Boiled eggs for snack

Here’s this week’s tip on Korean language and customs:

Q:
It seems that eggs in Korea are more than a breakfast item. Every time I take the express bus out of town, I see so many Koreans eating boiled eggs. On my last ride, a Korean mother force-fed a boiled egg to her young child. And I see boiled eggs sold in grocery stores, bus stop kiosks, convenient stores, movie theaters and on the train. Why do Koreans have to eat so many eggs?

A:
Traditionally, like beef, eggs were considered a precious and expensive food.

Decades ago, some old-fashioned Koreans thought that eggs should only be served to respected male figures in the family.

Valued as an important source of protein, female members of the family would feed eggs to their young children.

That “eggs are good for you” has continued to this day, especially among the older and conservative.

When family members go on a picnic or long trip, Korean mothers have the habit of packing boiled eggs, believing that they will give them energy and nutrition.

Nowadays there are two types: boiled or smoked, and they are sold for about 400 won (40 cents) each.

These days, the younger generation of Koreans, who have grown up with no shortage of food but mostly on Westernized diets and fast food, would rarely snack on boiled eggs.