Soothing sotbap chases away the winter chills
JoongAng Daily
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| Steam seeps out of a sotbap pot while the rice cooks inside By Kwon Hyuk-jae |
At the end of a long day, many Koreans turn to warm and hearty sotbap, or rice that is actually cooked in the bowl it’s served in.
There are different kinds of sotbap, and often the taste depends on what kinds of bowls - stone, metal or crystal - are used to make it as well as the featured ingredients aside from the rice.
Most sotbap restaurants use metal or stone bowls because the heat spreads evenly over each grain of rice. The heavy lids retain the steam when the rice is cooking, creating a perfect amount of pressure.
“As the stone bowl gets heated, the mineral elements spread the heat evenly and minimize the breakdown of nutrients,” said Lee Sun-hee, head chef of the Korean restaurant Sabiru at the Renaissance Seoul Hotel.
“The advantage is that it’ll cook the rice evenly.”
Jeon Hi-jeong, a food and nutrition professor at Sookmyung Women’s University, agrees.
“The rice must be steamed with an appropriate amount of heat, and metal or stone bowls can retain a large amount of heat and thus are the best kinds of bowls to cook rice to near perfection,” Jeon said.
“Using these types of bowls is the most effective way to cook rice in a way that helps people absorb carbohydrates and maintain rice’s nutritional value.”
After you’ve finished most of the rice, hot water is poured into the bowl, softening the remaining grains that make up a crispy crust at the bottom called nurungji, which some consider dessert.
Some restaurants add vegetables and herbs into the mix, while others sprinkle in shrimp, crab meat and bamboo shoots plus a small amount of sweet soy sauce like a typical Japanese-style dish. In the end, the success of the dish all comes down to four main elements: rice, water, fire and the bowl.
Seoul is filled with restaurants that serve sotbap. Following are some of the best.
Dongrak
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| Sea squirt sotbap at Dongrak |
Just north of the Samcheong Tunnel and the Bugak Skyway in central Seoul, there’s a sign in elegant Chinese characters that reads Dongrak, which means “to enjoy together.” This restaurant is famous for using the freshest ingredients mixed in with three kinds of rice. During the fall and winter, mushrooms and oysters are popular choices. The place is known for serving sotbap with songi mushrooms year-round, even though the mushrooms are only harvested in the fall. The mushrooms here are brought all the way from Gangwon Province. In the spring, sea urchins and sea squirts are on the menu. A full course meal costs 22,000 won ($19) and includes sotbap, cabbage leaves, wild vegetables, steamed kimchi and pumpkin rice, among other side dishes. Closed on Mondays. (02) 743-9976.
Jogeum
This restaurant, located at the entrance of Insa-dong in central Seoul, is famous for serving Japanese-style sotbap for the last 33 years. Most of the dishes feature a bowl of rice with miso soup and soy sauce. There are over 30 ingredients mixed in with the rice, including shrimp, bamboo shoots, chestnuts and oysters.
The house specialty, called Jogeum sotbap, and a version made with songi mushrooms can be had for 13,000 won, while jeonbok (abalone) sotbap costs 28,000 won. The restaurant serves at least 200 bowls of Jogeum sotbap a day, which is easily the most popular item on the menu. Reservations are required during lunch hours. (02) 725-8400.
Gangchon Ssambap
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| Stone sotbap at Gangchon Ssambap |
Gangchon Ssambap is located right in front of the Gana Art Gallery in northern Seoul, where a watermill and different kinds of jars and bowls line the front of the restaurant. The place is known for serving sotbap cooked in stone bowls with 20 different kinds of leaves (9,000 won). It’s served with ginkgo nuts and sweet potatoes, which add more nutritional value to the rice. It also includes slices of boiled pork. (02) 395-6467.
Namuga Itneun Jip
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| Gondre (herb) sotbap at Namuga Itneun Jip |
This restaurant is located in the back of the Salvation Army building in central Seoul. The owner, Go Bong-hak, mixes the rice in a metal bowl and tops it off with herbs cooked in perilla oil (10,000 won.) The herbs are gathered every May from Jeongseon and Pyeongchang counties in Gangwon Province. The vegetables are rich in carbohydrates, calcium, vitamin A and protein, helping to prevent various diseases. The place is also known for dishes featuring homemade tofu. The tofu casserole, in particular, is a popular dish. Reservations are recommended. (02) 737-3888.
By Lee Ka-young [jbiz91@joongang.co.kr]