Korean jerky varieties From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Po (Korean: 포) is thin strips or sheets of dried meat and fish used in Korean cuisine.[1] Po, which is made from meats including beef, pork, venison and poultry; and seafoods including whitefish, eel, squid, octopus, shrimp and crab; is eaten as snack food, banchan (food accompanying bap) or anju (food accompanying sul).[1][2] Po is prepared for traditional occasions such as pyebaek (formal greetings from the newlyweds after the wedding ceremony) and jesa (ancestral rite).[3][4]
| |
| Type | Dried meat or fish |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Korea |
| Associated cuisine | Korean cuisine |
| Similar dishes | Jerky |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 포 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | 脯 |
| Revised Romanization | po |
| McCune–Reischauer | p'o |
| IPA | [pʰo] |
The Sino-Korean word po (포) can be written with the hanja 脯, which in other East Asian languages and cuisines can also mean preserved fruit.[5]
History of po is thought to date back to pre-historic hunter-gatherer societies.[3]
According to Samguk sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms), an 1145 book written by Kim Bu-sik, in February 683 the King Sinmun of Silla sent 135 carts of rice, wine, oil, honey, jang (soy sauce, soybean paste), vinegar, and po to Kim Heum-un's house for his daughter's wedding.[6]
Northern Song Chinese scholar Wu Ji (?–1142) described Goryeo Koreans seasoning nokpo (녹포; 鹿脯, dried venison) with cinnamon.[7]
In Joseon Korea, po made in governmental offices was called gwanpo (관포; 官脯, "governmental po").[8] Among them, large pyeonpo that was made in Bongsangsi (Office of Sacrificial Rites) for jehang (governmental jesa) was called jopo (조포; 造脯).[9] Geonpo used for jehyang was called jungpo (중포; 中脯).[10] At Korean New Year, it was common for provincial officials to send pochok (포촉; 脯燭, "po and candles") to their relatives and officials in the central government.[11] Extravagant banquets were referred to as yuk-san-po-rim (육산포림; 肉山脯林), literally meaning "po mountains, meat forests".[12] Beef po was also often used to make upo-dasik (우포다식; 牛脯茶食), a kind of dasik (tea food).[13] The 18th-century book Sasojeol (Elementary Matters of Etiquette for Scholar Families), which was written by the Joseon scholar Yi Deok-mu (1741–1793), states; "Do not frequently smell fish or seafood po".[14] Cheolli-po (천리포; 千里脯, "thousand-ri po"), made from meats marinated for a day in wine, vinegar, and salt, was prepared for long journeys.[15] (1 ri is around 393 m (1,289 ft), and 1,000 ri is 393 km (244 mi).)
Meat or fish that is thinly sliced and dried is usually called geonpo (건포; 乾脯), while meat that is pounded flat and dried is called pyeonpo (편포; 片脯). Dried meat in general can be referred to as poyuk (포육; 脯肉), with yuk (육; 肉) meaning "meat", while the differently ordered compound yukpo (육포; 肉脯) refers to dried beef slices.[1][2] Dried fish is called eopo (어포; 魚脯) with eo (어; 魚) meaning "fish".[1]
When the meat is seasoned with salt and pepper, it is called yeompo (염포; 鹽脯), while the dried meats seasoned or marinated with soy sauce-based seasonings are called jangpo (장포; 醬脯), pyeonpo (편포; 片脯), sanpo (산포; 散脯), or yakpo (약포; 藥脯), according to the methods.[16]
Po made from various meats, fish, and seafood are eaten as snack food, banchan (food accompanying bap) or anju (food accompanying sul).[1][2] Salted and dried meat po are eaten as po-jaban (포자반), a salty banchan.[17] Crab and other seafood po are beaten, puffed, seasoned with soy sauce and oil, and eaten as muchim.[18] Fish po are seasoned with soy sauce or gochujang and are grilled as gui.[19]
Po are one of the foods prepared for traditional occasions such as pyebaek (formal greetings from the newlyweds after the wedding ceremony) and jesa (ancestral rite).[3][4] Po and sikhye (rice punch) used for jesa is called pohye (포혜; 脯醯).[20] Often, po is put on the left side of the jesasang (table for ancestral rites) and sikhye is put on the right; this is referred to as jwa-po-u-hye (좌포우혜; 左脯右醯), literally meaning "left po, right sikhye".[21] Another related term is ju-gwa-po-hye (주과포혜; 酒果脯醯), literally meaning "wine, fruit, po, sikhye", which refers to simple offerings for jesa.[22]
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