Tag: Kimchi

Holiday Gift Guide: The Best Korean Food & Culture Gifts
Looking for the perfect holiday gift for the Korean food lover or culture enthusiast in your life? Whether they’re obsessed with kimchi jjigae, exploring Korean traditions, or crafting their own bibimbap, this guide has you covered. Here’s the ultimate 2024 holiday gift guide for Korean-inspired gifts, all conveniently available on Amazon. Bonus: by shopping through our affiliate links, you’re helping support our blog while ticking off your holiday list!
For the Korean Food Enthusiast
1. Voohek Korean BBQ Raclette Grill: Your All-in-One Indoor Grilling Solution
Looking for the ultimate Korean BBQ experience at home? The Voohek Korean BBQ Raclette Grill combines a non-stick grill plate and a natural cooking stone for perfectly seared meats, veggies, and more. With 1300W of power, it heats quickly to 500℉, making it easy to whip up a feast in minutes. The 8 raclette pans and wooden spatulas make it perfect for hosting, letting everyone cook their favorites—from steak and seafood to melted cheese and butter. Versatile enough for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, this smokeless indoor grill is easy to clean and store, making it a must-have for foodies and families alike.
Check it out on Amazon →
2. K-Food: Korean Home Cooking and Street Food by Da-Hae and Gareth West
Discover Korean cuisine through this vibrant and approachable cookbook.
This cookbook features a blend of traditional Korean recipes and fun modern twists. Plus, it includes one of my own recipes! A perfect gift for home cooks and foodies alike.
Grab the book here →
3. Hagary Dragon Stainless Steel Chopsticks: Elegance Meets Durability
Elevate your dining experience with Hagary Dragon Chopsticks, designed in Korea and crafted from 316 surgical-grade stainless steel for unparalleled durability and hygiene. These reusable chopsticks are non-slip, thanks to their textured tips, making it easy to grip everything from sushi rolls to Korean BBQ. The laser-etched dragon design adds a touch of royalty to your table, and their dishwasher-safe, rust-resistant construction ensures they’ll last for years. Perfectly weighted and beautifully packaged, these chopsticks make an excellent gift for foodies, newlyweds, or anyone who loves Asian cuisine.
Shop the set →
4. DAGAON Finest Korean Snack Box
Discover the ultimate assortment of Korean snacks with the DAGAON Korean Snack Box, featuring 42 individually wrapped treats from top brands like Lotte, Orion, and Crown. This curated collection includes a mix of chips, cookies, pies, candies, noodles, coffee, tea, and more—perfect for sampling the best of Korea’s snacking culture. Whether it’s for gifting, parties, care packages, or just treating yourself, this snack box is ideal for any occasion. Packed with variety and flavor, it’s a surefire hit for friends, family, coworkers, or anyone craving a taste of Korea.
Get a snack box here →
5. Ramen Pot with Chopsticks, Spoon & Bowl Set: The Ultimate Ramen Lover’s Companion
Make instant noodles an art form.
Perfect for quick, delicious meals, this Ramen Pot Set comes with everything you need: a 1Qt Korean-style ramen pot, chopsticks, a spoon, and a bowl. Inspired by authentic Korean cuisine, this portable ramen cooker is ideal for dorms, small kitchens, or on-the-go dining. The pot’s compact size is perfect for single servings or meals for two, whether you’re making noodles, soups, or steamed eggs. The unbreakable bowl doubles as a serving dish for snacks, oatmeal, or salads, but remember: it’s not microwave-safe. Easy to clean and versatile, this set is a must-have for students, busy professionals, and anyone who loves quick, satisfying meals.
See it here →
For the Korean Culture Lover
6. Hanbok-Inspired Accessories
Celebrate Korean heritage with modern elegance.
From hanbok-patterned scarves to traditional-style jewelry, these gifts add a touch of Korea to anyone’s wardrobe.
Find hanbok accessories →
7. The Dark Side of Seoul: Weird Tales from Korean Lore Comics
Immerse yourself in Korean horror.
These comics are fun doorways into Korean folklore. You can order the digital or physical copies. Note that the physical copy takes around three weeks or so to ship from Korea.
Get the comic →
8. Calligraphy Set
Explore the artistry of Korean Hangeul writing.
A brush and ink set makes a unique gift for creative types interested in Korean culture. Pair it with a beginner’s guide for an even more thoughtful present. NOTE: Chinese calligraphy sets work as well.
Shop calligraphy kits →
9. K-Drama and K-Pop Merch
Perfect for the ultimate Hallyu fan.
Whether it’s BTS-inspired hoodies or Goblin-themed mugs, there’s no shortage of K-drama and K-pop gifts to choose from.
Browse fan merch →
10. Korean Language Learning Tools
The gift of speaking Korean.
Books like “Talk to Me in Korean” or language flashcards are ideal for anyone dreaming of learning Korean. Combine this with a subscription to online classes for the ultimate gift.
Explore language tools →
11. ZenKimchi Experiences Gift Card
Give the gift of experience.
Know someone who is planning to travel to Korea? Give them one of our ZenKimchi Experiences. Dine at the same BBQ place as Anthony Bourdain. Explore the dark alleyways on the Dark Side of Seoul Ghost Walk. Indulge in a Korean Chicken & Beer Pub Crawl. Or go off the main trail to find Korea’s real secrets on the Seoul Hike.
Check out the gift cards →
For the Adventurous Cook
12. Fermentation Easy Starter Kit
DIY Korea’s most iconic dish.
A kimchi-making kit and more with fermentation jars makes it easy to create homemade batches. Add some gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) for an extra-special gift.
Shop fermentation kits →
13. Dolsot (Stone Bowl)
Perfect for sizzling bibimbap.
A Korean stone bowl turns rice and veggies into a restaurant-quality dish. Bonus: it’s great for stews too.
Find stone bowls →
14. Jang: The Soul of Korean Cooking
Master the art of Korean sauces and pastes
For the ultimate DIY cook, how about making authentic Korean jang (pastes and sauces) at home? Named a Best New Cookbook of Spring 2024 by Eater and Epicurious
Grab the book →
15. Korean Drinking Set
Drink like a Korean.
For the makgeolli and soju parties! If you’re going to indulge in some Korean rice beer and soju, you gotta pour it and drink it out of the right vessels.
Check it out →
For the Tea and Wellness Lover
16. Korean Tea Sampler
Experience the subtle beauty of Korean teas.
OSOLLUC from Jeju Island makes some of the best premium teas in Korea. This is a must-have for any tea enthusiast.
Check it out →
17. Ginseng Supplements
Boost their health with a Korean superfood.
Korean red ginseng, known for its immunity-boosting and energy-enhancing properties, is a thoughtful and practical gift.
Shop ginseng gifts →
Wrap It All Up
This holiday season, celebrate the joy of Korean food and culture with these thoughtful gifts. From cookbooks like K-Food (featuring one of my recipes!) to the sweet, savory treats of a snack box, there’s something for everyone on this list. And remember, shopping through our links helps support the blog—so thank you for sharing the love!
Happy gifting! 🎁
December 2, 2024
Easy Kimchi Deviled Quail Eggs
There are some things that are cheap in Korea that are considered delicacies in other parts of the world. One of those is quail eggs. People don’t think anything of them in Korea. You can get them raw next to the chicken eggs. But even better, you can get them already cooked and peeled in the refrigerator section. That makes things much easier when making this recipe.
Normally, I would have garnished them with something like gochugaru or chiffonade sesame leaves. But the baby was also eating these. She can handle a little bit of spice but not much. These were gone in fifteen minutes.
February 4, 2012
Kimchi Golubtsy (Cabbage Rolls)
My first impression of Korean food was its striking similarity to eastern European cuisine. Some dishes reminded me a lot of my grandmother’s goulash. I noticed that gochugaru had sweet aromatic properties similar to Hungarian paprika. Kimchi jjigae tasted a bit like borscht, which is why it’s great with a dollop of sour cream.
It wasn’t until I was in that international cooking contest that I saw a dish by Maria Bakhmurova that made me smack my forehead–Kimchi Golubtsy.
They’re just like my grandmother’s cabbage rolls (which we called “Pigs in a Blanket”) but with kimchi. Yes, I know the LiteralNet will point out that kimchi is pickled cabbage, but you see why I slapped my forehead. Such a simple leap in ingredients. And the tartness in the kimchi reduces the need for a sour vinegary sauce. I wasn’t able to talk to Maria and ask for her recipe, so I had to try to make this on my own. But make sure that credit goes to her for the original idea.
February 24, 2011
Korean Food May Not be Completely Healthy?
We all read about the health benefits of Korean food. In fact, it’s hard to find press releases about Korean food that don’t put its health at front and center. Now, I’ve stated before that the big backlash going on in America against the awful health food that’s been marketed to the public since the ’80s makes it a bad environment to promote yet another food as ‘healthy.’
Yet the other risky bit about putting all your eggs in the well-being basket is this: what if it was found that the food was not healthy?
The KFDA (Korean Food and Drug Administration) is investigating the salt content in the Korean diet. This is a brave thing for them to do, in my opinion. The findings could be damaging to this national morale that has placed so much hubris on the infallibility of its cuisine.
Korean food is salty. Kimchi is salty. Half the banchan is salty. That’s why the other dishes are so bland. It’s to counter the salt. So the KFDA is going to find if the Korean diet affects Koreans’ blood pressure and is even hinting that high kimchi consumption is the connection with Korea’s high stomach cancer rate (well, actually, a study by Korea’s National Cancer Center supports that statement). Koreans already take in twice as much sodium as recommended by the World Health Organization.
May 11, 2010
ZenKimchi via Amateur Gourmet: 6 Strange Things I Put Kimchi In
I wrote a guest post for the Amateur Gourmet’s new community blog. Check it out.
This isn’t the first time Adam Roberts and I have crossed paths. Way back, I made a tribute post to his comic book send ups, called “The Amateur Kimchi,” and it got a little bit noticed.
April 9, 2010
Super Probiotic Lunch
Eun Jeong had made a batch of yogurt the other day. It’s funny that for all our complaining that you can’t find unsweetened yogurt in Korea, they finally started putting it on the shelves when we had gotten into the habit of making our own yogurt. We also had a particularly tart batch of Kimchi Jjigae we were finishing off. Topped it off with some of the yogurt. So, yeah, I had two of the most probiotic foods on the planet in one bowl. Maybe it helped me a bit–but my insides were talking to me a few hours later.
Accompanied it with a good ole Gochujang Tuna Melt.
March 17, 2010
Aspartame in Kimchi?
Cute little video from Cool Hunting of a Korean great-grandmother making kimchi. I did get a little worried when packets of Equal were being dumped in there.
March 14, 2010
Junk Food is Key to Korean Food Globalization
Gamja fries topped with chopped galbi. (from SF Weekly)
I’ve hinted it many times, and we just keep getting confirmation after confirmation. The Korean government and corporations dream of conquering the world with their prissy pretentious overpriced “well-being” concept of Korean food–you know the postulations like “Americans pay $300 for Japanese food, why not Korean” and “Americans only eat hamburgers, so they’ll like Korean food because it’s well-being.”
But reality blows their sanitized fabrications out of the gukmul.
SF Weekly reports that Korean food is entering the American consciousness, or at least the San Fanciscan consciousness, as stoner junk eats. It started with the Kogi tacos in L.A. Now street vendors and strip malls sell bulgogi topped hot dogs (you can actually get those at New York Hot Dog & Coffee in Korea), marinated beef and kimchi-stuffed sandwiches with creamy gochujang mayo, and fries topped with chopped galbi.
Accomplished Seattle food writer Matthew Amster-Burto (Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father’s Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater) ponders why Korean food hasn’t taken off in Seattle even though the stars are aligned that way. He blames the insular tendencies of Korean restaurateurs, as in their neglect to advertise in English papers, and the baffled cluelessness Americans feel in Korean restaurants, to which I can relate. Talking to Joule’s Rachel Yang, he works on some ideas for establishing Korean food in Seattle, which could be a blueprint for the rest of the States.
1. Inexpensive restaurants with streamlined menus catering to Americans’ favorites (bulgogi, japchae, galbi), similar to Seattle’s teriyaki restaurants, should populate the area.
2. Promote gochujang. The culinary oracles are already predicting that gochujang is about to become the next sriracha sauce.
3. Korean tacos are already getting Americans used to Korean flavors, like kimchi.
Face it, folks. Royal court cuisine isn’t going to lead the charge. Neither is topoki. Americans aren’t going to latch onto yangnyeom dolsot bap because it’s boring but healthy. Rule #1 is taste. And even though my cholesterol count rises just reading those descriptions, the Korean junk food invasion looks mighty tasty.
Korea Attacks! Korean junk food has established a tasty foothold
Enjoying Korean food without knowing it
[HT to a very special reader]
March 10, 2010
Kennen Sie Korean Food?
Photo by Oliver Plath
Ana Finel Honigman writes a story, picked up by the Korea Herald, on how Korean food is a hit with the hipster crowd in Berlin.
Every international city offers a mix of street foods, but for most cities the culinary culture is defined by a taste for a particular type of exotic cuisine. While London is as famous for its curries and high-end Indian food and New Yorkers take pride in their connoisseurship at Japanese sushi restaurants, Berliners routinely tuck into Thai or Vietnamese food when eating out. Now, thanks to the brilliant new Korean restaurants captivating the tastes of Berlin’s coolest foodies, Korean food is becoming a favored choice for one of Europe’s most international and progressive cities. As Berlin-based video artist Cecile Evans recounts, “There is a great range of Korean dining – from the ultra hardcore purists to some of the more dressed up places catering to the nouveau culture crowd. It’s all surprisingly fresh and the kimchi always has the obligatory kick – hard to find in spice-phobic Europe!”
Read more on the Herald site.
(HT to Edward)
December 30, 2009
Another Reason to Love Korea
Pork belly and oysters.
Came home and this was dinner. Oh, and I also have a new camera.
Wanna see?
Can’t wait to put this bad boy into the field.
October 21, 2009