Hanu (Korean native beef)

Hanu (often spelled Hanwoo in English) are the native cattle of the Korean peninsula, raised there for thousands of years; one review dates them to around 2000 BC. Their exact origin is unclear, and over the centuries they likely mixed with cattle from China and Japan. More than 90 percent are the familiar yellow-brown type. Other native breeds include the black heugu, the Jeju black cattle, and the tiger-striped chikso.

For most of Korean history hanu were draft animals, pulling plows and carts, and they were offered at sacrifices. Large-scale beef production began only in the 1960s with economic growth. Since then the breed has been selected for marbling: young bulls are commonly castrated and finished on high-grain diets with rice straw, producing beef with more intramuscular fat than most foreign breeds.

Korea introduced a national carcass grading system in 1992. Each carcass receives two grades from the Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation (KAPE): a yield grade (A, B or C), which estimates how much usable meat it carries, and a quality grade (1++, 1+, 1, 2 or 3). The quality grade weighs marbling, lean color, fat color, texture and maturity at the loin. A revision that took effect on December 1, 2019 widened the top grade, 1++, to include marbling score 7 as well as 8 and 9. It also graded each factor separately, with the lowest-scoring factor setting the final grade. Retail labels for 1++ beef must now show which marbling number (7, 8 or 9) it received.

At home, hanu shows up thinly sliced for bulgogi, as short ribs in galbi and galbi-jjim, as brisket in miyeok-guk, and as round in jangjorim.

• High-quality protein and minerals: Beef supplies complete protein and is a good source of zinc, selenium and iron.
• Marbling means fat: The Korean Food Composition Table lists raw hanu loin at over 26 g fat per 100 g; highly marbled, top-grade cuts are especially rich, while round and shank are much leaner.
• Red meat in moderation: The WHO notes that meat can be part of a healthy diet, but its cancer agency classifies red meat as probably carcinogenic (Group 2A, mainly colorectal cancer) and processed meat as carcinogenic (Group 1). Guidelines recommend limiting both.
• Cooking and food safety: Beef should be handled hygienically. Raw preparations such as yukhoe carry a higher risk of foodborne illness, especially for pregnant people, young children, older adults and anyone with a weakened immune system.