Baekseolgi: White Steamed Rice Cake Baekseolgi is one of the most symbolic types of tteok. It is a white steamed rice cake, usually made from rice flour. Its texture is soft, light, and slightly crumbly. It is not very sweet compared with many Western desserts. Its flavor is gentle, clean, and rice-centered. The color white […]
Tteok (떡): Korea’s Rice Cakes of Celebration, Memory, and Everyday Comfort(2) Read More »
Kimchi: The Most Important Banchan Kimchi is the most important banchan in Korea. There are many kinds of kimchi, but the most famous is napa cabbage kimchi, called baechu kimchi. There is also cubed radish kimchi, cucumber kimchi, young radish kimchi, green onion kimchi, mustard leaf kimchi, water kimchi, and many more. Kimchi is fermented,
To understand Korean food, you need to understand banchan. Many visitors first notice the main dishes: Korean barbecue, kimchi jjigae, bibimbap, tteokbokki, samgyeopsal, galbi, fried chicken, naengmyeon, or jajangmyeon. These dishes are important, but they do not fully explain the Korean table. A Korean meal is not usually built around only one plate. It is
To understand Korean food, you need to understand bap. At first, bap simply means cooked rice. It is the bowl of rice placed in front of you at a Korean meal. It is soft, warm, white, and quiet. It does not look dramatic. It is not spicy like kimchi jjigae. It is not smoky like
Bap (밥): Korea’s Everyday Table of Rice Read More »