▶ Watch the 1-minute version: Before soap, how did Koreans wash their faces?
What jodu was
Jodu was a cleansing powder made from beans. The classic version used red beans (pat, adzuki beans): they were ground, the husks were removed, then ground again and sifted into a fine powder. Mung beans and soybeans were used the same way.
You mixed a little powder with water in your palm and washed with it. It took off dirt, and people believed it also made the skin whiter.
The fancy option
Jodu was the high-end cleanser. Making it took time and it used food, so it was not what everyone washed with every day. Two cheaper options did the same job:
- Lye water (잿물), made by straining water through wood ash.
- Bean-husk water, water in which bean husks had been boiled.
When soap took over
Soap as we know it only began to spread in Korea after the country opened its ports to foreign trade in the late 1800s, and from then on it gradually took the place of jodu and lye water.
For more than a thousand years, though, the answer to "what do I wash my face with?" in Korea was a handful of beans.
FAQ
What is jodu?
Jodu (조두) is a traditional Korean face wash made by grinding red beans, mung beans or soybeans, removing the husks, and sifting them into a fine powder.
How long did Koreans use jodu?
From the Silla period to the end of the Joseon dynasty, more than a thousand years.
When did soap come to Korea?
Modern soap spread after Korea opened its ports in the late 1800s.
Sources
- Encyclopedia of Korean Culture: "Soap" (비누, Korean)
- Encyclopedia of Korean Culture: "Face washing" (세수, Korean)
Written by the Korea in Time team. Each fact above is checked against the sources listed. Found a mistake? Tell us.
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