Pieces of Wrecked Ship

After the crash of De Sperwer on Jeju Island on 16 August 1653, Hendrick Hamel, a VOC bookkeeper, could not return to the Netherlands. What was meant to be a brief landing stretched into thirteen years and twenty-six days in Joseon (present-day Korea), between Jeju Island and the South Jeolla region. Hamel’s life shifted between confinement and limited integration; he endured famine, relied at times on begging and labor, and survived on royal subsidies.

When he finally escaped Joseon, he carried little: no ingredients, no written recipes. Back home, he wrote a brief report on his stay and on Korean customs, clothing, and daily habits. In his report, he mentioned the presence of flour and good-quality salt, used differently than in the Netherlands.

Back home, Hamel tried to reproduce the flavors and techniques he remembered. While wheat was precious in Joseon, it was abundant in the Netherlands; salt was used in small amounts for fermentation rather than in large quantities to preserve fish. Shiitake mushrooms, daikon radish, nashi pear, and most importantly 장 (jang) —fermented sauces responsible for the umami in Korean cuisine—were not available. He replaced them with cep mushrooms, kohlrabi, apple, carrot, and sea salt. As it is custom in Korea to have side dishes, he let vegetables ferment in water with salt. The dish he ended up making were noodles, recalling that he had eaten them only on special occasions, during village festivities, or when invited to dine with officers.