Korean Pancakes / Korean Pizza with Korean Rice Wine (Pajeon 파전 파煎 & Makgeolli 막걸리)

For lunch we headed to a Korean restaurant that specializes in Korean pancakes *aka Korean pizza* (Pajeon 파전 파煎) and fermented Korean rice wine ( Makgeolli 막걸리) which ended up being a delicious feast that we both enjoyed thoroughly. This exact Korean meal was actually the first Korean food I ever had when I arrived in Seoul many years ago. We both love the social aspect of this meal where you're sharing slices of the Korean pizza while toasting and downing the delicious wine. This is very much a complimentary pairing that is often eaten during raining days or after climbing or hiking a mountain. We loved the meal and it ended up being a very good value meal coming in at roughly $13 USD (13,000W) for both the Korean pancake and Korean rice wine. One way to know if a meal is good or not is to take a glimpse at the plate once you're finished eating. We didn't leave so much as a morsel. Pajeon is a variety of jeon with green onions as its prominent ingredient, as pa literally means 'green/spring onion' in Korean. It is a pancake-like Korean dish made from a batter of eggs, wheat flour, rice flour, green onions, and often other additional ingredients depending on the variety. Beef, pork, kimchi, shellfish, and other seafood are mostly used.[1] If one of these ingredients, such as squid, dominates the jeon, the name will reflect that; oh jing uh jeon is 'squid jeon.' Pajeon is usually recognizable by the highly visible green onions. It is similar to a Chinese green onion pancake in appearance but is less dense in texture and not made from a dough.[1] It is not to be confused with bindaetteok, which is a mung bean pancake. In Korean, a seafood pajeon is called haemul pajeon (해물파전). Various seafood are used in the batter and toppings, e.g. oysters, shrimp, squid, clams. Dongnae pajeon is named after Dongnaesung (동래성), a former fortress in the Joseon Dynasty and now a district in the city of Busan. Dongnae was a prominent battleground during the Imjin War[3] and legend says the people of Dongnae threw green onions while defeating the invading Japanese soldiers. Dongnae pajeon was made in honor of the victory.[4] The dish was also presented at the king's table and became popular when the Dongnae market flourished in the Joseon era.[5] Dongnae pajeon is usually made from a batter of rice flour, glutinous rice flour, eggs, and gochujang. Soft spring onions, beef, clams, mussels, oysters, shrimp and other seafood are also added: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pajeon Makgeolli, also known as makkoli or makuly(takju) (and referred to in English as "Korean rice wine"), is an alcoholic beverage native to Korea. It is made from a mixture of wheat and rice, which gives it a milky, off-white color, and sweetness.[1] It is made by fermenting a mixture of boiled rice, wheat and water, and is about 6--8% alcohol by volume. Most makgeolli contains rice these days. However, a few brands contain wheat instead of rice. It was originally quite popular among farmers, earning it the name nongju (농주 / 農酒), which means farmer liquor. However, it has recently started to become more popular in cities, especially with the younger generations. Dongdongju (동동주) is a drink very similar to makgeolli, and both are commonly imbibed alongside Korean pancakes called pajeon (파전) or bindaetteok (빈대떡). According to The Poetic Records of Emperors and Kings (Jewangun-gi), written during the Goryeo Dynasty, the first mention of the drink was in the founding story of the Goguryeo during the reign of King Dongmyeong. Many communities in Korea around that time enjoyed the tradition of drinking and dancing all night in special ceremonies. During the Goryeo dynasty, makgeolli was called ihwa-ju (pear blossom alcohol), as the liquor was made during the blossoming of that particular flower. Commercially, makgeolli is most commonly available in plastic bottles or aseptic box containers. Traditionally, it is served in a large metal or wooden bowl from which individual cups and bowls are filled using a ladle. Korean Nutella jars also are a traditional vessel for makgeolli consumption. As it is an unfiltered beverage, makgeolli is generally shaken or stirred before being consumed, as the cloudy white portion tends to settle to the bottom, leaving a pale yellow-clear liquid on top. Makgeolli is used during ancestral rites in Korea. This is part of our Life in Korea series. As per usual, there is plenty of silly humor and bloopers at the end - signature moments of our travel videos: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makgeolli Proudly presented by: http://nomadicsamuel.com , http://smilingfacestravelphotos.com , http://thatbackpacker.com & http://backpacking-travel-blog.com All photos and video taken by Samuel Jeffery (Nomadic Samuel) and Audrey Bergner (That Backpacker). This video features the song ''Club Driver - Kevin Macleod" available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Commercial license.