The Cabbage that we Ravage with the Chili Paste Taste

You guessed it, its Kimchi!

Making kimchi is the traditional Korean way of preserving vegetables to last over the winter. It can be made from any vegetable, or combination there of, but the most common and popular variety is made in the fall, from whole salted cabbage, with chili paste and other ingredients stuffed between the layers. It is considered by Koreans to be both nutritious and delicious. It really didn't appeal to me when I arrived in Korea, so I disputed the 'delicious' part, but I have discovered that the 'nutritious' part indeed has much truth to it.

According to this article on Asianinfo.com kimchi is rich in vitamin A, thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), calcium, and iron, and is also an excellent source of vitamin C. Although some kimchi varieties are high in salt and therefor associated with the health problems that come from high-sodium diets, the low sodium varieties may possibly reduce cancer growth and were listed on one health magazine's website as one of the 5 healthiest foods in the world. Wow!

Inspite of my initial skepticism, kimchi is quickly becoming one of my favourite Korean foods. I love to eat it with the majority of my meals. I agree with Koreans that it is delicious by itself, in soup or in fried rice. It is many delicious. Having always been a picky eater, that's saying a lot about kimchi and how it can grow on you.


The title of this post actually came from a music video made by some teachers in another part of Korea very close to Seoul. There are many jokes that you might have to live in Korea (or at least visit) to understand, but I'll post it anyway, because I thinks its pretty hilarious, and I'll add some pointers at the end to help you understand. Enjoy!

1. This song goes out to all the weguks. Weguk = foreigner
2. Kamsahamnida = Thank you
   Anyonghaseyo = Hello
3. T-money = Transportation money, for buses, subway, cabs etc.
   Yoke= (subway) station
4. Koreans cannot swim in a public pool without a swim cap
5. Drinkin Cass-euh, Drinking Hite-euh, feeling alright-euh: In the Korean language there are no words that end with a consonant sound, and so although Koreans use many English words quite frequently they add a vowel to the end of every word that doesn't already have one, almost exactly like this guy is doing in the video. Cass and Hite are the two popular brands of beer in Korea.
6. Noraebang : A karaoke room.