Po (food)

() is thin strips or sheets of dried meat and fish used in Korean cuisine. ''Po'', which is made from meats including beef, pork, venison and poultry; and seafoods including whitefish, eel, squid, octopus, shrimp and crab; is eaten as snack food, ''banchan'' (food accompanying ''bap'') or '' anju'' (food accompanying alcohol). ''Po'' is prepared for traditional occasions such as '' pyebaek'' (formal greetings from the newlyweds after the wedding ceremony) and ''jesa'' (ancestral rite).

Name

The Sino-Korean word () can be written with the hanja , which in other East Asian languages and cuisines can also mean preserved fruit.

History

History of ''po'' is thought to date back to pre-historic hunter-gatherer societies.

According to the 1145 historical text ''Samguk sagi'', in the 2nd month of 683, the King Sinmun of Silla sent 135 carts of rice, wine, oil, honey, ''jang'' (soy sauce, soybean paste), vinegar, and ''po'' to Kim Heum-un's house for his daughter's wedding.

Northern Song Chinese scholar Wu Ji (?–1142) described Goryeo-era Koreans seasoning (, dried venison) with cinnamon.

During the Joseon period, ''po'' made in governmental offices was called (, "governmental ''po''"). Among them, large that was made in ''Bongsangsi'' (Office of Sacrificial Rites) for (governmental ''jesa'') was called (). ''Geonpo'' used for ''jehyang'' was called (). At Korean New Year, it was common for provincial officials to send ('','' "''po'' and candles") to their relatives and officials in the central government. Extravagant banquets were referred to as (), literally meaning "''po'' mountains, meat forests". Beef ''po'' was also often used to make (), a kind of '' dasik'' (tea food). The 18th-century book ''Sasojeol'' (Elementary Matters of Etiquette for Scholar Families), which was written by the Joseon scholar Yi Deok-mu (1741–1793), states; "Do not frequently smell fish or seafood ''po''". (, "thousand-'' ri po''"), made from meats marinated for a day in wine, vinegar, and salt, was prepared for long journeys. (1 ''ri'' is around , and 1,000 ''ri'' is .)

Varieties

Meat or fish that is thinly sliced and dried is usually called (), while meat that is pounded flat and dried is called (). Dried meat in general can be referred to as (), with () meaning "meat", while the differently ordered compound () refers to dried beef slices. Dried fish is called () with () meaning "fish".

When the meat is seasoned with salt and pepper, it is called (), while the dried meats seasoned or marinated with soy sauce-based seasonings are called (), (), (), or (), according to the methods.

Meat

* () – venison
* () – Siberian roe deer venison
* () – pork, salted and dried, parboiled in diluted wine, and dried again
* () – beef
; By method
* () – thinly sliced beef or pork, seasoned and dried on () on fire
* () – seasoned with aged soy sauce, massaged, and dried
* () – thick slices of lean meat is repeatedly grilled to sear skin, beaten with bats, and seasoned with aged soy sauce, until thoroughly cooked
* () – meat is pounded flat with knife, and dried
* () – meat sliced into pieces and sun-dried
* () – meat is thinly sliced, seasoned with soy sauce, oil, sugar, and pepper, massaged, and dried on ''sokuri''

Poultry

* () – goose
* () – wild goose
* () – pheasant

Seafood

* () – squid
* () – thinly sliced fish
* () – fiddler crab meat
* () – fish
* () – shrimp, halved, marinated, dried and grilled
; Pressed
* () – thread-sail filefish, dried and pressed
* () – giant octopus, dried and pressed
* () – squid, dried and pressed

Others

* () – snake meat, eaten as folk remedy in the past

Uses

''Po'' made from various meats, fish, and seafood are eaten as snack food, ''banchan'' (food accompanying ''bap'') or '' anju'' (food accompanying '' sul''). Salted and dried meat ''po'' are eaten as (), a salty ''banchan''. Crab and other seafood ''po'' are beaten, puffed, seasoned with soy sauce and oil, and eaten as '' muchim''. Fish ''po'' are seasoned with soy sauce or gochujang and are grilled as '' gui''.

''Po'' are one of the foods prepared for traditional occasions such as '' pyebaek'' (formal greetings from the newlyweds after the wedding ceremony) and ''jesa'' (ancestral rite). ''Po'' and '' sikhye'' (rice punch) used for ''jesa'' is called (). Often, ''po'' is put on the left side of the '' jesasang'' (table for ancestral rites) and sikhye is put on the right; this is referred to as (), literally meaning "left ''po'', right ''sikhye''". Another related term is (), literally meaning "wine, fruit, ''po'', ''sikhye''", which refers to simple offerings for ''jesa''.

See also

* List of meat dishes

References

{{Portal bar, Food

Dried foods
Korean meat dishes
Korean seafood dishes