A spoon and a pair of chopsticks form an important part of the Korean place setting. These utensils are always placed next to each other, paired together as an old couple or two best friends perfectly complementing each other. Koreans often employ the idea of yin and yang to describe natural dualities or complementary opposites, such as the moon and the sun, winter and summer, north and south, and women and men. The set of chopsticks and a spoon is also thought to be a manifestation of yin and yang, respectively.

Then, how do the spoon and chopsticks complement each other? In Korean cuisine, the spoon is an essential utensil. Though China and Japan display many similarities to Korea in culinary culture and use chopsticks on a daily basis, a spoon is rarely set on the table. In Korea, however, a spoon is necessary to accommodate the hot broth and stock of guk and jjigae.

Using a spoon at every meal is a custom indigenous to Korea. Chopsticks are convenient for picking up portions of foods of different sizes, from morsels of meat to grains of rice and vegetable slices. In contrast to China and Japan where wooden chopsticks are in common use, Korea has long used metal chopsticks. The country has enjoyed a long legacy of metalwork, which naturally led to the development of metal chopsticks. Metal chopsticks are heavier than wooden ones, measuring about 25 centimeters in length. They are often designed with a flat cross section to make it easier to hold slippery foods. To use chopsticks, tuck one stick under the thumb and support it between the middle and ring finger while holding the other between the thumb and index finger. The one tucked under the thumb should remain in its original position while the other moves up and down to grab food. As with other skills, practice makes perfect.