Field Notes
Your Korean birthday soup might have started with whales
Goguryeo people saw it. Tang scholars wrote it down. A thousand years later, every Korean mother still eats it after labour.
Singapore|Issue № 2
The Hansang
Your bridge to Korean food, from Singapore
Section · /culture · 4 essays
Culture.
Essays on Korean food culture, history and everyday rituals for Singapore readers.
31 May 2026
Field Notes
This Korean jelly used to be lamb soup
Yanggaeng started as a lamb broth in 5th-century China. Buddhist monks took it to Japan, swapped the meat for red beans, and the soup became a sweet.
Field Notes
This Korean dessert got banned three times
Yakgwa was so good Korean kings tried to outlaw it. Three times, across two dynasties. People would not stop making it.
Field Notes
Before Korean food was spicy, it was fermented
Doenjang, ganjang, and gochujang are not just sauces. They are one of the oldest flavour systems in Korean food.