Bosintang
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bosintang (variously also known as Boshingtang, Boshintang, Poshingtang, Poshintang and other variations on the theme) is a South Korean soup having as its primary ingredient dog meat. It is made from a specific breed of dog that differs from those breeds that are kept as pets. The meat is boiled well together with many kinds of vegetables and seasoning for a long time. The taste is enhanced by the addition of garlic, ginger, Welsh onion, some kinds of herbs, perilla seed and hot pepper.
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[edit] Culture
Bosintang first came to Korea from China during the Three Kingdoms period.[citation needed] Because ancient Korea was a agricultural nation, and a society had a hierarchical class. The lowest class people usually were poor, and rarely had eaten meats. So, dog meat was eaten as tonic food in the hottest three days per year because oxen were very important necessities in a agricultural society. In South Korea, bosintang is not an everyday dish. People traditionally see it as a tonic and consume it mostly at the three days among the hottest days of the year. Thus, in ancient Korea, the lowest class people had eaten dog meat and highest class people had eaten very young hen meat. In North Korea, consumption is said not to be particularly high during that time.
See Dog meat#Korea for more information on the culture and legal situation of dog meat consumption in South Korea.
[edit] Names
There are many different names for this dish in the Korean language, some of which may be considered euphemisms. The meat is called tan'gogi (“sweet meat”) in North Korea, as Kim Jong-il is said to have suggested. At the 1988 Summer Olympics at Seoul, the name boshintang was banned for the more euphemistic youngyangtang.
| Revised Romanization | Hangul only | Hanja or mixed script | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| bosintang | 보신탕 | 補身湯 | “invigorating soup” |
| yeongyangtang | 영양탕 | 營養湯 | “nutritious soup” |
| gaejang(guk)* | 개장(국) | 개醬(국) | “dog soup” |
| sacheoltang | 사철탕 | 四철湯 | “soup for all seasons” |
| dangogitang | 단고기탕 | 단고기湯 | “sweet-meat soup” |
| gutang | 구탕 | 狗湯 | “dog soup” |
| gujang | 구장 | 狗醬 | “dog soup” |
| jiyangtang | 지양탕 | 地羊湯 |
* Not to be confused with the homophone gejang “marinated crabs”, nor with the well-known yukgaejang “beef offal soup”.
[edit] See also
[edit] External Links
- Dog Meat Trade.com Fighting against the illegal Philippine dog meat trade animal rights violation. Works through research, legislation, celebrity involvement & protest campaigns.
- Cuisine of Dog Meat Boshintang Informationko:보신탕
