Chuseok/Korean Thanksgiving! Celebrating Harvest and Hope

In celebrating our cultural traditions in a modern way, I recently hosted the Korean fall harvest festival, Chuseok at our first home this year.  Growing up, my mom always gathered our close family and friends to our family home to share in the fruits of the harvest and play some traditional games.  I remember joyous evenings where my aunties would bring marinated greens, barley rice, stewed meats, the Chuseok traditional taro soup and of course wine and soju!  Spirits alive, my parents and their friends would eat, drink, sing and dance.  I remember sitting in the living room with my cousins and brother delighting in their joy.

I wanted to bring that joyous holiday to our growing family which now includes my husband and in-laws. This year was special because my in-laws just moved here from Ohio and never celebrated Chuseok.  I wanted to begin this tradition to share with them that feeling I had when we celebrated all those Chuseok holidays growing up here in Los Angeles.

My version of Korean braised short ribs. It is braised in soju and soy sauce.

My mom wasn't sure how my short ribs were gonna turn out so she can prepared with her delicious spicy pork ribs. Oh, she of little faith! My short ribs were fab!

Bok Choy salad that my mother-in-law made. Fresh and delicious!

Barley brown rice and Korean chive salad.

My braised short ribs finally done and falling off the bone... yumm.

My loaded stove with pots from my mom and aunt.

Chuseok table almost ready to go.

The men in my family looking and setting the table.

My uncle even brought sashimi! My family is from Pusan so it is all about the fresh seafood.

For my version of Chuseok, I wanted it to be more like a potluck style event because I like the idea in many Korean holidays where different members of the village bring different pieces of the meal or gather all their different rice and grains and cook it together.  Sharing food cooked by different hands is a part of sharing the harvest so I wanted to continue that in a modern way... potluck of course!  

Also, I wanted to include the symbolism of harvest on my table.  Koreans believe in filling the table with food which is why we always have many side dishes or Banchan but I also filled my glass vases with grapes, foliage from my backyard and jars of barley.  For my family, the last couple years and the economic downturn have really impacted our ability to consume and buy so I wanted this Chuseok to really represent that we are always full of family, love and hope.  Barley and fruits, for me, represent the fruits of labor and the hope of what is to come.

Afterwards, we had a rousing game of  Yut Nori or Korean Monopoly as my husband calls it.  This is traditionally played on Korean New Year or Lunar New Year but I got a free Yut Nori set from the Korean market.  It was really fun because everyone in my family is very competitive and it was a great way for the younger and older generations to engage in something together.  Everyone loves a good game!