Following the success of such mega global brands such as Samsung, LG and Hyundai, the craze of Korean drama including the hugely popular TV series “Dae Jang Geum” or “Miss Kim's Adventures” (which is based on a true story about the life of a remarkable imperial court lady chef well known for cooking food with ingredients to promote health and even treat illnesses), “Nanta” (or “Cookin’) an off-broadway show that has created sensation worldwide, and pop singer, Rain, Korean cuisine has become trendy everywhere. There is even a term for this phenomenon – “hallya” meaning “Korean wave.” Even tourism has shot up, attracting tourists to delve deeper into the Korean culture, and Western and other Asian tourists can be seen at the Folk Village, a leading attraction there since part of the popular TV series used this location for filming.
Korea, like many of the supercharged economic powers in Asia, has transformed itself in the last decade in amazing ways. During my most recent visit to Seoul to attend its Food Show, the pride among Korean nationals was palpable. You see slogans on taxis which proudly proclaim that the city is “The soul of Asia.” While New York taxi drivers went on strike resisting the mandatory installation of GPS and credit card processing units, virtually every cab in Seoul has a high quality flat screen TV which doubles as GPS and DVD player, and an electronic credit card machine and a cell phone which enables instant reach to someone for help with direction or an interpreter. (The refreshing no tipping culture – as in many other Asian countries - is definitely pleasant to foreign visitors!)
The iconic Korean food - Kimchi, fermented vegetables, still plays an extremely important role in the Korean diet. To accommodate the contemporary lifestyle, kimchi now comes packaged for the busy housewives, sodium reduced for the health conscious, and in convenient forms such as kimchi pancake ready for heat-and-serve. At the food show, one of the media darlings was the manufacturer of exquisite kimchi, from the Emperor combo treasure box with morsels of different vegetables arranged like graphic art, to “white kimchi” made with broccoli and carrots without the spicy red pepper, to the colorful fancy new mini cabbage rolls. They even have ginseng root along with the other fermentation ingredients in one particular type of Chinese cabbage kimchi
Traditionally, kimchi was prepared at home by adding pepper, garlic, seafood (such as shrimp, anchovies and fish) and other seasoning such as salt and sugar to cleaned, halved Chinese cabbage (or other types of vegetables from Mustard green to radish), inserted carefully between the leaves, to enable the fermentation process and to render the exquisite flavor. The vegetable would be then put in special large pottery with a narrow bottom submerged in the ground. The shape was to ensure sunlight warms the contents evenly, and maintained a desirable temperature for storage prior to the days of refrigeration. In the past, the first thing people moved when relocating was their kimchi in such special jars or urns, as this was a very important part of every day meals. Today, many homes have a dedicated kimchi refrigerator, just to keep the kimchi in the optimum one to four degrees Celsius temperature – which will preserve the taste and stop the fermentation process.
My visit to the modern kimchi factory owned by Dangwon, a leading food manufacturer in Korea, made it clear that this precious diet staple is still made with the same tradition and care. It has been said that Korean students studying overseas often smuggle kimchi into their dorm rooms as comfort food. Since the temperature was not maintained during the transport, the fermentation process continued, building up pressure in the vacuum packed contents. They could burst open, sometimes creating a disaster mimicking a bloody crime scene!
At any typical Korean restaurant in Seoul, there is no less than 10 dishes of small dishes or “banchan” accompany any meal. These usually include several types of kimchi, seasoned vegetables like spinach, bean sprouts, and even seasoned raw crabs and tofu, and a cold soup.
During the last International Pickle Day in New York City, kimchi lovers from all backgrounds formed a long line that snaked around the festival for a sample of kimchi and a taste of kimchi fried rice. For the average American consumer, kimchi is another tasty treat from Asia, a demonstration of their acumen in appreciating Asian foods – following Cantonese dim sum, Japanese sushi, Vietnamese pho, Singaporean laksa noodles, Malaysian satay, Indian tandori chicken and Pad Thai. Celebrated dynamic Korean American chef David Chang of Momofuku and Saam Bar (New York) has smartly captured the Korean flavors in his own brand of culinary delights. He often makes delicious kimchi with non-traditional seasonal vegetables – such as brussel sprouts. His elegant kimchi is almost magical, as if his artistic touch enables this humble vegetable dish take on a sophisticated and grand persona.
In this day of creative blending and borrowing, chefs may find inspiration from just about any interesting cuisine. This cross-pollination is fabulous, as with experimentation comes mesmerizing new flavors to tantalize and tease the appetite of Asian food lovers.
Chef Rachel Yang is a marvelous example of today’s chefs interpreting Korean cuisine the American way. Unlike Chang who is second generation Korean American, Yang came to the country when she was 15. She just opened up a fine dining restaurant she categorized as eclectic American, named Joule in Seattle with her husband. Her restaurant offers contemporary cuisine with a touch of Korean influence. From coast to coast, Korean food is finding its way into the hearts and stomachs of American diners, perhaps not in its “authentic”, traditional “pure” form, but modified and adapted to appeal to, and to suit the palate of the local food lovers.
Chef Yang demonstrated some popular Korean dishes on stage at the All Asia Food Show (part of the Cultural Food Show) in New York’s Jacob Javits Convention Center. Among the dishes was the famous grilled Kalbi, served with daikon kimchi.
“I encourage everyone to explore Korean cuisine. Similar to French cuisine, it is big on layering flavors, tastes balancing and texture contrasting.” Rachel’s non-Korean husband, Seif Chirchi, who co-owns the restaurant with her, has definitely mastered cooking Korean “through osmosis” as she jokingly said.
With many overseas students enrolling at culinary schools in the U.S. coming from Korea, and more cooking school students are eager to learn about kimchi and other Korean dishes, it will just be a matter of a few short years before the Korean food will become ubiquitous.
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