What is Soju?
Soju- is a distilled beverage native to Korea. Its taste is comparable to vodka, though often slightly sweeter due to sugars added in the manufacturing process, and more commonly consumed neat. Soju has been mostly made from rice, but much of it is made from starch like potatoes, wheat, barley, sweet potatoes, or even tapioca.
To me it does taste more like vodka, but sweet? I am not sure where that came from.
First you order a bottle of Soju, coke, and a rather large beer...because these guys think they are something they begin showing off...
By the sound of my son and his friend Jeff's enthusiasm in having a drinking night out, I insisted we order food to coat the stomach. What kind of food? Beer food, fried chicken (Koreans love their fried chicken) and shrimp, with a side of french fries- okay, basically you are loading calories on with fried food.
Hubby ordered skillet squid, well that is what I called it...it is really Ojingeochae (Stir Fried Dried Squid Strips with a side of pasta, and another post).
Eating Fried Chicken is another story my son explains; it consist of eating parts you might not want, so I stuck to eating shrimp and fries. Meet Jeff, he just married a Korean girl, a beautiful one at that named Cindy. He kindly demonstrates creating a Soju bomb...
1) first you pour the shots of coke and soju in their own separate glasses...
2) then you layer them on top of each other in beer mug...seems vaguely familiar, like something I had in St. Louis with an old friend, but he used Red Bull.
3) then you slowly pour the beer over the layered shots until it is full...
4) You will need to find a few volunteers to drink them as Jeff pours more...one volunteer leads the group into a night of laughs and more eating experiences...oh, but I have to drink first...
drink...
and drink...
After my rather slow drinking, everyone else had beat me to the finish.
Confession: I did not do it in one shot like they were attempting. I never was much of a party'rowser, or did I even begin drinking until I was almost 34. I also would have preferred the coke to be a Pepsi. I just don't like the taste of coke, I'm a proud Pepsi rebel.
What now?
How many Soju Bombs does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Apparently there is no right answer, but if you drink too many you will end up across the street at a Korean Kimchi Pancake House eating spicy and more greasy food like this...
It tasted better than this looks (a side affect of soju bombs, forgetting to take first initial photos). Nice and spicy with the right amount of crisp, something I would make at home.
Pajeon, p’ajon, pajon, pa jun, pageon, jeon…I’ve seen so many variations on the name that I just decided to go with calling them Korean Pancakes. They are also specific restaurants that serve them late night (after drinking) in an area called Hongdae.
PS- I do not advise or condone over eating or over drinking at all (one or two at the most), and pregnant women should never drink alcoholic drinks.
Walking everywhere helps, plus add water times ten. I am not a real beer drinker, so the Cass brand was like Coors light to me, blech!
Gamsagomnida! (Thank you!)
Or maybe the right word is Cheers!
