Eumsikjeoljo (integrity with food) originally came from the Andong district, where the Goseong Yi clan inherited a cookbook from their ancestor Lee Jeong-Rong (1798~1871). The cookbook was written in an antiquated style and is estimated to have been written around the year 1865. Details of the era and authorship are seldom available for the extant ancient cookbooks. The authors of these books and the period during which these books were precisely written were studied through the Eumsikjeoljo which is a repository of 46 cooking disciplines. Of these 10 deal with the practice of traditional Korean crispy snack making, 4 with rice cake making, 3 of the yeonbyeong kind, 19 examples of Korean side dish making, 6 recipes of the kimchi variety, 2 examples of paste-based recipes, and 2 instances of instructions on how to make vinegarbased extracts. Also, in Eumsikjeoljo, there are descriptions of 29 different ways to brew rice wine. Of these, Danyang wine among the Leehwa wines and 13 others account for over 44% of the content. Leeyang wine and Sogok wine are represented by 10 different varieties and constitute around 34% of the entries. Samyang wine and Baek-il wine, along with 6 others, constitute 21% of the entries. The secret recipes of the Goseong Yi clan in the Andong district were recorded so that they could be transferred to the descendants of the clan. An inspection of the recipes and wine brewing techniques recorded in Eumsikjeoljo provides a clearer picture of the mid-1800s Andong noble family’s traditional food habits and simultaneously sheds light on the late Joseon dynasty’s food culture.

This research is the first known to introduce and analyze food-related content among the records left by George Clayton Foulk (1856-1893), a naval attaché dispatched as part of a U.S. delegation to Korea during the Joseon dynasty in the 19th century. Sketches and memos by Foulk provide important clues in understanding the food culture during the late Joseon dynasty. By analyzing the types of foods, table composition, and intervals between serving the nine rounds of food from the rural government office, which Foulk ate during his local trip, he was able to confirm that there was a starter (‘preliminary table’ or ‘hors d’oeuvre’) before the main table and that it was served before the main dish.

This study researched the food culture and bean economy of the Joseon dynasty during the 16th century and according to the primary lifestyle reference『Shaemirok (瑣尾錄)』. The research analyzed the textual contents of the『Shaemirok (瑣尾錄)』. It is clear that the people of the Joseon dynasty produced more beans than grain, at a ratio of 41 to 50, respectively. The soy bean sauce consumption was split into family consumption and non-family consumption. It was evident that there was more family consumption compared to that of non-family consumption at a ratio of 7 to 3, respectively. People of the Joseon dynasty annually recorded their way of making soy sauce from 1595 to 1600. The Joseon writers edited the record six times for making meju and four times for making soy sauce. The recorded ratio displays the ingredients of soy sauce, which were: 6 Du of Mal Jang and 2 Du of salt. Mal Jang and salt had a three to one ratio, respectively. The most mentioned food was Tofu during the mid-Joseon period with fifty six mentions. The Joseon people regarded making Tofu in a Buddhist temple as a family-bonding experience. Porridge was the second most prominent food next to Tofu, among the bean-related food. Porridge appears thirty five times. There were 3 types of porridge named: bean porridge, bean powder porridge and mung bean porridge.

This study will introduce the foods recorded in Gyemiseo and disclose the substantive characteristics of traditional Korean food in the early stage of the Joseon Dynasty. Gyemiseo is a cook book manuscript written in the Chinese language that was rebound into book format at the end of the Joseon Dynasty in 1911, some 358 years after it was originally written in the 163rd year of the Joseon Dynasty (1554) While the majority of cook books begin with recipes for various types of wines and liquor followed by those for fermented sauces, fermented vegetables (such as kimchi), vinegars and storage methods, etc., Gyemiseo begins with recipes for fermented sauces, followed by recipes for various kimchis, how to make vinegars, main meals, side dishes, rice cakes and confectionaries, with recipes for wines and liquor introduced last. Therefore, it can be assumed that the methods of brewing wines and liquors were additionally recorded for bookbinding. There are a total of 128 recipes recorded in Gyemiseo, including 13 for fermented sauces, 14 for kimchi, 11 for the main meal, 26 for side dishes, three storage methods, four for rice cakes and confectionaries, and 44 for wines and liquors. It is believed that contents of Gyemiseo will provide a foundation on which to pursue researches on the process of transition of cooking methods of traditional cuisines of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty.