In the next few weeks in celebration of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea I’m going to do several pieces on the Korean Bar culture. Koreans love their bars. It is an integral part of life in the cities and towns of South Korea. Traditionally you go with friends, sit around big tables on the floor, and spend the evening laughing drinking and eating great Korean food. The only drinks served in Korean bars are Korean beer and Soju, kind of lighter vodka made from rice. (More on that in a future post.) If you want other kinds of drinks or more western kinds of food such as peanuts, pretzels, or hamburgers there are separate western style bars all over the big cities of South Korea just for that. The western bars do not serve Korean drinks or food. They are kept separate. Usually, Korean bar food includes Korean fried chicken wings, Tofu in a spicy sauce, loads of Kimchi, Fried squid, and…. cheese corn.
An interesting note about the Olympics coming to South Korea: The government is worried about people coming to the smaller towns surrounding the Olympic venues and finding accommodations and bars and restaurants with Korean style floor mats and low tables. So the government is giving grants and incentives for the hotels, bars, and restaurants to convert to a more western style of mattresses and actual chairs and tables. The business owners are worried that once the crowds and athletes leave, the normal clientele will not want to use the “updated” style of seating and beds. It’s a controversy that really doesn’t take into mind the tradition of how the Korean people want to stick with thier old ways and are comfortable that way.
Korean Cheese Corn (콘치즈)
Simple and easy, a staple in Korean Bar culture, Cheese Corn is an indulgent and surprisingly tasty side dish or bar snack. Cheese Corn can be found alongside Korean BBQ and kimchi in most bar and BBQ joints. Koreans love the combination of corn and dairy. They love it on pizza, in cream sauces, on top of cheese fries, and even in ice cream and cheesecake!?! Try to use unsalted and low sodium corn as this dish is to show off the sweetness of the corn and there is plenty of salt in the cheese. This is surprisingly addictive stuff and I can see why the Koreans love this dish.
a cheese and corn side dish found in Korean bars and BBQ restaurants
- 2 15.25 oz can whole kernel corn, no salt added
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 pinch ground pepper
- 1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese, 4 oz.
- 2-3 green onions, or scallions, finely sliced
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Have your oven set to low broil.
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Melt the butter in an iron or other oven safe skillet on medium heat. You can also use a nonstick skillet and transfer to an oven safe serving dish to broil.
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Add the corn, mayonnaise, sugar and a pinch of salt and pepper.
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Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. until heated through and bubbling.
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Remove from heat and sprinkle the shredded mozzarella over the corn mixture.
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Place the corn cheese into the oven and broil on low for 3 to 5 minutes, until just barley browned. Keep an eye on it. It will brown very quickly.
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Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the sliced green onions.
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Serve immediately.
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