Ram-Don was completely made up for the film for English speaking audiences. They actually say Jjapaguri (or Chapaguri) which is a portmanteau of two types of Korean instant noodles, Chapagetti and Neoguri. The subtitle translator found that Jjapaguri was difficult for English speakers to understand, but they would likely be familiar with the Japanese noodle dishes, Ramen and Udon, so she combined them into Ram-Don.
It’s doesn’t change the meaning too much, but I do take some issue with going from Korean to Japanese in the translation, kind of lumping different types of Asians under the same umbrella, especially since Jjapaguri is a uniquely Korean Dish. But I know people have differing opinions on this.
BONUS: That whole scene also subtlety illustrates the film’s theme of classism as well because Jjapaguri, is more of a cheap, comfort food. But Mrs. Park insists that sirloin is added, changing it into this fancy meal. There is another mistranslation here. Mrs. Park actually calls it “Hanu” (loosely meaning premium beef, similar to Japanese Wagyu in its reverence). Using sirloin, while not being a cheap cut of beef, doesn’t accurately reflect the significance of using such a high quality meat. The fact that the family can afford to use such premium beef in instant noodles so casually shows how wealthy they are. Jjapaguri is not an marker of wealth, but putting Hanu in it, definitely is.
I did read that they regretted using sirloin because it doesn’t have the same effect, but I do kinda wish they had done something other than ram-don. I mean, just call it instant noodles. I feel like most English speaking audiences would understand that, probably moreso than even Ramen or Udon, and especially making up a word.
I really wish they would just put a note in more often. I find it interesting and you learn a little about the culture when they show little jokes or sayings unique to them.
Thank you, this is a great idea. If we can get a good amount of recipes posted, I’d like to highlight a “recipe of the month” type thing as well. Thanks for the feedback!
Although I think there are times throughout the week when someone might want to post a question on a Thursday but can’t because it’s not the correct day of the week.
Agreed, I don’t think there’s any benefit to forcing questions in the weekly one. If you have a question, please make a post. The weekly posts would be more of a prompt to stir up an idea.
I think themed days for techniques, methods and practices of cooking would be fun.
Yes, meal prep would be a great one. I know a lot of the meals I cook end up basically being meal prep since I have leftovers for days.
Grave of the Fireflies is by far my favorite Ghibli film. It’s also my favorite movie I never want to watch again. When people say animation isn’t real cinema or it’s for kids, you know they’ve never experienced GotF.
I thought I heard Serkis’s voice, but guess not. Yeah that puts a damper on it. The visuals look amazing, and I like a lot of the other actors involved. Love seeing Dichen Lachman popping up in more things. But yeah, I’ll be cautiously optimistic.