[New Slang Dictionary] Bap Gyeongchal - Tasteless Side Dishes Scarier Than Thieves

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] Heo Gyun, the author of Hong Gil-dong jeon, was falsely accused in 1611 of leading his family’s unfair success in the state examination and was exiled to Hamyeol in Jeolla Province (currently Hamra-myeon, Iksan-si). Known as a gourmet of his time, the rural exile’s meals caused him as much suffering as torture. “Since I committed a crime and was exiled to a seaside town, there was not even enough rice bran or small grains; the meals consisted only of rotten eel, fish with a foul smell, purslane (five-flavor herb), and stone parsley. So even after eating double portions every day, I felt hungry all evening.” Heo Gyun’s own writings vividly convey the tastelessness of the side dishes. Likewise, Dasan Jeong Yak-yong was arrested as a Catholic during the Shin-yu Persecution in 1801 and began his exile in Janggi, Gyeongsang Province (currently Janggi-myeon, Pohang-si), lamenting the meager meals in poignant poetry. “Though the red thumb claws of the flower crab are truly famous, every morning I only meet flounder soup. I eat frogs, snakes, and even miljeok (baby mice preserved in honey), yet I do not say southern food differs from northern food.”

“Bap-gyeongchal” (literally “rice police”) is the antonym of “bap-doduk” (rice thief), referring to side dishes so unappetizing that they suppress appetite and protect the rice. It is often mentioned in relation to military or school meal side dishes, and in severe cases, it is called “bap-geomchal” (rice prosecutor). Typical bap-gyeongchal dishes include black soybeans, seasoned seaweed, fried seaweed, bellflower root salad, stir-fried zucchini, seasoned eggplant, braised burdock, and soybean sprout soup. Heo Gyun, who resented the hungry meals, recalled the best foods he had ever tasted, including ingredients, cooking methods, and flavors, leaving behind the masterpiece . Jeong Yak-yong, who lamented the flounder soup, quietly reflected on his past as a Catholic, saying, “My wish is to never again dream vain dreams and to become a fisherman by the river.” In modern times, when faced with the unavoidable bap-gyeongchal in collective dining halls, people quickly respond by turning to convenience stores and PXs. This is why the existence of ramen and lunch boxes is especially appreciated.

Example

A: Did you have a good vacation? Did your mother make lots of delicious food?

B: Yes! I ate plenty of soy sauce marinated crab, spicy marinated crab, ribs, and dried yellow corvina.

A: Wow... that’s a total rice thief special. By the way, what’s for dinner today?

B: Tonight’s menu is steamed rice with kimchi, seasoned seaweed salad, fried croaker, seafood bibim sauce, and soybean sprout soup.

A: Wow, that’s not bap-gyeongchal but bap-geomchal for sure. No way. Let’s go to the PX and just eat frozen pogeul.