''Seon'' () is a
traditional Korean dish made from
steamed
Steaming is a method of cooking using steam. This is often done with a food steamer, a kitchen appliance made specifically to cook food with steam, but food can also be steamed in a wok. In the American Southwest, steam pits used for cooking ha ...
vegetables such as
zucchini
Zucchini (; : ''zucchini'' or ''zucchinis''), courgette () or ''Cucurbita pepo'' is a summer squash, a Vine, vining herbaceous plant whose fruit are harvested when their immature seeds and Fruit anatomy#Epicarp, epicarp (rind) are still soft a ...
,
cucumber
The cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant in the family Cucurbitaceae that bears cylindrical to spherical fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.[eggplant
Eggplant (American English, US, Canadian English, CA, Australian English, AU, Philippine English, PH), aubergine (British English, UK, Hiberno English, IE, New Zealand English, NZ), brinjal (Indian English, IN, Singapore English, SG, Malays ...]
or
Napa cabbage
Napa cabbage (''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''pekinensis,'' or ''Brassica rapa'' Pekinensis Group) is a type of Chinese cabbage originating near the Beijing region of China that is widely used in East Asian cuisine. Since the 20th century, it has al ...
and
stuffed with meat. Although the term is a counterpart of ''
jjim
''Jjim'' (; ) is a Korean cuisine term referring to dishes made by steaming or boiling meat, chicken, fish, or shellfish which have been marinated in a sauce or soup. The cooking technique originally referred to dishes cooked in a '' siru'' ( ...
—''a category of dishes that are made by steaming
meat
Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...
or
seafood
Seafood is any form of Marine life, sea life regarded as food by humans, prominently including Fish as food, fish and shellfish. Shellfish include various species of Mollusca, molluscs (e.g., bivalve molluscs such as clams, oysters, and mussel ...
—the concept is not clearly settled.
Other dishes similar to seon include ''gajiseon'' (가지선, steamed eggplant), ''gochuseon'' (고추선, steamed
chili pepper
Chili peppers, also spelled chile or chilli ( ), are varieties of fruit#Berries, berry-fruit plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for their pungency. They are used as a spice to ...
), ''donggwaseon'' (동과선, steamed
winter melon
''Benincasa hispida'', the wax gourd, also called ash gourd, white gourd, winter gourd, winter melon, tallow gourd, ash pumpkin, Chinese preserving melon, is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature.
It is nat ...
), ''museon'' (무선, steamed
radish
The radish (''Raphanus sativus'') is a flowering plant in the mustard family, Brassicaceae. Its large taproot is commonly used as a root vegetable, although the entire plant is edible and its leaves are sometimes used as a leaf vegetable. Origina ...
), ''baechuseon'' (steamed
Napa cabbage
Napa cabbage (''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''pekinensis,'' or ''Brassica rapa'' Pekinensis Group) is a type of Chinese cabbage originating near the Beijing region of China that is widely used in East Asian cuisine. Since the 20th century, it has al ...
)
and ''dubuseon'' (steamed
tofu
or bean curd is a food prepared by Coagulation (milk), coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', and ''extra (or super) firm''. It originated in Chin ...
).
Preparation
To make a ''hobakseon'' () or ''oiseon'' (), a cucumber (or zucchini) is cut into pieces about 4 to 5 cm. in length and then quartered. The pieces are lightly salted and then slightly squeezed to drain water from them. Beef or chicken, along with onion, is chopped and mixed with seasonings to make the stuffing. Then, prepared pieces of the cucumber are stuffed with the meat and placed in a pot. After that, pour the vegetable broth on the ingredients until they are partially covered with liquid. Soaked and stuffed cucumber boiled or steamed with the sauce for about 5–10 minutes. The dish is served with slices of ''seogi'' (석이, ''
Umbilicaria esculenta
''Umbilicaria esculenta'', the rock tripe or Iwa-take, is a lichen of the genus '' Umbilicaria'' that grows on rocks.
Morphology
Two different types of polysaccharides are known to be the structural components, both a heteroglycan from the fun ...
''),
chili threads and
egg garnish place on top of the cucumber, similarly to ''gomyeong'' (고명,
garnishes).
In historical cookbooks
According to ''
Eumsik dimibang'', a Korean
cookbook
A cookbook or cookery book is a kitchen reference containing recipes.
Cookbooks may be general, or may specialize in a particular cuisine or category of food.
Recipes in cookbooks are organized in various ways: by course (food), course (appetize ...
written during mid-
Joseon dynasty
Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...
, the historical recipe of the ''donggwaseon'' (동과선, a variety of seon made with ''dongga'' (
winter melon
''Benincasa hispida'', the wax gourd, also called ash gourd, white gourd, winter gourd, winter melon, tallow gourd, ash pumpkin, Chinese preserving melon, is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature.
It is nat ...
)) is very different from today's version.
Thick slices of winter melon are lightly
parboiled in the water and put into a bowl with the boiled mixture of ''
ganjang
Soy sauce (sometimes called soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' Aspergillus sojae'' molds. It is ...
'', water and oil. In a new bowl boiled ''ganjang'' is mixed with minced
ginger
Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of l ...
and then, poured over the vegetables. ''Donggwaseon'' is served with vinegar which is spread over the dish.
In ''
Siui jeonseo'', a cookbook written in the late 19th century, a recipe of ''hobakseon'' (호박선, a zucchini seon) is similar to the modern one. A zucchini is hollowed out, filled with various condiments and then steamed. A sauce made with vinegar,
ganjang
Soy sauce (sometimes called soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' Aspergillus sojae'' molds. It is ...
and
honey
Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...
is poured over the ready dish. The dish is served with sliced
chili pepper
Chili peppers, also spelled chile or chilli ( ), are varieties of fruit#Berries, berry-fruit plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for their pungency. They are used as a spice to ...
, ''seogi'' (석이
Umbilicaria esculenta
''Umbilicaria esculenta'', the rock tripe or Iwa-take, is a lichen of the genus '' Umbilicaria'' that grows on rocks.
Morphology
Two different types of polysaccharides are known to be the structural components, both a heteroglycan from the fun ...
) and ''jidan'' (fried eggs) that are placed on the zucchini and sprinkled with
pine nut
Pine nuts, also called piñón (), pinoli (), or pignoli, are the edible seeds of pines (family Pinaceae, genus ''Pinus''). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, only 29 species provide edible nuts, while 20 are traded locall ...
s.
However, the term did not reach its modern meaning until the late 1930s. Cookbooks that were written before that time use the term very differently. They refer to ''cheongeoseon'' (청어선, steamed and stuffed
herring
Herring are various species of forage fish, belonging to the Order (biology), order Clupeiformes.
Herring often move in large Shoaling and schooling, schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate wate ...
), ''yangseon'' (양선, steamed and stuffed
beef intestine), or ''dalgyalseon'' (달걀선, steamed eggs).
Today, the term "seon" refers to dish made from stuffed vegetables.
Gallery
Korean cuisine-Oiseon-02.jpg, ''Oi-seon'' (stuffed cucumber)
Eoseon.jpg, ''Eoseon'' (fish rolls)
File:Korean cuisine-Oiseon-01.jpg, Another type of ''oi-seon''
File:Korean cuisine-Baechuseon-01.jpg, ''Baechu-seon'' (stuffed napa cabbage rolls)
Hobak-seon.jpg, ''Hobak-seon'' (stuffed Korean zucchini
Aehobak (), also called Korean zucchini or Korean courgette, is an edible, green to yellow-green summer squash. Although nearly all summer squashes are varieties of ''Cucurbita pepo'', aehobak belongs to the species ''Cucurbita moschata''. Commo ...
)
See also
*
Jjim
''Jjim'' (; ) is a Korean cuisine term referring to dishes made by steaming or boiling meat, chicken, fish, or shellfish which have been marinated in a sauce or soup. The cooking technique originally referred to dishes cooked in a '' siru'' ( ...
*
Bokkeum
''Bokkeum'' () is a category of stir-fried dishes in Korean cuisine.
Etymology
''Bokkeum'' () is a verbal noun derived from the Korean verb ''bokkda'' (), meaning "to cook food or food ingredients with little or a small amount of liquid by st ...
*
Mandu (dumpling)
*
Korean cuisine
Korean cuisine is the set of foods and culinary styles which are associated with Korean culture. This cuisine has evolved through centuries of social and political change. Originating from ancient Prehistoric Korea, agricultural and nomad ...
*
List of steamed foods
This is a list of steamed foods and dishes that are typically or commonly prepared by the cooking method of steaming.
Steamed foods
* Ada – a food item from Kerala, usually made of rice flour with sweet filling inside.
* Bánh – in Hano ...
References
External links
Oiseon recipeat the Seattle Times
Dobuseon recipeat casa.co.kr
{{Korean food and drink
Korean cuisine
Stuffed vegetable dishes
Steamed foods
Joseon cuisine