Byeoltang (Soft-Shell Turtle Soup, also called Jara-gaeng)

History

Eumsik dimibang, the Korean-language cookbook Jang Gye-hyang compiled around 1670, records this soft-shell turtle soup under the heading byeoltang (별탕, literally “turtle soup”), a dish also known as jara-tang, jara-gaeng, or wangbi-tang. It sits in the book’s large fish-and-meat section, among the prized seafood — sea cucumber, abalone — of a Yeongnam yangban kitchen. Jang gives two methods: a tender turtle is beheaded and bled, blanched until pale, then simmered with scallion and fermented-soybean sauce before the meat is shredded, reseasoned and returned to a clear broth; alternatively the whole turtle is boiled, cleaned, and braised in soy and oil. Its seasoning is ginger, cheoncho (Sichuan/Korean pepper) and black pepper — never chili, which had not yet entered the region’s cooking. Turtle was an ordinary but esteemed Joseon food, gathered from streams or bought from fishermen and valued as a restorative (boyang) delicacy; it recurs in later recipe books but is rarely eaten now. The scholar Yi Min-gu (1589–1670) is recorded writing verse on being sent turtle soup, a sign of how highly it was prized among the elite.

Ingredients

• soft-shell turtle
• scallion
• whole-bean soy sauce
• ginger (fresh or dried), cheoncho, black pepper
• salt-vinegar-soy
• vinegar

Instructions

1. Take a tender soft-shell turtle about a foot across; cut off the head, drain the blood, scrub in boiling water and wash white.
2. Boil with scallion and whole-bean soy sauce plus water; when cooked, debone.
3. Add the five flavors; grind ginger, cheoncho, black pepper and salt-vinegar-soy together fine, and let the flavor soak in.
4. Simmer in a clear sauce until tender and eat.
5. Alternative: boil a live turtle, remove, debone and wash well; re-boil in soy, oil and water; season with fresh/dried ginger, black pepper, cheoncho, vinegar and scallion, and eat.