Actually, my birthday was this month. 🍰
Isn’t my birthday cake cute?
What do people eat or do on birthdays in your country?
In Korea, there is not really something you absolutely “have to do” on your birthday.
But there is one food that many Koreans feel you “should eat.”
It is miyeokguk.
Miyeokguk is seaweed soup.
It is actually my favorite Korean soup too.
In Korea, it is one of the most representative foods related to birthdays.
Maybe even more than cake.
First, let me tell you why Koreans eat miyeokguk on birthdays.
Seaweed is known as a food that can help with recovery, and it contains nutrients such as iron and calcium.
Because of that, it has long been considered a good food to eat after giving birth, when the body needs recovery.
Of course, modern Koreans usually get enough nutrition in daily life, and eating too much of anything may not be good for you.
So please take this as cultural information.
Miyeokguk has been used as a postpartum recovery food in Korea for a very long time.
And that tradition is believed to have continued, eventually becoming a food eaten by the birthday person, not only by mothers after childbirth.
Miyeokguk also has a very long history in Korean food culture.
There are records showing that people ate seaweed soup even before the Three Kingdoms period.
The Three Kingdoms period in Korean history lasted roughly from the 1st century BCE to the 7th century CE.
So yes, miyeokguk has been around for a very long time.
There is one more interesting story about miyeokguk.
Seaweed is slippery.
Because of that, there is a Korean superstition that if you eat miyeokguk before an important exam or interview, you might “slip” and fail.
So many people avoid eating miyeokguk the day before or on the day of an important exam.
Of course, it is just a superstition.
But still, it does not feel very good, right? Haha.
Miyeokguk is not a very difficult dish to make.
Next time I make miyeokguk, I will try to take some photos and share the recipe!
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