Job’s Tears are known by “Yulmu” in Korea. They are sometimes also referred to as Coix Seeds.

Job’s Tears (Coix lacryma-jobi), Coixseed, adlay, or adlai, is a tall grain-bearing tropical plant of the family Poaceae (grass family) native to East Asia and peninsular Malaysia but elsewhere cultivated in gardens as an annual. It has been naturalized in the southern United States and the New World tropics.

In Korea, a thick drink called yulmu cha (literally “Job’s tears tea”) is made from powdered Job’s tears. A similar drink, called yì mí shǔi, also appears in Chinese cuisine, and is made by simmering whole polished Job’s Tears in water and sweetening the resulting thin, cloudy liquid with sugar. The grains are usually strained from the liquid but may also be consumed separately or together.

In both Korea and China, distilled liquors are also made from the grain. One such example is the South Korean liquor called okroju, which is made from rice and Job’s tears. In Japan, an aged vinegar is made from the grain.

You can find authentic Korean Yulmucha on many Korean Restaurants in Los Angeles.