7. The right booze for the occasion
For Koreans, the alcohol of choice for barbecue is always soju. There’s even a pithy portmanteau that celebrates this sacred match: so-sam, ‘so’ as shortform for soju and ‘sam’ as shortform for pork belly (samgyeopsal). Makgeolli is seen as a perfect match for pancakes, and beer with fried chicken. Nowadays, there are a lot of flavoured sojus on the market but Joel finds that Koreans – men and women alike – generally prefer the regular, unflavoured ones.
Soju bombs, however, are part of the social lubricant at barbecues. The easiest way to make a soju bomb is to fill a glass halfway with beer (lagers only!) and to drop a shotglass of soju in. For extra street cred, check out the video above where Joel demonstrates how to make a soju bomb with flourish. Knocking the bottle, he admits, is just for theatrics, though some claim it makes the soju smoother. The more important technique is to jab the spoon down in brisk, forceful strokes (and keep it low to prevent splashing) to create the cloudy effect.
In Korea, soju-fuelled company dinners that drag into the wee hours are still the norm, just like the dramas portray, and refusing alcohol is rude. But for those who can’t hold their liquor well, there are some bizarre contraptions on the market to help. Chris even remembers seeing an advertisement for special shirts that come with hidden compartments in the sleeves for discreetly emptying your glass into!
