Well the moment you have all been waiting for... the dog consumption. But first let me tell you about the rest of the day. Friday morning we left the office and headed to a Hanwoo farm. The first farm had about 150 cows. They wean the calves at about 5 months, and do not castrate the bulls. This is because bulls grow faster than steers, and the producers are looking to keep costs down where ever they can. When the bulls are ~24 months old they slaughter them for consumption. Then when the cows get to be about 6 and get too old for production, they are slaughtered too. 
The average size Hanwoo farm is about 150 cows, there is no room for anything larger and they are under barns, to provide shade and weather breaks. I was surprised at how clean it was.
After the Hanwoo farm we had lunch at a place known for their tofu. Now I am not much of a tofu person, but this stuff was pretty tasty. And as par to Korean meals, there were so many side dishes. One photo has tofu, kimchi, and steamed pork. And the other is a "normal" Korean table with all the side dishes - so much food is wasted!!
After lunch we went to a hog farm. They had about 100 sows, and about 1,000 head total. This farm has a branded product. They add something to the feed in the last 20-30 days of feeding, and can then call it - "(insert product here) enhanced". There is no governing body to monitor farms like this, it is just based on their good word. Things that make you go hum.
At the hog farm we saw a cemetery on the hill. This is common in Korea, I guess there are many cemeteries in the mountians that have a few graves.
After the hog farm we went to an importers' site. We were able to see the employees cutting short ribs, and preparing them for the store it supplies them to. While they use Australian beef now, they are open to the thought of US beef. The people we met with here escorted us to the dog (pronounced "k-go-ge") restaurant. Our tables were located by a creek and were outdoor, so of course I was hot; but it was very beautiful. We had dog (eaten with steamed chives and a chili paste), smoked duck, ginseng chicken, and tons of side dishes. The dog was great, it tasted like rabbit. It was a darker meat than what I was expecting, but it met my expectations. The group we were with was very surprised that I wanted to try dog, and they were impressed that I like it.
According to Korean customs, you drink at dinner. Then you go somewhere for the "second round" and keep drinking, and they order more food. So lots of food and lots of alcohol. Soju is the Korean alcohol (similar to vodka) and it is drank by itself, mixed with beer, chased with beer; pretty much anything goes. The video shows how the drinks were mixed.
After a day of great tours, great food, drinks, and great company we called it a day. The guys from the importer company have requested we get together for drinks again before I leave. I think I was the entertainment for the evening, and they liked the fact I could drink, haha. As Russell always said "alcohol is a social lubricant" and it is so true in Korea.
Till next time!!
6 comments:
Hey hun, what an excellent blog entry. Those zany South Koreans, sure know how to have a good time!
Interesting stuff about the cattle and pigs. They look much thinner than the US or even UK counterparts.
Good on you, for trying dog!
Try to recover from that hangover!
I love you
Wow, you tried dog. I'm kind of impressed!
So random question, I know, but I assume they don't just take dogs off the street and slaughter them for dinner so do they have farms for dogs that are specifically raised for human consumption? I mean, it makes sense, but you don't ever hear about dog farmers.
I have been listening to you laugh in that video over and over. Is that creepy?
Love you!
They DO have dog farmers--at least that's what my dad always said. He went to a dog farm in Korea :)
That was interesting! I'm glad that it was good--the Japanese were impressed that I liked the horse, so I can imagine how impressed the Koreans were that you would eat dog!
And tofu is so much more tasty here than in the US--I don't like it in America (typically) but in Japan it's delicious.
Well since you have asked, yes they do have dog farms. But I guess since the animal rights activists (not as bad as PETA) give them a hard time, they are on the down low. But I also read that when the dog farms can't meet demand, they will steal dogs. I do not know exactly where the truth is, but I hope they have comfortable dog farms.
Cali did not like this post at all!!! She is SOO pissed at you that you have stooped to eating companion animals. In fact she told me I better warn the neighbors to hide their pets (she called them fur family) before you get home!
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