Yummy… Crispy Dove

Why the release of the doves was discontinued after the 1988 Olympic Games:

(HT to reader)

31 Comments

  1. Maekchu your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 3:52 pm | Permalink

    The Land of Not Quite Right!

  2. Posted April 15, 2008 at 3:57 pm | Permalink

    Seeing all those birds on the edge of the cauldron, all I could think was, “This cannot end well.”

  3. shanicus your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 4:25 pm | Permalink

    Those birds weren’t exactly the brightest in the flock, were they?

    Before it was lit, I bet those doves were thinking, wow, what a great place to set up a nest!

    Heh heh heh, the best part is after the camera zooms back to the flames and you can see a couple flop onto the platform where the 3 torch bearers are trying to gently stomp out the smoking carcasses!

  4. mcnut your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 5:44 pm | Permalink

    wonder why it never caught on as a jigae???

  5. user-81 your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 5:50 pm | Permalink

    How many doves died? At 4:59 and 5:08 it looks like some of them got away.

  6. Sperwer your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 5:58 pm | Permalink

    Did that come w/ the soju or the maekju?

  7. Bipolar Mindscrew your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 7:28 pm | Permalink

    I was telling my gf about this the other day… I thought I heard hundreds but maybe I was mistaken, but with the size of the cauldron and maybe it being LPG gas, it’s possible. I doubt they’d discontinue the release of the doves over the few you can see being stomped on at the end…

  8. NewYorkTom your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 10:38 pm | Permalink

    I always wondered why Koreans dont eat pigeons/doves. I’m always hearing about how people starved and how Korea was such a poor country. I mean we eat a lot of weird shit which says something already. But why not pigeons/doves? There are plenty of them out there!

  9. jtb-in-texas your flag
    Posted April 15, 2008 at 11:24 pm | Permalink

    #8, they’re essentially rats with wings (i.e., diseased, parasite-infested, and detestable)…

    And besides, the *best* one can do when the “chef” is an experienced Texan or Oklahoman is about 1.5 ounces of gamey breast meat (per bird) with a slice of jalapeno and nickel’s worth of cheese… two bites for a three-year-old… not worth the trouble to pluck, delouse, and barbecue…

    Mind you, I feel the same about any other exotic meat (or meat-substitute) that “tastes like chicken”…

  10. NewYorkTom your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 12:00 am | Permalink

    I just cant see a starving person pushing away a juicy plate of pigeon/rat when he is about to starve to death. Is it wrong for me to assume there are very low counts of pigeons/rats up in NK? I just cant picture someone choosing to die bc he does not wish to “stoop that low.”

    It kinda reminds me of the “top-of-the-muffin to ya” episode on Seinfeld where Elaine is berated by a homeless shelter employee for trying to give away muffin bottoms to the homeless. I suppose in a relatively rich country, human dignity is also important but I am certain that in countries like Somalia, the muffin bottoms would disappear without any complains in a split second.

  11. Posted April 16, 2008 at 12:15 am | Permalink

    Regarding pigeons/doves as food. My dad use to set-up traps and eat them as a kid in Korea. However, echoing # 9, it’s not a lot of meat for all the work you have to go through.

  12. keith your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 12:17 am | Permalink

    I prefer crispy duck myself, that’s good food indeed.

    Especially with Chinese pancakes, Hoisin sauce and some green onion and cucumber. The only problem I see, is that to make a tasty dish the bird should have already to be plucked, gutted, hung and marinated.

    Pigeon is good, if it’s a country pigeon rather than a winged rat.

  13. MrMao your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 1:16 am | Permalink

    I remember in 2001, USFK used to have warnings on TV not to eat chicken-on-a-stick in Korea because their investigations had revealed that most of the supposed “chicken” was…pigeon. See you outside UN Club!

  14. jtb-in-texas your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 1:51 am | Permalink

    #10, what size plate? just how many calories required to catch/prepare said bird vs. those contained within it’s “juicy goodness”, as you imply? what if the starving person doesn’t have the pinch of salt to put on the bird’s tail (in order to catch it)?

    I’m thinking it’s not really an option without personal firearms and birdshot, a thing not really common in countries full of starving people. It’s not common in many places full of healthy people…

    I suppose a variety of nets might work; but that would be nasty, thankless, dangerous work…

  15. pawikirogi your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 2:46 am | Permalink

    ‘I always wondered why Koreans dont eat pigeons/doves. I’m always hearing about how people starved and how Korea was such a poor country. I mean we eat a lot of weird shit which says something already. But why not pigeons/doves? There are plenty of them out there!’

    did you ever wonder why your ancestors didn’t eat rat and pigeon? why did they people go to america? wuz they poh?

  16. slim your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 2:54 am | Permalink

    Wild mourning doves are hunted and eaten in Pennsylvania in the same hunting season as grouse and pheasants. All three are low in meat volume and high in fuss to prepare.

  17. Zonath your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 5:20 am | Permalink

    did you ever wonder why your ancestors didn’t eat rat and pigeon?

    In the case of my ancestors, it’s because rat and pigeon were too good for them.

    Two bowls of gruel a day!

    Mouldy cheese? Luxury!

  18. Ditto81 your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 6:02 am | Permalink

    Two of those doves made anti-Korean remarks before they burst into flames.

  19. SomeguyinKorea your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 6:51 am | Permalink

    Ectopistes migratorius, the passenger pigeon, used to be the most common bird in North America. It’s now extinct. Why? Some people hunted the bird for sport, others ate it. If you ever go to Canada, try a ‘tourtiere’, a French-Canadian minced meat pie that was traditionally made with ‘tourte’.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passenger_Pigeon

  20. SomeguyinKorea your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 6:57 am | Permalink

    #13,

    That’s not true. I used to watch AFKN everyday in 2001.

  21. natto your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 7:46 am | Permalink

    Why don’t people eat crows ? Is there any country where people eat crows ?
    North Korea ?

  22. tomcoyner your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 8:22 am | Permalink

    I remember watching this live on television, wondering about the pidgeons — and frankly speaking, I don’t see any birds being roasted in this clip, but I did wonder about the matter at the time. Also, contrary to the intro on MH to this clip, these birds look wild and not those ready to be released.

    In any case, 30 years ago, fried sparrows were widely sold under the streetside tents. My wife and I tried them once out of curiosity. I can tell you they were the most bitter morsel I have attempted to intake.

    Regarding crows, there was an overpopulation in Japan until recently. One city in northern Honshu tried to make crow eating a delicacy but failed. Eventually the Japanese turned to netting and gassing. But since we are on the topic of big and ubiquitous birds not being eaten by any culture, consider seagulls. I bet they don’t taste like chicken. My guess is they probably taste like bitter oily fish - sort of like Shanghai cooking. Why the Shanghai folks don’t eat them must be the critters must taste even worse than the local dishes.

  23. Wedge your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 8:34 am | Permalink

    Hasn’t anyone else had crunchy sparrow here at an old soju bang? No need for pesky de-boning. Just baste ‘em up and toss on the grill. The brains are especially tasty.

  24. choiboi your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 8:54 am | Permalink

    #13

    Most of the skewered chicken sold in the streets of Korea are actually made from U.S imported chicken (legs)

  25. Wedge your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 9:26 am | Permalink

    BTW–Didn’t see Tom’s comment before posting.

  26. jimong your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 9:37 am | Permalink

    #8 Cuz no doctor nor myth saying it’s good for adjussi’s stamina or ajumma’s facial skin yet!

  27. JiMong your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 10:34 am | Permalink

    “Regarding pigeons/doves as food. My dad use to set-up traps and eat them as a kid in Korea.”

    #11, I guess your dad waa hunting wild dove…

  28. Posted April 16, 2008 at 11:15 am | Permalink

    # 17,

    You are forgetting rotten meat with the rotten taste drenched out with pepper!

  29. Eujin your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 2:23 pm | Permalink

    natto, #21, surely people in South Australia eat crows. Or is that just a myth?

    http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/crow_eater

  30. Disinterested your flag
    Posted April 16, 2008 at 4:01 pm | Permalink

    As for the amount of meat, growing up back in Maine we used to hunt woodcock in the fall and they have little more meat than a sparrow.

  31. Ditto81 your flag
    Posted April 17, 2008 at 7:00 am | Permalink

    Well to answer about eating birds in North Korea. Here is footage of the Jumong cast in Pyongyang and they were served what looks like baby birds at 4:42.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrDAeP4EUAY

3 Trackbacks

  1. [...] 1988 Seoul Olympics: The burning of the live doves…oh, lighting of the cauldron [...]

  2. [...] 1988 Seoul Olympics: The burning of the live doves…oh, lighting of the cauldron [...]

  3. [...] 1988 Seoul Olympics: The burning of the live doves…oh, lighting of the cauldron [...]

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