Hansik, the traditional cuisine of Korea, offers a delightful and balanced diet that emphasizes harmony and health. Rooted in seasonal ingredients and simple preparation methods, Hansik is not only nutritious but also a feast for the senses.
These days. although the Korean young population often enjoy other countries’ food, most people still enjoy Korean traditional food as their principal food in Korea
Now, Let’s take a look at the foods that Koreans love from breakfast to dinner!
Breakfast
There are many salty and spicy foods in Korea, but no one would like to have that kind of food in the morning. Let’s take a look at some non-irritating Korean traditional foods to eat in the morning!
- kimbap
Before going to school or work, many people enjoy having kimbap. As you can see in the image, kimbap is a food with rice and various vegetables wrapped around salty and savoury seaweed. The most basic vegetable kimbap usually includes burdock, carrots, cucumbers, and radish, and rice is usually white rice. Nowadays, you can see various fusion kimbaps such as bulgogi kimbap and cheese kimbap.
However, it is not easy to make kimbap on a busy morning. People in Korea usually enjoy wrapping only rice in sliced seaweed in a good size to eat.
- Miyeok-guk
What else has seaweed in them? Miyeok-guk is a salty soup with seaweed, beef and fish. Usually, minced garlic is added to make the source more savoury, but it does not mean that miyeok-guk is spicy. Many Korean people say it is the best food for breakfast, because it is a healthy food rich in protein, minerals, vitamins, etc.
- Gyeran-jjim
Of course, Koreans do not only eat foods with seaweed for breakfast. What about trying soft Gyeran-jjim just like custard? This can be explained in English as soft steamed egg custard. It is made by mixing eggs with water, a little bit of pepper and salt, and a little bit of green onions for a crunchy texture.
Lunch
Have you heard of the food called ‘Kimchi’? Yes, you would already know that Kimchi is a traditional food in Korea. However, you may not have noticed that most Koreans eat it every day in many different ways. Let’s take a look at the foods with kimchi, and the most famous Korean spicy food without kimchi that are perfect for lunch!
- Kimchi
Kimchi is one of the most famous traditional foods of Korea, and it is also a food that is on the table almost every day for many Koreans. It is a fermented food, and it is a representative side dish with a salty and spicy taste putting chives such as red pepper powder and garlic, in salted vegetables. Kimchi with cabbage is the most representative, and there are a lot of types of kimchi such as cucumber kimchi and radish kimchi called ‘ggakdugi’. You can even make it at home like most of the Korean does! Take a kimchi workshop and you will take home a beautiful jar of your own homemade kimchi.
- Kimchi jjigae
Kimchi jjigae is the most representative kimchi dish, and it can be described as ‘Kimchi stew’ in English. To make it, people usually boil cabbage kimchi, pork, tofu and onion. Kimchi jjigae goes very well with rice and non-spicy side dishes such as pickled bean sprouts. The colour red of it might surprise you at first because of the kimchi in it, but you will soon become a fan of it!
- Tteokbokki
Ttoekbokki is a food that includes a spicy sauce mixed with tteock(rice cake), and various vegetable such as onions and fish cake. It is the most representative fast food and street food in Korea, and it is also a food that many students like because tteokbokki restaurants are usually in front of schools.
Dinner
Let’s have a festival vibe with family and friends in the evening! Let me introduce three foods that were cooked on special days such as feasts and holidays, but now people often eat.
- Japchae
Japchae is a famous stir-fried noodle dish In Korea, and it is made using sweet potato starch. It is characterized by its chewy texture and transparent colour. It is made by mixing vermicelli with a source made by frying various vegetables and meat.
- Janchi-guksu
Janchi-guksu is a representative Korean feast food, and its name is a ‘feast noodle’ in English. Janchi-guksu is made with chewy noodles and various garnishes such as sliced egg in clear broth. Sometimes it tastes spicy with kimchi, and it can be easily seen in Korean restaurants now although it was a food that made the feast more enjoyable in the past.
- Tteokguk
Tteokguk is the most typical dish Koreans eat in the New Year, especially in Lunar New Year. unlike Western countries such as the UK, the age of Koreans changes in the New Year altogether, and they believe that their age changes when they eat Ttoekguk. It is made by adding sliced tteok(rice cake) and various garnishes such as sliced seaweed and eggs, to broth from meat. It is salty and very savoury, so now people enjoy eating that not only in the New Year but also in everyday life.
- Extended Banchan
The dinner table is filled with a variety of banchan, including pickled radishes, seasoned spinach, and egg rolls (Gyeran-mari, 계란말이).
Korean food are more than kimchi and fried chicken. The thoughtful combination of ingredients, attention to seasonal produce, and the cultural significance of shared meals make Korean cuisine a treasure trove of culinary delight. Whether you are new to Korean food or a long-time enthusiast, exploring the daily meals of a Korean household provides a deep appreciation for the art and heart of Hansik. You can even take a kimchi workshop to learn how to make kimchi on your own, it’s easier than you thought!
