I read a scholarly article named “Aesthetics of Korean foods: The symbol of Korean culture”. Food is definitely a symbol for many cultures, and Korean is one of those. An old Korean proverb says “What looks good tastes good.” It means, ancient Koreans carefully considered both the taste and visual appeal when preparing food. This is similar to a lot of other Asian cultures. In China, there is a similar say that means a good meal combines color, taste, and smell. Today I want to simply discuss a few famous Korean dishes mentioned in this article.
First, Bibimbap. This is probably one of the most widely known Korean food in the world. Bibimbap is a very colorful dish with various colorful vegetables and eggs, which
are mixed with the addition of gochujang (red chili paste), making its texture very different from what it was in the beginning. Its taste is very unique because the mixture of the ingredients gives this dish a taste that is of a different dimension altogether, and yet, also the tastes all of its individual ingredients. This dish truly reflects the character of the Korean people---mixing and harmonization. Some people summarize this Korean character of combining many elements and mixing them into one in an expression “Korean culture is of a bundle culture.” Koreans like to carry any contents in a bundle. Also, the paste gochujang that combines all these ingredients together is an
extraordinary food item. It is impossible to imagine bibimbap without gochujang. The beauty of gochujang is that it not only unites different vegetables into one taste, it also actually combines a variety of tastes with one another. In just this dish, we can see how it represents the collectivism and harmonium of Korean culture.
Next, I want to cover the one food that can represent Korean food----Kimchi. To make kimchi, cabbages need to be mixed well with all kinds of vegetables, Korean red pepper, and jeotgal (fish seasonings). When it produces beneficial elements such as Lactobacilli through the process of fermentation, it can then be called kimchi. Kimchi is food that embodies the concepts of mixing, a leading principle of Korean food. Vegetables are mixed with various seasonings and fermented anchovy or shrimp to make kimchi in a totally different form of food. That is why kimchi is called the best vegetable dish ever invented. Remarkably, only Korean red pepper, among hundreds of kinds of red peppers, can be used to make kimchi. Korean kimchi does not require a lot of salt because it uses red pepper powder to control harmful and beneficial growth. Kimchi could not be stored for a long time in ancient times, even though it can be stored for a couple of days. However, it can be now stored for a long time in kimchi fridges.
In both of these dish/food I cover and many other Korean dishes, we can see that the concept of mixing emerges. It coincides with the major themes of Korean culture: collectivism, community, harmony. So, the food in culture can often reveal what the culture is like.
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