[ENG] Spring Flounder Mugwort Soup & Spicy Snailfish [Korean Dining Table] | KBS WORLD TV 120306

0:14 Cubed snailfish disappear from the coastal waters.

0:19 There is no more hustle and bustle to dry the fish.

0:23 Now, it is time to till the soil and sow the seed.

0:37 Lee Jeongsun and her husband have lived in Chudo for 13 years.

0:41 She came out with him for the first time in a while.

0:45 She is gathering spring.

0:51 Mugwort begins to bud in December in sunny spots of the island.

0:56 Then, it starts to grow fast in this time of the year.

1:06 There is a saying about mugwort.

1:10 "If you eat mugwort soup 3 times

1:13 in January," "those who couldn't walk at all will

1:16 be able to run around." It means mugwort

1:20 grown in January is very healthy and medicinal.

1:27 They also caught a flounder.

1:34 Flounder is an anadromous fish, so they will begin to swim to the northern sea.

1:47 Mugwort and flounders remind me of flounder mugwort soup.

1:56 Mrs.

1:56 Lee will make it.

1:58 She is dressing the fish with speed and skill.

2:02 Actually, she grew up in a mountainous town in Sangcheon-si.

2:09 In the areas near Jirisan where I grew up,

2:13 people don't even think of putting fish in a soup.

2:18 Before I came here, I used to put bean paste or anchovy.

2:23 Here, everyone puts fish in seaweed soup or mugwort soup.

2:32 Flounder is the herald of spring in Tongyeong region.

2:37 But you cannot catch them in December and January.

2:41 Because it's the spawning season.

2:44 Therefore, you can catch them in February when mugworts grow.

2:49 That is why people eat flounder mugwort soup which

2:53 is thought as the best spring dish in Tongyeong.

3:03 Mrs.

3:04 Lee makes the broth with little bean paste.

3:10 Then, she puts herrings instead of dried anchovies.

3:16 When boiled for long, anchovies taste bitter,

3:19 but herrings make light and delicious broth.

3:26 When the broth boils long enough, she puts dressed flounders.

3:34 And she puts mugworts, too.

3:37 As the writer Kim Hun puts it,

3:40 all of the offering made by mugwort to the broth is the scent.

3:46 The broth tastes so bitter and sharp, it is close to the pain or sorrow.

3:52 So Kim Hun writes mugwort should be cooked with animal

3:57 food like a flounder to bring out its nice flavor.

4:06 It amazes me.

4:08 She could be sick of cubed snailfish after that hustle and bustle in winter.

4:16 Mrs.

4:16 Lee still loves cubed snailfish.

4:22 She is making steamed snailfish with bean sprouts, similar to steamed monkfish.

4:31 She puts plenty of hot chili pepper and chili flakes.

4:40 And handful of bean sprouts also go in.

4:42 Cubed snailfish with much amino acid has soft and moreish taste,

4:47 so it goes well with any ingredients and makes tasty dishes.

4:56 Cubed snailfish dish smells delicious without any fishy smell.

5:08 Maybe food is like the water of Chudo.

5:14 It changes its form in different bowl and environment,

5:20 but it never loses its taste.

5:27 One day, I steamed the fish with bean sprouts and it tasted good.

5:37 It is steamed snailfish of Chudo.

5:40 A plate of steamed snailfish is made with clean

5:44 water of Chudo and the effort of the islanders.

5:53 You can make tasty dish with large intestines of cubed snailfish.

6:02 The recipe is simple.

6:04 You wash the intestine clean and parboil it until it is chewy.

6:18 You can eat this dish only in cubed snailfish season.

6:23 At first, I did not feel the desire to taste it,

6:29 but I had it with kimchi, and it was delicious.

6:34 Cubed snailfish lives on the bottom of the sea eating shrimps.

6:40 That is why its intestines are clean and also tastes good.

6:52 With nicely fermented kimchi, chewy texture of intestine adds joy.

7:01 The soup tastes really good with freshly picked mugwort.

7:05 Of course, it is.

7:07 I don't normally go out, but I helped you picking them.

7:13 You also caught flounders.

7:15 Yes, I did.

7:16 You are lucky to have me, right?

7:18 I should say you are lucky to have me.

7:20 You can eat these dish because of me.

7:24 You ask the ladies, and they will tell you.

7:26 In winter, even the wealthy people in Seoul cannot eat mugwort and flounder.

7:35 I agree.

7:36 But you are lucky to have me.

7:40 The couple is having a squabble.

7:43 But for 13 years in the island, the life flowed like a peaceful river.