Culinary Teaching of Buddha
Temple Food, for Body and Soul
By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter
Bright yellow lanterns decorate the streets while monks and Buddhists bustle around temples to get ready for the big day, Buddha's Birthday. Along with meditation and praying, temple food is more than an experience ― a culinary culture in itself. Even when Buddha's Birthday is over, you can still enjoy the healthy and simple dishes through various means.
What is Temple Food?
Temple food is made and served by monks and Buddhists at temples. The diet has traveled outside the temple these days, as the trend favoring healthy and organic food continues.
The unique characteristics of temple food would be the use of seasonal vegetables from mountains and gardens and the absence of five ingredients and meat. The five ingredients, called ``ohshinchae,'' are garlic, green onions, leeks, wild rocamboles and Chinese squill. According to ``Tripitaka,'' texts that contain disciplinary rules, discourses and teachings of Buddha and Buddhism, these five are known to bring bad luck, evil spirits and lust.
Because these ingredients and other artificial seasonings are forbidden, temple dishes tend to be bland, but are simple and healthy.
``Temple food is safe. It's simple as that. You can't trust food these days, but temple food will always be safe. Real temple food is made of ingredients gathered and picked from the mountains and gardens, so everything is natural,'' said Ven. Dae-an from Geumsu Temple.
Where Can You Find Temple Food?
You can taste temple food at nearly any temple in Korea, but there are also many restaurants that offer the aesthetic meals ― from those that follow the exact teachings of Buddha to those with a modern twist.
``Gamrodang,'' located in Samcheong-dong, Seoul offers real temple food made by Hong Youn-hie, an avid fan of temple food and mother.
``I always have been a devoted Buddhist. When I was volunteering at temples, I had the chance to learn different recipes from the monks,'' she told The Korea Times.
With passion and enthusiasm, Hong cooks her food strictly following the rules of temple food; no ``ohshinchae,'' no artificial seasoning and no flour.
Because the restaurant sticks to the rather difficult instructions of temple recipes, the food is different. For instance, the kimchi still tasted like kimchi, but because it does not contain any garlic, it was rather bland without the usual tangy flavor.
The restaurant offers course meals and also a full guide alongside. Because the dishes and ingredients may be unfamiliar to many, the waitresses offer short descriptions of the ingredients and recipes. The service is
offered in Korean, Japanese and Chinese. The course meals cost from 23,000 won to 98,000 won. The restaurant is near exit 1 of Anguk Station on subway line 3. For more information visit www.sachalfood.com or call (02) 3210-3397.
If the raw, traditional temple food is difficult to enjoy, try places where the food is spiced up a bit with modern tastes. ``Chaegundaam'' is a restaurant that offers dishes based on temple food, but uses the forbidden seasonings. The restaurant offers various courses that will satisfy cravings for healthy, yet delicious and colorful temple food. The restaurant explained that they offer food that can be defined as ``fusion temple food,'' so don't think these dishes are the ones that monks have been eating over the centuries. Opening hours are from 12 p.m.-3 p.m. and 6 p.m.-9 p.m. The lunch menu starts from 16,000 won. Near exit 3 of Samseong Station of subway line 2. For more information call (02) 555-9173.
Hotels also offer temple food. At the Grand Cafe located on the first floor of the Grand Intercontinental Hotel in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul, you can enjoy a temple food buffet (25,000 won). For a genuine experience, the hotel chefs learned the recipes themselves from famous temples and of course, did not use any of the ``ohshinchae.'' Instead of meat, many different dishes are made with tofu. The buffet is only offered during lunch hours, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., but you can order set courses of favorite temple foods for dinner. The temple food special will continue until May 18. For more information, call (02) 559-7614.
There are also books you can check out for a more educational experience. ``It Tastes Like Paradise'' is a book written by freelance writer Hamyoung. He has been writing a series of articles about monks and their special recipes. The book contains these articles on 30 monks who live in temples scattered around the nation. It not only offers interesting dishes, but also teaches the meaning of Buddhism through temple food.
Ven. Do-sung, for example, does not use his hands when he washes rice. Instead, he turns on the water and lets the rice and water mix together until the water cleans the dirt from the rice. Using his hands may interrupt the cleansing process, he says.
``People just don't understand. But as every object has toxin in them, it is critical to get rid of it. It's the only way to discover self-reflection. Just like people getting rid of their greed to discover the true side of themselves,'' he was quoted as saying in the book.
Cook Temple Food Yourself
For do-it-yourself, there is a book titled ``Cook Temple Food at Home for 5,000 won.'' Park Sang-hae, also known as Gong Duk-shim, is a food expert who runs a popular Internet blog (https://cafe.daum.net/templecooking). She offers easy-to-follow steps in making temple food, from porridges to pizzas made from potato dough, only costing 5,000 won.
There are also temple food classes. Temple food expert Gong Duk-shim holds a lecture at her home in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province ― an up close and personal chance to learn about temple food. Students will learn two to three dishes per class; only four people can attend one lecture at a time. The class meets once a week on Monday, Wednesday, Saturday or Sunday. The cost of the four lectures is 250,000 won, including all additional expenses. For more information call 010-8403-3365 (Korean).
The Korean Traditional Temple Food Culture Institute also offers lectures. The classes are held on every Thursday from 2-4 p.m. You can register every three months and the closest registration date is June 19. The cost is 500,000 won, including all expenses. The institute is located at Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul. For more information call (031) 682-3349 or visit www.templefood.co.kr (Korean).
Temple food doesn't have to be difficult. Start out by trying simple steps. Ven. Dae-an of Geumsu Temple introduces dishes like tofu gratin, eggplant spaghetti and pizza. No worries for obeying the rules, for the dishes all follow the basic instructions. Instead of using mozzarella cheese, try using yam. Ketchup can be made by boiling a fresh tomato and adding some honey. The course runs every three months, every Monday from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. for 400,000 won. For more information call (055) 973-6601 or visit www.guemsuam.or.kr.
At 9 a.m., May 12, Buddha's Birthday, the History Channel will air a two-hour special documentary about temple food. It traces the yearlong cross-country culinary venture of Ven. Hongseung, a temple cuisine specialist and director of Pogyowon of the Korean Buddhist Jogye Order.
She introduces the diverse food culture of temples according to region and season, as well as various temple-inspired pizzas and such anyone can enjoy. She also gives tips on adopting healthy eating habits for different body types and even suggests that monks, too, can eat meat ― a shocking suggestion from the viewpoint of traditionalists.