tvN variety show 'Chagane'
On the 8th, the first episode of the tvN variety show 'Chagane' introduced three men aiming for a life-changing moment through spiciness. Cha Seung-won, Choo Sung Hoon and Tommy flew all the way to Bangkok, Thailand, in search of spiciness.
Cha Seung-won went to meet food researchers to hear their opinions about spiciness for the first time. Cha Seung-won asked, "When you want to eat, when you crave spiciness, how do you determine the intensity of this?" and a researcher said, "We research this intensity a lot. We often go on business trips overseas. That way it stays in our heads longer."
That day, Cha Seung-won tasted a sauce that had not yet gone on sale and replied, "I like it because it has a strong salted shrimp and garlic aroma. I think it would go well with cold pork," The researchers had already agreed that the sauce would pair best with cold pork, and they marveled at Cha Seung-won's exceptional palate.
Cha Seung-won offered his opinion as well, saying, "I have a knack for this. I think you could put it in cold pork or buckwheat noodles and eat it." The researcher said, "It's important to have a philosophy about food. It seems you have that," and added, "I recommend Thailand. If you like spiciness, you should look around markets and places like that."
Cha Seung-won named Choo Sung Hoon and Tommy as the colleagues who would go with him. Tommy was Choo Sung Hoon's kickboxing trainer and a former baseball player. Cha Seung-won and Choo Sung Hoon had also known each other since 2009, a 16-year friendship. Cha Seung-won soothed them, saying, "We'll go to Japan and then head to Thailand," and Tommy worried, "Are we really going?"
They hit a bump from the moment they arrived at the airport. Thanks to Choo Sung Hoon ordering a lot of food, Tommy was surprised at a bill that amounted to about 100,000 won in Hanwha currency. Choo Sung Hoon denied, "I ordered 100,000 won worth? That can't be," but Cha Seung-won tried to understand, saying, "It's the airport." Tommy, as the youngest and the treasurer, pointed at Choo Sung Hoon, saying, "You order without thinking."
They visited a night market to taste Thai flavors. They bought various foods such as Thai sausages and Thai noodles and ate them with sauces. Generally, sauces made by mixing fish sauce and chili produced a variety of flavors. Choo Sung Hoon openly recoiled, saying, "It has no flavor at all. It doesn't suit me. I don't like it." Spotting a sausage served with fried chili and cabbage, Cha Seung-won tried to persuade them, saying, "There's a reason they gave this. Cabbage, Psy keuk, fried spicy peppers, this is really good. I really like it," but their opinions on spiciness were not unified.
The next day, Choo Sung Hoon separately sought out a famous spicy restaurant in Thailand. He went out instead of Cha Seung-won, who dislikes wandering around. But the spiciness turned his face red, made him cough and even bring tears to his eyes, making his actions worth watching.
Cha Seung-won also inspired by fish sauce and som tam to reinterpret Thai sauce and made kimchi. The production staff who tasted it did not hide their admiration. One staff member earnestly asked, "Could you share a little more?" and Cha Seung-won kindly replied, "I'll share it. Put it on your ramen."
[photo source] tvN variety show 'Chagane'
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