FamiLee Life

Giant Squids and Octopus :: Koreans eat these things!

You may have read in the New York Times that Japanese researchers for the first time in history captured images of a live giant squid. It's pretty amazing.

Working about 600 miles south of Tokyo off the Bonin Islands, known in Japan as the Ogasawara Islands, they [the researchers] photographed the creature with a robotic camera at a depth of 3,000 feet. During a struggle lasting more than four hours, the animal, about 26 feet long, took the proffered bait and eventually broke free, leaving behind an 18-foot length of tentacle.

On a related note, check out this video footage of a meeting between a giant octopus and a shark.

Given the native intelligence of squid and octopus, I find it all the more fascinating that it's one of the most common and popular snacks for Koreans (and other Asians) -- usually eaten dried and salted. In Korea, it is a delicacy to eat live squid. I've never done it but I've heard from my dad and others that it is quite an experience. Some of you may have seen the episode from the Amazing Race a few years ago in which contestants had to eat live squid while traveling in South Korea. Even after cutting up the squid (or eating baby squid), the key is to chew a lot. Otherwise, the suckers on the tentacles will start to latch onto your mouth, resisting being swallowed! When I return to Korea, eating live squid is on my "to do" list.

One last story about squid, a while back, I had asked my mom about how she and my dad met and if they had dated. She said that they had dated and sometimes would go to movies. I asked if they had popcorn back then and she said that they would eat dried squid as a snack. I made some comment that eating squid must make kissing stinky. To which my mom replied that it didn't matter because they both had eaten the squid, so their breaths were both bad!

Posted by richlee at September 30, 2005 02:10 PM