Organ Soup

...what I accidentally ordered for lunch.

See, in Korea, they have this thing called 해장국 (haejangguk). It means "hangover soup" because a) why not? and b) the massive drinking culture means this is a regular occurrence in the lives of Korean GROWN-ASS MEN people. It's this delectably spicy soup chock-full of wilted greens, green onions, ox ribs, and occasionally, potato (my favorite)!

But apparently, this term can be applied to any number of foods eaten to cure hangovers. Cue the horror music. Also, reading that Wiki is like horror music all of its own. I didn't realize I'd been eating congealed ox blood all this time. Ew. Anyway, I decide its high time to try that poppin' restaurant down the street from work and order the haejangguk. I hear something in Korean that I don't understand. I nod my head and what arrives is...terrifying. A greyish-purple liver is floating in my broth, pocked with holes as if it needs air. A string of *gulp* tripe twists in a malignant spiral through the dish. Other unidentifiable pieces drift by.

And that's how I first tried tripe. And liver. And other things.

When in Rome, eat organs!