From cooking to dining out, this is how int'l students recreate taste of home

For many international students, cooking their favorite dish back home and visiting restaurants that serve their so-called comfort foods are personal rituals that allow them to reconnect with their origin.

For many international students, cooking their favorite dish back home and visiting restaurants that serve their comfort foods are personal rituals that allow them to reconnect with their origin. From left, bakso, Indonesian meatball soup; completos, Chilean hot dog; dosa, thin Indian pancake; and tortilla de patatas, Spanish omelet. [CLAUDIA PATINO PICHAUD]

A common sight at any Korean university dorm on a weekend late afternoon is this: a communal kitchen full of international students cutting vegetables, grinding spices and stirring pots as if they were chefs competing for the first prize in a cooking show.

Another common sight is international students frequenting areas with many restaurants of foreign cuisine in Seoul, going into restaurants as if they are professional food critics ready to give a verdict on a meal they have.

For many of them, cooking their favorite dish back home and visiting restaurants that serve their so-called comfort foods are personal rituals that allow them to reconnect with their origin.

Four students from Indonesia, Chile, India and Spain shared with the Korea JoongAng Daily what their beloved dishes from home are and how they manage to cook and find them while living in Korea.

Wenityas Anggitasari from Indonesia

Wenityas Anggitasari, 34, a graduate student studying politics and international relations at Soongsil University in Seoul, said her favorite comfort food from back home is bakso, an Indonesian meatball soup.

Anggitasari tried making her own bakso in Korea but has given up.

"It's not only delicious but also affordable. Especially when the season is cold or rainy, I used to call a 'bakso peddler' passing by my house, then have it with my family," she said. "When I travel to Indonesia, I feel a need to enjoy a bakso because every region has its own signature dish, with tofu or boiled egg, or their unique veggies."

The meatballs in a bakso might be what stands out the most, but the combination of broth with noodles, vegetables and tofu elevates the flavors of spices that the meatballs are made with.

Bakso can be found in wide variations from spicy to sweet and is often served with chili sauce, sweet soy sauce and fried onions.

For anyone who wants to try bakso in Korea, Anggitasari recommends the restaurant Bakso Rindu Kampung in Itaewon, central Seoul.

Bakso [PICHAUD]

Valentina Canales from Chile

Valentina Canales, 24, a Global Korea Scholarship recipient studying Korean at Pai Chai University in Daejeon, recalls the first time she cooked lentils, or lentejas as Chileans call them.

She called her mom asking for the recipe and then ate them alone in her room in Daejeon.

She cried out of nostalgia.

"Lentejas is a type of bean and is often eaten in Chile as a healthy lunch meal," Canales said.

"Basically, lentejas are lentils with rice and onion and can go with pumpkin, chard, meat or mushrooms. What I like the most about lentejas is that it is delicious, and since it is eaten hot, it's comforting on cold days."

Canales, who plans to pursue a master's degree in international studies, said another comfort food for her is the Chilean specialty completos.

"It is the Chilean version of the hot dog, but with tomato, avocado and sauces like mayonnaise, ketchup and mustard," Canales said.

Both lentejas and completos are simple dishes. While lentejas is a homey meal, completos can be found on the streets and market stalls in Chile. Just like Koreans might stop for a hotteok (brown sugar-filled pancakes), Chileans might stop for a completos.

But Korea is no Chile, and Canales hasn't spotted a single restaurant in Korea specializing in Chilean food.

"Even Latin American restaurants do not serve Chilean food, so I always have to cook [Chilean dishes] myself," she said. "It is hard to find Chilean beans in Korean supermarkets, especially lentils. And for completos, the problem is finding hot dog-shaped bread since most bakeries here sell white bread. It took me a few months to learn how to order online to find those products," Canales said.

Cooking at home has also allowed her to create new memories with her friends in Korea.

"I recently spent my first birthday in Korea, so I prepared completos to share with my foreign friends, and they loved it," she said.

"It became a special memory for me."

Completos [PICHAUD]

Vaishnavi Tiwari from India

For Vaishnavi Tiwari, 20, who majors in business administration at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, dosa is a type of food that conjures special memories from India. Tiwari, who arrived in Seoul last year, describes dosa as a crispy and salty rice-based pancake that can be eaten plain or with fillings.

"I have countless memories with dosa," she said. "My favorite one is when I went out with my friends to a dosa stall. It was raining, and we were all drenched. Then we all paid around 2,500 won ($2) and had 2 [slices of] dosa under the stall's umbrella. The cold rain mixed with the warm food really rooted itself as a happy memory in my mind."

Tiwari said she enjoys eating dosa with chutney, an Indian sauce.

The size of a dosa could be intimidating for first-time eaters. Dosas are a centerpiece to be shared with friends and family, so just one dosa can generously take the space of an entire four-seat dining table.

Dosa can be prepared at home, but Tiwari advises against this due to the lengthy cooking process involved. Instead, she recommended a restaurant named Chakra in Hannam-dong of Yongsan District, central Seoul.

"Their dosa is the closest to what I got back at home," she said.

Dosa [PICHAUD]

Ida from Spain

Ida, a student from Spain who's pursuing a master's degree in international relations at Ewha Womans University, defines herself as a picky eater. Even after living in Japan and now in Korea, tortilla de patatas remains her favorite food.

"To put it simply, it's an omelet with potatoes in it," she said. "What I like most about it is how simple and versatile it can be. The easiest version is only made with eggs, potatoes, oil and salt. You just cut the potatoes in small slices, fry them, mix them with the egg, and then you put it back on the pan and cook on both sides."

Tortilla de patatas, which can be compared to an egg jeon (Korean pancake) in Korean cuisine, is easy to make. Having cooked it numerous times, Ida says the simplicity and "familiarity" are its most appealing aspects.

"My dad's tortillas are probably one of the tastiest ones. We used to eat [them] every weekend while playing [Super] Smash Bros. on the GameCube together," she said. "My dad also took the time to carefully teach me how to properly make and flip tortilla on the pan so I could cook it on my own no matter what corner of the world I'm living in."

"Whenever I eat tortilla," Ida continued, "it feels like a warm hug that reminds me of those times that I really cherish now."

For those who wish to try out the dish, Ida recommends the Spanish coffee shop Y Más in Seogyo-dong of Mapo District, western Seoul, which also serves other kinds of Spanish drinks and desserts.

Editor's note: Ida asked not to be identified by her last name for this article.

Tortilla de patatas [PICHAUD]

BY STUDENT REPORTER CLAUDIA PATINO PICHAUD [kjd.kcampus@joongang.co.kr]