Bosintang

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bosintang (보신탕; 補身湯), or Gaejangguk (개장국) is a Korean soup that includes dog meat as its primary ingredient.^[1] The soup has been claimed to provide increased virility according to Chinese Medicine principles.^[2] The meat is boiled with vegetables such as green onion, parilla leaves, and dropwort, and spices such as Doenjang (된장), Gochujang (고추장), and parilla seeds powder.^[3]. The dish, one of the most common Korean food made from dog meat, has a long history in Korean culture, but has recently been criticized inside and outside Korea as the dog meat consumption in South Korea gets criticized for the sake of issues such as animal rights and sanitation.

Contents 1 History 2 Names 3 Recipe 4 Controversy 5 See also 6 References

[edit] History

The consumption of dog meat can be traced back to antiquity. Dog bones were excavated in a neolithic settlement in Changnyeong (창녕), South Gyeongsang Province. A wall painting in the Goguryeo tombs complex (고구려 고분군; 高句麗 古墳群) in South Hwangghae Province, a UNESCO World Heritage site which dates from 4th century AD, depicts a slaughtered dog in a storehouse (Ahn, 2000) ^[4].

Approximately in 1816, Jeong Hak Yu (정학유; 丁學遊), the second son of Jeong Yak-yong (정약용; 丁若鏞), a prominent politician and scholar of Choseon dynasty at the time, wrote a poem called Nongawollyeonga (농가월령가; 農家月令歌). This poem, an important source of Korean folk history, describes what ordinary Korean farmer families did in each month of a year. in the description of August, the poem sings about a married woman visiting her birth parents with boiled dog meat, rice cake, and rice wine, thus shows the popularity of dog meat at the time (Ahn, 2000; Seo, 2002).

In Dongguk Seshigi (동국세시기; 東國歲時記), a book written by a Korean scholar Hong Suk Mo (홍석모) in 1849, contains a recipe of Boshintang including a boiled dog and green onion.^[4]

[edit] Names

There are many different names for this dish in the Korean language, some of which may be considered euphemisms.

Revised Romanization	Hangul	Hanja or mixed script	Translation
bosintang	보신탕	補身湯	“invigorating soup”
yeongyangtang	영양탕	營養湯	“nutritious soup”
boyangtang	보양탕	補養湯	“invigorating soup”
gaejang(guk)*	개장(국)	개醬(국)	“dog soup”
sacheoltang	사철탕	四철湯	“soup for all seasons”
dangogitang	단고기탕	단고기湯	“sweet-meat soup”
gutang	구탕	狗湯	“dog soup”
gujang	구장	狗醬	“dog soup”
jiyangtang	지양탕	地羊湯	“dog soup”
meongmeongtang	멍멍탕	멍멍湯	“woof woof soup”

* Not to be confused with the homophone "게장 (gejang; marinated crabs)", nor with the well-known "육개장 (Yukgaejang; beef soup)".

[edit] Recipe

Boil together dog meat and vegetables such as green onion, parilla leaves, and dropwort, and spices such as Doenjang (된장), Gochujang (고추장), and parilla seeds powder.^[3]

[edit] Controversy

Use of dogs for meat and the methods of slaughter used have generated friction between dog lovers, both Westerns and Koreans.

[edit] See also

• Korean cuisine
• Dog meat
• Dog meat consumption in South Korea

[edit] References