Cheat day

Success (3)

Thursday, December 28.

“Which do you like more, Mom or Dad? Do you prefer it soaked or dipped? We’ll just sample the most intense debate in the last half-millennium of the Korean Peninsula’s history. A side dish for the Baekban debate.”

“It’s Baek Woo-jin.”

“Today, it’s Carrots vs. Cucumbers. We will conduct a profound and formal discussion on which is tastier.”

└LOL they love formality

└Cucumbers are totally tasteless

└How can he say that so shamelessly?

I placed “Carrot” in front of me and “Cucumber” in front of Baek Woo-jin.

“Before we begin the discussion, I must say this: Just because I support the red carrot does not mean I support the conservative side, so please do not misunderstand. Similarly, just because Baek Woo-jin is standing with the green cucumber does not mean he supports the progressive side.”

“Exactly.”

└?

└What nonsense is this? LOL

└Who even thinks that way? LOL

└Too bad

└What does “too bad” even mean? LOL

“Now, Baek Woo-jin, please briefly introduce cucumbers.”

“They are annual climbing plants from the gourd family. We eat the fruit of this plant.”

“I see. Carrots are biennial plants from the Apiaceae family. Isn’t it superior that carrots live twice as long as cucumbers?”

“…Huh?”

“Oi oi, did you not know that? LOL.”

└AHAHAHA a whole extra year of life, LOL

└This is starting to get dizzying, LOL

└Oi oi, LOL

└What kind of speech is that? LOL

“Then, does a tortoise that lives 200 years have superiority over humans?”

“Don’t stray from the point! We are comparing carrots and cucumbers right now!”

“Who’s talking nonsense right now!”

“Now, calm down, and please stick to statements based on the carrot vs. cucumber debate.”

I almost let my logic crumble.

After some coaxing, Baek Woo-jin rolled his eyes and slowly got into the swing of things.

“Currently, cucumbers are among the most consumed vegetables in the world. The top three are tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers, with an annual production of 71 million tons each. On the other hand, carrots are ranked sixth with 42 million tons produced.”

“Indeed, there’s a difference in production volume.”

“That’s because they are eaten more. The reason they are eaten more is that they taste better.”

“That’s not true.”

“What do you mean it’s not true?”

“We are debating which is tastier between carrots and cucumbers, but that’s ultimately a relative discussion. Carrots and cucumbers fundamentally have no taste.”

Baek Woo-jin thought for a moment before nodding in agreement.

“I agree.”

└Vegetable hatred, whoa

└LOL they can’t help that they’re tasteless

└Both are tasty, right?

└Taste-impaired

└Cucumbers are really tasteless

“But cucumber dishes can be delicious,” I said.

I shrugged, and Baek Woo-jin showed a reference photo.

It was a picture of cucumber kimchi.

“Cucumber Kimchi. With a crunchy texture and a sweet and sour seasoning, along with chives. It truly can be said to unleash the potential of cucumbers. Freshly made cucumber kimchi in the middle of summer. Can you resist that?”

└This one’s a win

└Yum

└Seriously, it’s a rice thief

└Well-made cucumber kimchi is really delicious

The viewers’ reactions were positive.

Old cucumber kimchi becomes mushy and has a very unpleasant texture, but it seems everyone has good memories of fresh cucumber kimchi.

“By the way, in 1999, the LA Times had reporters taste and evaluate various global cuisines. At that time, cucumber kimchi was included in the top 10 foods that they wanted to eat again. They highly praised its crunchy texture, sweet and sour seasoning, and the distinctive fragrant scent of cucumbers.”

“Cucumber kimchi is delicious, I admit.”

Cucumbers placed on jjajangmyeon, cucumbers on naengmyeon, and cucumbers in kimbap can be polarizing, but if the cucumber kimchi is well-managed, I’ll eat it as a side dish.

“But carrot kimchi is just as tasty.”

“Have you ever had carrot kimchi?”

“Of course.”

“Do you know carrot kimchi, everyone?”

└What is carrot kimchi?

└LOL I’ve never heard of that before

└They say there’s no vegetable that Koreans can’t make into kimchi

└You can make kimchi with carrots???

“See, carrot kimchi and cucumber kimchi are different in terms of recognition.”

“Everyone.”

In a serious tone, I asked the viewers.

“Do you remember 1937?”

“…Ugh.”

As expected, Baek Woo-jin seems to know.

I checked the chat window, where question marks were rapidly climbing, and continued my story.

“In 1937, there were many of our ancestors living in the Soviet Union’s Primorsky Krai. They were those who fled to the Soviet Union to escape Japanese colonial rule while fighting for independence.”

Baek Woo-jin bit his lip.

“In 1937, Stalin forcibly relocated them to Kazakhstan in Central Asia. It was a very harsh environment. They wanted to make kimchi, but there was no napa cabbage to do so. Our ancestors deeply missed their hometown food, kimchi, and sought a substitute for cabbage. That substitute was carrots.”

My throat felt heavy.

“Carrots were sliced and salted. The carrot kimchi made by mixing it with vinegar, sugar, garlic, and chili powder was affectionately called ‘Kareiskaia Markova’ (meaning ‘Korean carrot’) and has been loved by people in Central Asia and the Soviets.”

I swallowed hard and raised my voice.

“The carrot kimchi made by our forcibly relocated ancestors, who longed for their homeland in that barren land. Are you telling me that this carrot kimchi, which captivated the tastes of the Soviets, has no recognition?”

“No, that’s not…”

“Isn’t it embarrassing not to know about the food that carries the grief of our ancestors? Doesn’t that make sense?”

“I didn’t mean it that way…”

“Don’t make excuses!”

└Wow, Baek Woo-jin is trash.

└LOL, seriously, I’m reflecting.

└So that’s how carrot kimchi was made?

└I didn’t know that either?

└Baek Woo-jin really has bad character.

└LOL, you’re really saying that much?

“I’m not making excuses! I knew about it too!”

“Are you saying you knew but still made such a comment?”

“That’s not what I meant! I’m saying it has no recognition in our country!”

“Are you implying that the viewers are ignorant? Is that what you mean?”

└I knew about it; Baek Woo-jin is looking down on the viewers.

└Such a vile tongue.

└LOL, how do you respond to that?

└I’m disappointed in Baek Woo-jin. I’m unsubscribing.

└Now that I think about it, Baek Woo-jin seems to have a sense of superiority.

“I’m sorry.”

Baek Woo-jin lowered his head.

“It’s nice to see you quickly acknowledging your mistake.”

Ignoring the death glare directed at me, I continued my argument.

“You mentioned the production quantity difference between carrots and cucumbers, but I think we need to look at it more closely. Just having more quantity doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better.”

Baek Woo-jin only smirked and didn’t respond.

“It’s about nutritional value. Did you know that cucumbers are considered a negative-calorie food?”

“I know.”

“It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that it has no nutrients other than vitamin C. Even that vitamin C is at a minimal level. You could say it’s a useless vegetable that leaves you hungry.”

“It’s good for dieting.”

“Ha, why are you acting like you don’t know?”

I shook my head in disbelief.

“We learned over the past year that sufficient nutrient supply is necessary for a sustainable diet without rebound. One of the people who taught us this is none other than you, Baek Woo-jin!”

“So are you saying carrots have good nutrients?”

“Of course! It’s widely known that eating carrots helps prevent night blindness and is beneficial for eyesight.”

“That’s not true.”

“…Not true?”

“Yeah. It’s not.”

Baek Woo-jin searched the internet and showed me a reference.

“Carrots contain vitamin A, and it’s true that a deficiency in vitamin A can lead to night blindness, but vitamin A is not exclusive to carrots. It’s also found in meat, fish, egg yolks, and milk. So there’s no need to seek it out specifically.”

“…But it’s still good to eat, right?”

“Not at all.”

“Isn’t there anything good about it?”

“The idea that carrots are good for the eyes was actually a fake tactic during World War II. When the British shot down German planes, they claimed that pilots ate a lot of carrots to see well at night, hiding their new radar equipment. That rumor turned into the belief that eating carrots is good for night blindness.”

The argument that cucumbers have no nutritional value while carrots are healthy collapsed utterly.

“Since we’re talking about World War II, carrots were actually a culprit in child abuse at that time.”

“What do you mean?”

“Because sweeteners like sugar had to be used as war materials, there weren’t snacks for children to eat. The British government claimed that carrots were delicious and nutritious, encouraging children to eat them.”

“In a wartime situation, how is encouraging kids to eat something considered child abuse?”

└Seriously, calling it child abuse just because they gave carrots is like saying forcing a picky child to eat vegetables is abuse.

└Baek Woo-jin is really going too far.

└LOL, are you that flustered by carrot kimchi?

└It looks like the side dish will win again today.

Public opinion is on my side.

Even if carrots are not considered a tasty food, they are not bad for the body. Just because adults encouraged children to eat them when there was nothing else available doesn’t mean it’s abuse.

“Look at this photo.”

Baek Woo-jin searched for images of children eating carrots during World War II.

1

*Source: EASTER 1941, British Pathe.

“Oh.”

“Look at those kids’ faces! Is that a face children make? Especially the one in the middle! You can totally see they resent the person who made them eat carrots!”

“Uh…”

“Are you saying that this photo doesn’t represent child abuse?”

└LOL, seriously, those faces don’t look good.

└They look like they really don’t want to eat them, LOL.

└Who are those laughing? This photo is real.

└Strictly speaking, it’s not child abuse. They wanted to give something to eat in a desperate situation.

“Those are the mistakes of adults who could only give carrots. The blame lies with the Nazis. What crime did carrots commit?”

Baek Woo-jin’s eyes wavered.

“Woo-jin, manipulation and fabrication don’t work just because you throw them around. Effectiveness comes from being based on facts.”

“Fabrication is what you do!”

“Well…”

I took a sip of water.

“Do you really think carrots committed child abuse? I don’t think so. Carrots are a food used to save lives. Please refer to this data.”

2

2)

“Eh?”

“In a popular web novel, Kim Hong-do in Paris, there’s a comment that says, ‘If the author is being held captive, please put in a scene where they eat carrots.’ In other words, carrots are used as a signal to indicate danger. It’s an SOS.”

“You like SOS! You often say, ‘Hang in there, captor!’”

“Why are you getting so excited?”

“Because I wrote it! What? Thanks, captor? Where is the person who wrote that comment? Where did they go?”