Glossary B
Bae is Asian Pear in Korean language. Bae is a fruit that looks like a very large apple with the yellow-orange-brown color of an over-ripe Bartlett pear, although the skin is thicker and rougher than a Bartlett pear. The meat of Bae is as crisp as a juicy apple with the gritty texture of a pear and the flavour is somewhere in between apple and pear. These Asian pears are typically prepared by removing the skin to prevent the transfer of whatever residue of pestiside left with the skin, if there is.
Bae is a seasonal fruit in Korea, hence if they are not in season but are still available in fruit markets, they are rather expensive.
Beoseot is the Korean word for "Mushroom". There are so many varieties of mushrooms available in Korea, however, the most commonly used mushrooms in Korean cuisine are the the following:
1. Mogi (wood ear mushrooms)
(very dark and thin, used mostly in Chinese and Korean cuisine)
Neutari, laskagomba
oyster mushrooms
Paengi, enoki gomba
enoki mushrooms
Songi, matsutake gomba
fragrant pine mushrooms
Ssari, ssaribeoseot, korall gomba
coral mushroom, clavaire
The caps are said to taste like chicken and the stems like abalone
Yangsongi, csiperke gomba
Button Mushroom, Champignon de Paris
Baechu is the Korean word for "Chinese cabbage". Baechu is cooked in Korea in varieties of ways and it is one of an important ingredients for making Kimchi (Baechu-Kimchi). To prepare a Chinese cabbage Kimchi or Baechu-Kimchi, they are halved and its layers of leaves are stuffed with a spicy mixture.
Chinese cabbage are not only found in Korea, similar cabbages are also found in other countries, like China, Japan, Germany, France, etc. In Korea and probably in other countries, Chinese cabbage is made into a soup, pickled, or made into a salad.