Rapil & Roasted Sparrow
It was a custom in Korea that the third Sheep’s day after the winter solstice was celebrated in the royal palace.
Typical dish of the day was the casserole of wild boar, hare and other game hunted on the day.
Rapil was also called rapphyong.
Ordinary people did not celebrate the day as grandly as in the royal palace, but they ate roasted sparrow and made yot (taffy).
In the Pyongyang area people ate noodles on the day.
Typical dish of the day was the casserole of wild boar, hare and other game hunted on the day.
Rapil was also called rapphyong.
Ordinary people did not celebrate the day as grandly as in the royal palace, but they ate roasted sparrow and made yot (taffy).
In the Pyongyang area people ate noodles on the day.
Roasted sparrow
In the past sparrow-hunting was brisk in winter in rural villages of the country.
It is said that a sparrow caught and roasted in winter is good for a child to prevent from having smallpox. In other regions they say that one sparrow eaten in winter is better than an ox taken in summer.
It can be interpreted that roasted sparrow in winter tastes good and, more preferably, it is good to catch sparrows harmful to crops as many as possible.
Sparrow caught between November and the coming February is said to be the most delicious.
