Korean Army Base Stew

I thought you kids might enjoy seeing something unusual that we make here and really like. Not really scary. Farns and pointman and Karla may disagree! lol!

It has a very sad history though. I will quote a bit from the linked article.

As a result of being displaced from their homes, either fleeing the conflict zones or being forcibly uprooted, Koreans began to starve. South Korea's economy was already a fragile one, ruled by a western-backed dictator after emerging from 35 years of Japanese colonial rule. The war disrupted the way millions lived and fed themselves and their families.

As the war dragged on, Korean civilians began to flock to American military installations. Koreans spread rumors about the abundance of food on the bases, that there was so much, the GIs would throw away food they couldn't finish. Korean civilians would go through the food waste, pulling out edible scraps. Eventually, Koreans bought whole bags of discarded American food waste, essentially garbage bags filled with a mix of leftover food. They then added it to large stews.

Korean children waiting in line for food in Seoul, 1955.

When the war ended, Korean civilians no longer had to rely on discarded food, but meat would be hard to find in Korean markets for a long time after, so they went back to the American bases.

There, they found U.S.-made processed meat products that weren't technically available to them, but could be purchased if they knew the right people. Products like Spam, hot dogs and ham could be bought from Korean women with access to American troops, who could buy the items from post exchanges.

A thriving black market of salty processed meat products grew near the U.S. bases, because ingredients like Spam created the perfect soup base for Korean vegetables. This black market continued for decades after the war ended. It became so widespread that the government of South Korean President Park Chung-Hee made Spam smuggling an offense punishable by death.

Imagine that! Spam smuggling, punishable by death!!

Here is the method for making it.

The way I make it is much simpler. I don't make the sauce she made. I use a pre-made Korean paste seasoning called Gochujang. It is a red chili sauce, but not very hot at all.

My cheap-o method is to take two or three ramen kits, start the appropriate amount of water simmering, add the broth powder.

Then I add whatever nasty meat product I am using and some cubed up tofu. I also add some kimchee, if it's old and dried up that is a good use for it. I add green onions or regular onions if that's all I have. A lot of garlic is a good addition.

Mushrooms are good in it. Cabbage is too. Anything works that makes sense. Carrots work.

I put in a good heaping serving spoon of the paste and make sure it's mixed in well and then break up the noodle bricks a little and add them at last. Just cook until they are done. The very last thing I do is put a couple tablespoons of sesame oil in it. Yummy!

There you have it! My Scary recipe. But, you know what? It is very good in a low slung kind of way. It is not meant to be horribly hot, though if you like hot as much as Koreans do you could sure ramp it up and be right in style!

Got any unusual recipes of your own to add? We welcome all scary recipes heartily!