A foreign student trying seolleongtang for the first time took one spoonful and tilted their head in confusion. "This seems like it's missing salt." Some friends even just left it unfinished and walked out. They meant no harm, but from the restaurant's point of view, it's a bit disappointing. ## Bland Is Normal Seolleongtang is made by boiling ox bones for hours until the flavor is fully drawn out. That creamy, rich broth is the star of the show. If you add salt from the start, it masks that flavor. Also, everyone's taste is different. Some people like it salty, and others like it mild. So the restaurant makes the broth as the base and lets customers season it themselves. There are several theories about the origin of this way of serving it. ## Try it like this If you look at the table, there's salt, pepper, and sliced green onions. First, taste a spoonful of the broth. Then add a very small pinch of salt, stir, and taste it again. If it's not enough, you can add a little more. Once salt is in, you can't take it out, so it's best to add it slowly. Add pepper and green onions to taste. It's fine to add plenty of green onions. If you pour in a lot of salt before even tasting it, it can look like you're skipping over the care the cook put into the soup. If you don't see any salt, you can just say, "Could I have some salt, please?" Adding a little kkakdugi broth will season it just right.