could get in the way of brave meat lovers ready to risk their lives(?) to grill meat. What’s worse, the ruling class that was supposed to set an example in following government instructions was not exactly sticking to that particular policy. Given the chance, they went on to butcher and roast the cow. One of Seoul’s historical dishes is bulgogi, and it’s considered a part of such culture inherited from the ancient Goryeo and Joseon Dynasties.  

Beyond the historical custom of grilling, Korea continues to shape countless new barbeque practices. There are numerous stores that age and sell pork as well, and their techniques are no less than cutting-edge. It’s not a simple aging process they employ. Instead, advanced methods are applied such as “cross-aging” or “4-week dry-aging.” Even a neighborhood steakhouse has an impressive cut of aged meat occupying the front entrance, and bookstores display and sell specialty books on meat aging. Koreans are traditionally known for detail-butchering beef, fine-tailoring the cuts depending on the different muscle, fiber and fat content and their uses. And now, we do the same with pork. Perhaps Korea is unrivalled in the world when it comes to intricately carving up pork. A pig’s head alone is broken down into about ten different cuts to be grilled, each with its distinct shape, texture, and flavor. We call this “back meat” since it started out as a secret hobby of skilled butchers and wasn’t available for sales through the official route. After a day’s hard toil, butchers would grill this cut of meat to kick back and wind down. And now, this back meat is a hot seller - even students as young as 20 years old would entertain it as an option at a barbeque place.

At high-end restaurants overseas, there’s a custom where a chef or a seasoned waiter cuts and serves meat or fish at your own table. In Korea, such service is offered even at regular restaurants like barbeque joints. Most of the time, female servers on the floor affectionately called “ajumma” or “yimo” expertly cut up the meat with a pair of scissors and tongs into bite-size pieces. Such human contact end up bringing the guests and the store closer. Going a step further lately, a staff who has gained mastery over their techniques would go around the tables and dexterously slice the meat with a cutting knife and a pair of tongs. Competition is fierce in the restaurant business in Korea, and many have already entered the fray. So they constantly brainstorm and ponder new methods and services. And such dynamism lures in even more customers. If you’re curious about the grill culture, visit Korea – stores adopting fresh ideas are cropping up even as you’re reading this article.    

TRIVIA

Galmaegi Alley 

Since I’m a cook and food columnist, people often ask me for a favor.
“Please introduce me to a restaurant to go with a foreign friend.”
It’s best not to seek help with your computer purchase from a computer programmer or suggestion of a good singer from a music expert. This is because there’s quite a gap with the mainstream taste. I’m not an exception, and such ask doesn’t lead to much. Still, there was a place that produced a good response upon recommendation. It’s what’s popularly called the “Galmaegi Golmok” or Galmaegi Alley in Jongno 3-ga. Chicken is enough for Korea, and to be clear, galmaegi does not mean seagull. It is what we call the skirt which is a cut by the pork’s intestines. Thought to be part of the gut, it is rarely consumed in foreign countries. But its chewy texture and robust flavor makes it beloved here. And the atmosphere at Galmaegi Golmok in particular, is mesmerizing. Step inside and you’ll experience an adrenaline rush as the structural view unfolds: the street splintering into Y-shaped alleyways, lamps glowing bright, and guests chattering and drinking to their heart’s content around grill tables sprawled out on the street. I bet this is as otherworldly as it gets for foreigners. Naturally, they all sent me a thank you note including the friend who had this rapturous(?) experience and his foreign colleagues. But then, I visited the alley a couple of years ago and was stunned to see as many foreigners as Koreans. It had already turned into a hotspot.