Anju (food)
Anju is a Korean term for food consumed with alcohol. It consists of a variety of foods, including both main dishes and side dishes. Consuming food with alcohol is a widespread practice in Korea, especially when the alcoholic beverage soju is involved.
Certain types of foods consumed primarily as Anju include golbaengi muchim, nogari with peanuts, and jokbal.
History
Until the Chosun Dynasty, alcohol was mainly served in jumaks, where soups with rice, along with traditional alcohol such as makgeolli, were served to guests. Since the introduction of beer and Western foods into Korea, mainly from Japan in the nineteenth century, bars and pubs have enjoyed a newfound popularity, and many types of Western foods have been consumed as anju. nowadays, anju is good market source of grocers.By types of beverage
Some foods are considered to be best complemented by certain types of alcohol. For example, samgyeopsal, grilled pork belly, is considered to go best with soju, while fried chicken or Korean seasoned chicken goes well with beer. Pa-jun and makkeoli is a popular combination for rainy days.Dry | Soupy and/or spicy | Other | |
Beer | dried nogari, dried shredded squid, jwipo, seasoned nuts, semi-dried squid, yukpo | corn cheese, fried chicken, pizza, twigim | |
Cheongju | bugak, dasik, jeonggwa | bulgogi, hanu-gui, namul, jeon, jeongol, saengseon-hoe, sanjeok, yukhoe | |
Makgeolli | dubu-kimchi, golbaengi-muchim, kimchi | bindae-tteok, bossam, buchimgae, dotori-muk-muchim, hongeo-samhap, jeoneo-hoe, kimchi-buchimgae, mak-guksu, pajeon, raw oyster | |
Soju | agwi-jjim, budae-jjigae, dakbal, eomuk-tang, gamja-tang, jogae-tang, jukkumi-bokkeum, kimchi-jjigae, maeun-tang, | gopchang, makchang, samgyeopsal-gui | |
Wine | cheese platter | steak |
By the place where alcohol is served
There are a number of different types of bars in South Korea, and each category sells different kinds of food and alcoholic beverages.- Jumak: this does not refer to the traditional Korean inns of the Chosun Dynasty mentioned above, but instead refers to a conceptual bar based on Korean culture. These bars are represented by traditional anju such as pa-jun, dubu-kimchi, or dotori-muk.
- Hof house : Hof houses sell a number of relatively inexpensive alcoholic beverages. Various international dishes are served here as well.
Sample images