Spam + Kimchi = Korean Soul Food
the story of boo-dae jji-gae
Can something that features Spam as the main ingredient be considered a Korean food? Many people think so, and so do I. Let me make a case for it.
I asked my kids this question at the height of the pandemic and got a surprising answer. I was trying to lift their spirits one night because things looked so bleak at the time that we might never be able to go back to Korea, or anywhere else for that matter.
hey, the next time we go to Seoul, what is the first meal you want to have?
부대찌개!! (boo-dae jji-gae).
Initially I didn’t know how to take that answer because I make a mean boodae jjigae for them at home. Why would they miss it so much that they would want it to be their first meal in Seoul? It turned out that they wanted it for the sentimental value because it was the first ever meal they had on Korean soil.
What is boodae jjigae? In my previous posting titled “Reading the Menu at Korean Restaurants,” I explained what a jjigae (찌개) was. It is a soup/stew dish with vegetables and some kind of protein, and flavored with doen-jang (된장, usually spelled this way but pronounced “dwaen-jang”), go-chu-jang (고추장), and/or jeotgal (젓갈). Okay, then what is boodae? The word has absolutely nothing to do with food. It means “a military unit or base.”
Around the time the Korean War (1950~1953) ended, South Korea was one of the poorest countries in the world. This is not a hyperbole to make Korea look like the ultimate “rags-to-riches” story. Its GDP per capita was $67 in 1953, the second lowest in the world, lower than Somalia, the poorest country in Africa.
It had been a non-stop devastation for Koreans for 4 decades—the Japanese plundering of Korean resources during its occupation, almost immediately followed by the 3 years of Korean War. Millions and millions of people died and food for meager subsistence was hard to come by.
One of the major American military bases at the time was set up in the city of Uijeongbu (의정부), about 60 minutes north of Seoul and close to the 38th Parallel. The American soldiers started distributing (or leaking) their military rations—Spam, ham and sausages—to the nearby Koreans who had never seen anything like it. Not knowing exactly what to do with it, a few ladies started making jjigae with over-fermented kimchi (too sour to eat, but too valuable to throw out at the time—when you add heat to it, the sourness goes away and becomes edible again).
A jjigae made with rations from American boodae (부대, military base, unit). So, there you have it—and that’s why some restaurants call this the “Army Stew.” The birth of a Korean soul food born out of desperate poverty in 1954 in the city of Uijeongbu, a marriage between the quintessential Korean food and the quintessential American processed meat.
So why is this considered Korean food? It has a history of about 70 years now, right? Just about the same as probably the most popular snack tteok-bokki (떡볶이), and longer than agwi-jjim (아귀찜, born in 1965) that is unquestionably Korean. Or, how about the case of jja-jang-myon (짜장면, black bean noodles) that is viewed as Korean food even though it uses a Chinese black bean paste as its main ingredient? It was invented in Korea about 130 years ago and became a soul food for all Koreans. Also consider this, the fried pork cutlet dish tonkatsu that everyone thinks it’s Japanese isn’t. Its origin is the Austrian schnitzel, or fried cutlets some European cuisines had. It’s how a certain type of food evolves and is received by people over decades. Not to say that Spam is Korean but boodae-jjigae is.
Please DO try this at home: if you can get your hands on some good kimchi, grill a few slices of Spam, fry an egg or two, get a bowl of rice and try them as a meal. It is a wonderful combination. So much so that “Spam Gift Sets” appear in Korean supermarkets during chu-seok (추석, Korean Thanksgiving Day, August 15th in lunar calendar) every year.
I thought of something on a whim and googled “spam consumption by country.” Look at the search result.
In a few years, we might even stake a claim to Spam as a Korean ingredient! Hormel should change its name to Kormel. (Sorry for the ajae-gag. “Old-timers’ attempt at trying to be funny with wordplay.” I couldn’t help myself.)
US-friendly Recipe for My boodae jjigae:
1 tablespoon each for all of the following:
chopped garlic, soy sauce, sugar, Blue Agave syrup (from Costco, a wonderful substitute for the Korean jo-cheong or yori-dang), go-chu-ga-roo (the Korean chili flakes/powder, if you don’t have it, try the 1/2 tablespoon pepperoncino flakes), go-chu-jang (sorry, you’re just gonna have to get one of these), and fruit juice (not orange! or sweet white wine like moscato will work too)
Mix all of these together and let it sit for couple of hours (you can put in tiny bit of MSG if you like).
Exact amount of kimchi and Spam doesn’t matter (the more the better, in fact) — put in kimchi, Spam, some hot dog sausages or any other processed meat in 1.5 L of water with 2 tablespoons of chicken powder (or, you can substitute with the store-bought chicken broth).
Put everything on high heat, add the sauce mix above, boil it for 30 minutes.
Going back to how boodae-jjigae was invented, I thought I should conclude with this. I apologize for the graphic nature of it and to this gentleman, but we all need a reminder of how lucky we all are.
Growing up in New York City in the 1950s, I remember eating Spam. I don't remember ever eating it again after 1960. If it is in our grocery store today, I must not notice it. Hmmm, will I ever try your recipe?