Wednesday Gourmet (Wednesday Food Talk / 수요미식회)

Welcome to the 195th episode of Wednesday Food Talk.

Welcome.

Today's topic is...

a place where the taste and style of traditional food are alive...

created by Confucian culture of scholars...

and captures the savory appetite of commoners.

Today's gourmet city is...

Andong, North Gyeongsang Province.

Come and visit!

Okay!

Let me introduce today's guests.

He's a charismatic scene stealer,

Actor Son Byeong Ho.

Son Byeong Ho. - Hello.

And she is a lovely and charming lady.

Actress Hwang Bo Ra.

She is enjoying her honeymoon period these days.

Comedian Hong Yun Hwa.

Hello.

Thank you for appearing on our show today.

We have invited Byeong Ho for a special reason.

Andong is actually his hometown.

Yes, it is. - But just because...

you were born and raised in your hometown,

it doesn't necessarily mean you love it.

But Byeong Ho is known to cherish and love his hometown dearly.

Soil is the essence...

of everything. - Soil.

The soil, water, mountains, and wind in Andong...

are the most important ingredients of Andong food.

Andong salted mackerel.

Andong steamed chicken.

Andong sikhye and soju.

It's not very common to include the name of the region in food name.

Well...

I get the rest,

but what does mackerel have to do with the Andong soil?

They are caught in the sea.

In order to be properly aged, mackerel needs...

the nutrients from the soil.

It's that important?

Even the salt... - Yes, Andong salt.

That's why. - You need Andong salt.

Are there salt mines in Andong?

Are there? - He's just saying it...

because he's proud of his hometown.

We'll let it slide this time. - Thank you.

He seemed desperate to make sense.

Are you the honorary ambassador of Andong?

Yes, I am.

When I went to Andong,

I saw his photo by the road.

It was so huge. He was eating a strawberry.

Strawberry. - It's so in your face.

Look how old-fashioned your hairstyle is.

What's funny about this is that I've never seen it.

Really? - Yes.

My friends took a picture of it and sent it to me,

but I didn't know it was so big and everywhere.

Regardless, it must feel good...

that a huge picture of you is displayed in your hometown.

Of course. By the city border,

there used to be a picture of Kang Boo Ja...

promoting Andong kimchi with napa cabbage.

So I was a little upset.

I thought I should be there too.

Fortunately, they realized it too.

I'm grateful to be there.

It's obvious everyone has a hometown,

but especially those from the suburbs...

are more attached to their hometowns.

Bo Ra is from Busan.

Busan is also famous for various food.

I was surprised. I thought...

What's so famous about Andong?

I only knew about Andong soju.

There are more things to eat in Busan.

There are milmyeon, pork gukbap, and hotteok with seeds.

They are great.

What about Andong jjimdak?

Andong jjimdak. - I admit it's famous.

Do you? - Yes.

Do you like it? - I love it.

I order it all the time.

I'd order.

It's the best to smash the rice...

Pour some sauce over it...

With some glass noodles...

The famous food I know of Andong is jjimdak.

That's about it. - Yes.

Andong jjimdak is the food that has the perfect balance...

of sweet and salty taste.

It may not taste so special,

but once you...

become addicted... - You become addicted.

I have a special way...

of enjoying Andong jjimdak.

How? - You'll notice...

they always sprinkle slices of red chili on top of it.

If you eat it altogether,

your lips will swell too much...

you can't eat anymore. - I know.

So what I do is I mix it together about five times when it's served...

so that the flavor is mixed with glass noodles.

Then, I take out the chili slices.

That way, you can enjoy the flavor of the chili...

until the end without getting your lips swollen.

Oh, you take them out. - Then I start digging in.

It can be very spicy. - Your lips won't swell.

That's a great tip.

What's the food that comes to your mind,

honorary ambassador?

Golburi soup. - Golburi soup?

It's the local dialect.

It's marsh snail. - I see.

When you make a soup with it, it's usually clear.

But in Andong, we make it like a hangover soup.

We add ingredients like greens and taro.

We make it spicy with gochujang. - It must be rich in flavor.

There are two ways of eating marsh snails.

One is to make a soup.

Another is... You clean the golburi,

and then put it in doenjang.

Boil them together.

It sounds great. - When you take...

a spoonful of it...

You know how great marsh snails tastes.

You take the inside out with a toothpick.

That's the best.

It's like he's promoting his local business.

I mean it. - "Do you know how great it is?"

What comes to your mind, Joon Woo?

I think salted mackerel is the best food in Andong.

Even its name sounds tasty.

It literally means mackerel is salted.

Just hearing the name makes my mouth water.

Because Andong is an inland area, they produced good beef...

but not fish. - Right.

Mackerel brought in all the way from the shores...

adds more charms to Andong food culture.

Its journey became a type of food itself.

The texture is like beef jerky.

It's salty and slightly dried...

as it loses its moisture while being transported.

It tastes great with rice.

Right. I remember...

More than the fresh mackerel...

salted and cooked,

I sometimes preferred Andong salted mackerel.

You crave it more. - Yes, I craved it more.

Its unique texture and how it's salted...

create the difference although it's the same mackerel.

If we keep saying Andong salted mackerel is the best,

the Norwegian fishermen may be upset.

Let's not favor them too much.

Norwegian fishes are good too. - Norwegian salted fish.

They are better. - No.

They are oilier.

Andong salted mackerel is better.

Of course. - Of course.

What food comes to your mind,

A Young?

I love Andong noodles and gukbap. - Andong noodles.

Andong gukbap. - I forgot about that.

Andong noodles.

My grandmother is from Andong.

She always says what Byeong Ho said earlier.

"Andong food is the best."

She always praises them.

I've tasted a lot of them,

but my favorite is the Andong noodles and gukbap.

Its mild taste. It doesn't sound the same without "Andong".

"Andong noodles" reminds you... - "Andong noodles".

of its unique flavor.

"Andong noodles" sounds like it'll cost slightly more.

I agree. - Right?

Just a little bit. - Because of the name.

Just a little bit.

Andong gukbap is a bit like yukgaejang.

They serve the rice in the soup. It tastes great.