Korean recipes you can cook at home, regional food culture, table manners and shopping tips.
In Korea, certain foods are eaten on every holiday and turning point of the seasons. We explain the meaning, origins and modern scene behind Seollal's tteokguk, Chuseok's songpyeon, Daeboreum's five-grain rice and nuts, Boknal's samgyetang, Dongji's red bean porridge and birthday seaweed soup.
Order a main dish at a Korean restaurant and the table fills with little plates. These are banchan. We explain the meaning and etiquette of banchan culture, classic banchan by type — namul, muchim, bokkeum, jorim, jeon, jangajji — five easy home recipes and storage tips.
Tteokbokki is Korea's soul food. We trace its history from royal soy-sauce tteokbokki to gochujang tteokbokki, explain wheat vs rice cakes, introduce types from soupy to rosé to oil-fried, and share a foolproof basic recipe with tips for great flavour.
The roots of Korean flavour lie in jang, fermented soybean sauces and pastes. We explain the difference between doenjang, ganjang and gochujang, how fermentation works, jangdokdae culture, derived sauces such as ssamjang and chogochujang, how to use and store them, and buying tips for beginners.
Meat sizzling on a grill in the middle of the table — that's Korean BBQ. We explain the differences between samgyeopsal, galbi and bulgogi, how to order and grill, how to wrap ssam, the side dishes and a bulgogi recipe to make at home.
Korean street food from market alleys and busy street stalls is one of the great joys of travel. We cover the classic dishes and how they taste, seasonal snacks, the best street food districts, and tips and etiquette for buying from stalls.
What should you know before eating in Korea? We explain how to use spoon and chopsticks, eating with elders, side-dish culture, pouring and receiving drinks, barbecue restaurants and how paying works — from a foreigner's point of view.
Rice topped with vegetables in five colours, gochujang and an egg, all mixed together — that's bibimbap. We explain its meaning and regional styles, how to make the basic namul, the perfect sauce ratio and stone-pot bibimbap.
Doenjang jjigae is the stew that appears most often on Korean tables. We cover making anchovy-kelp stock, the order to add ingredients, choosing soybean paste, beef, seafood and vegan versions, and common mistakes.
Homemade napa cabbage kimchi starting from a single head of cabbage. Choosing and salting cabbage, seasoning ratios, fermenting and storing, plus common mistakes and how to fix them — explained so first-timers can follow along.
