Spicy and Savory Galchi at Hee-rak

By Han Sang-hee

Staff Reporter

Walking through the busy streets of Namdaemun Market in Seoul, one hits a particular narrow and zigzagged alley that mainly sells ``galchi jorim.'' The owners and ajumma, middle-aged women, servers stop people in their tracks, beckoning them to come in and have a bite.

``Galchi'' is scabbard fish, a thin and silvery type of fish Koreans enjoy. The fish is usually boiled in soy sauce with red pepper and other spices, or simply fried.

Among numerous restaurants that boast of the title ``wonjo,'' or ``original,'' there is a relatively smaller place called ``Hee-rak.'' The trick to finding this modest restaurant is to go to the only place that's crowded with people.

As soon as you locate Hee-rak, you can find ajummas preparing the spicy red dish on a strong fire right outside the door.

The place is surprisingly small, with only about 20 seats downstairs. But there is also an attic, where we were told to go.

Climbing up the steep staircase, visitors find an even smaller room with only five tables. The ceiling is too low to stand straight up and there are no chairs. It's small but cozy, complete with air conditioning and electric fans.

The main menu is the famous ``galchi jorim'' (6,000 won) and the ``gyeran jjim,'' a poached egg dish, (4,000 won). The menu lists several other recipes, but these two dishes are what made this small restaurant famous.

The galchi jorim is served in an old and rusty nickel pot. The pot may seem strange to some, but for Koreans the pot causes nostalgia, for it was frequently used in Korean homes in the past. Nickel is known for holding heat, and indeed the food was boiling hot for quite some time.

Galchi jorim is usually cooked with radish and big pieces of green onion. The dish was spicy and savory, with the radish soft and juicy, and the green onions giving the dish a fresh taste and look. Mix the spicy seasonings with your white rice and experience a totally different taste.

Galchi is a fish with rather big, sharp bones, but there is an easy way to get rid of them. First get rid of the short bones on each side of the fish and carefully single out the meat from the backbone.