Experience Jeonbuk I attempted to encourage everyone to taste the most delicious gochujang in Korea and then describe its flavor. Most Koreans would begin by talking about how "good it is for a human body," and I could not ignore the health benefits either. Thanks to natural fermentation, red pepper paste is fully organic and does not spoil for a long time. Various ingredients provide vitamins B2 and C as well as keratin. Additionally, practically speaking, spiciness is the best way to both stimulate sweating and relieve stress in order to feel refreshed. When the gochujang is finished, there is a trick to put it in the earthenware container, a jangdok, to begin the proper fermentation process. It needs a thick layer of extra salt under its lid. Then the brown pots are lined in the backyard for months. A logical follow-up in my gochujang-making trip was to go to the pottery workshop at the Sunchang Pottery Experience Center. The place is full of jangdok pots in of all sizes. They stand all together: from teeny souvenir pots to giant ones made for housewives to ferment enough gochujang for the biggest family. The most fascinating thing about the place is the large pyramid of pots constructed outside the main entrance. Once inside the pottery building, I saw lines of pink pots ready to get fired, laid out in a perfect pattern. It was so beautiful that I was spellbound for a while. When I woke up I was invited to make a pot out of a clay block and some figure stamps for decoration. This technique does not include a pottery wheel. Following the instructions, I started forming long sausages of clay to put them later, layer-by-layer, as the body of the pot. A potter’s hands must feel the form of exactly what he is doing in order to make it correctly. But the good thing about this kind of pottery is that he does not always have to be perfect. As I was holding a clay thing in my hands, I realized I could make whatever came to my mind. Nevertheless, I still tried to make something looking like a classic pot for gochujang. It took me an hour to get the hang of it. After forming the pot, it needs to dry out, then get fired and glazed, but visitors do not usually have time for this long process. For those people who still want to take their own handmade pot home, the Center offers to finish it for them and mail it over. I left mine there, not only because I don’t need it at home, but also because I wanted to leave a part of my soul there, in the pot I created, in Sunchang Folk Village. Maybe it will be one day accept a coin thrown into it, or a ribbon tied around it with the hope of coming back once more. Bibimbap, tteok-bokki, bibimmyeon, and half of all jjigaes are not the only Korean cuisine masterpieces which would not exist without gochujang. Remember how much is not said about the paste when you order any of these in a restaurant. And don't forget to write down “visit Sunchang” on your Bucket List this year. Prices Sunchang Gochujan Making Experience 10,000 Tteok-bokki Making Experience 5,000 Sunchang Pottery Experience 10,000 – 15,000 Depends on the number of people and a type of program Address: 5-13, Minsongmaeul-gil, Sunchang-eup, Sunchang-gun Website: sunchang.invil.org Address: 45-8, Jangnyu-ro, Sunchang-eup, Sunchang-gun Website: sunchangceramic.com 48 Jeonbuk Life <strong>Magazine</strong> / <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2019</strong> • Issue 14
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