Chopsticks. And not the Piano kind.

I am astonished and amazed at all the various uses for chopsticks and the things you can eat with them. To prove my point, I will now proceed to list the various foods or uses I have had or seen for chopsticks in Korea.
1. Eat rice with seaweed. I actually learned this with my American friends before I met any Koreans and had just arrived in Korea. You have to pick up the rice with the seaweed using the chopsticks in a very calculated way.

2. Feeding a baby. Who knew?

3. Eating spaghetti. When pasta was invented in Italy, I’m not sure what they used to eat it but I’m assuming it wasn’t chopsticks.

4. Eating cake. You really can’t just ask for a sliver.

5. Eating watermelon. In retrospect, this actually seems like a great idea. Just stab it and you’re good to go. However, it gives you second thoughts when the red juices run down your arms, making you feel like you’ve killed someone.

6. Making spaghetti. This was actually surprising and actually kinda difficult. In order to test the doneness of the pasta you actually have to fish it out with said utensils. Eating made spaghetti is also difficult and Kristina's least favorite chopstick food. I have found, however, there is a method to the madness.

7. Fried chicken. Yeah, I would have never imagined.

8. Separating pizza slices. Sort of what you’d use a table knife for.

9. Scrambled eggs. Yeah.

10. Pancakes. For this one I almost caved and used a spoon.

11. French fries. Why don’t you use your hands? I don’t know.

12. Holding your hair back as you wash dishes. Ok so this one is just me.

13. Splitting foods. Of course, in lieu of knives, which don’t exist in Korea.

14. Mixing food in a bowl. How do you accomplish this you may ask? Ahhh. Very carefully young grasshopper. Very carefully.

15. Picking the onions out of your food. Now this isn’t exclusive to chopsticks but it does offer an advantage over a fork because frankly, chopsticks are more precise. This has been most beneficial for me.

16. Steak. This one is difficult, but most of the time, steak and other big hunks of food come to Korean tables already chopstick friendly.

17. Pastries. Oddly, most of these in Korea are made of rice or barley.

18. Pizza!!! Believe it. It works

19. Ice Cream! Ok I’m kidding about this one. But I would not be surprised to find it to be true.

20. Doughnuts. This one is tried and true. My students brought me doughnuts and picked them out with chopsticks.
21. Brie and crackers. I didn’t have a knife so I did what any other Korean would have done. Improvised with chopsticks.