Bibimbap

 

Korea’s No.1 Traditional Healthy Dish

Bibimbap, a bowl of rice mixed with meat and assorted vegetables, is one of the all 

time favorite meals of the Korean people, regardless of age or generation. Its popularity 

has also grown internationally with the spread of hallyu, or "Korean wave”. Even some 

Hollywood celebrities have praised its nutritional value and talked about how it has 

helped them maintain a healthy diet.

 

What’s more,  Bibimbap can easily be prepared for vegetarians as well! Restaurants 

with various versions of the dish have been popping up in different parts of the world, 

and these creative adjustments to the dish give it an added visual appeal and taste, 

making them well-received by international customers. Thanks to its gaining popularity, 

Bibimbap is now being intensively studied for menu development and researched for 

its nutritional benefits. 

 

A Global Recognized Healthy Food, Bibimbap

 

One might argue that Bibimbap is a type of fast food, in the sense that it is all eaten together after being tossed and stirred thoroughly. However, it is, in fact, the very opposite. Unlike most fast foods, Bibimbap contains many beneficial ingredients including both vegetables and meat. This also represents Korean’s long-held belief in harmony, created by oseak (the five cardinal colors of traditional Korean art).

 

On top of its aesthetically pleasing appearance, Bibimbap appeals to all the senses through its textures, smells, and rich taste. The dish also provides the option of cooling it off before eating or having it served in a hot dish to maintain the high temperature. You may have seen a photo of Bibimbap carefully prepared on a golden yugi (Korean brassware) or the heavy-duty dolsot (stone pot). This expresses a chef’s careful calculation in considering a customer, making sure it is enjoyed thoroughly until the last bite. Considering these characteristics unique to Bibimbap, one can easily see that it is a thoroughly prepared meal that will not only aid your health, but also heal your mind.

 

                                             Bibimbap Festival

A festival celebrating Bibimbap is hosted in Jeonju every year. The festival offers a variety of food performances, along with the events such as mixing a gigantic bowl of bibimbap that can feed hundreds!

 

 

 

Regional Bibimbap

 

 

* Jeonju Bibimbap

                            Jeonju Bibimbap, the most recognized Bibimbap of all 

 

Jeonju Bibimbap is uniquely prepared with an assortment of colors of namul (vegetable side dishes), and is regarded as the most representative example of Bibimbap. Fried beef and thin garnish strips of cooked egg whites and yolks can be a good alternative to yukhoe (beef tartare) and egg yolk. The broth from a beef brisket is used to cook the rice, and is garnished with the tartare and egg pair on top, a signature feature of Jeonju Bibimbap. It tastes even better with hot pepper paste mixed in with fried beef called yak-gochu-jang, the specialty of Jeonju, as well as bean sprout soup or beef radish soup.

 

 

* Andong Bibimbap

Heot-jesatbap is a combination of the words of hoet, meaning “fake,” and jesabap, referring to the meal that was served during ancestral rites. Confucian scholars in Andong, Jinju, and Deagu used to have this jesabap even when there was no ritual service, which is how its name became heot-jesatbap, inferring that it was a “fake” ritual meal. Andong is best known for its scrumptious heot-jesatbap, which is typically made with namul, jeon (coated and pan-fried fish and vegetables) and guk (soup) from the table for ritual services.

 

Usually three different colors of namul are served on the top of the rice. Since jesabap is served in remembrance of one’s ancestors, the main spices of Korean cuisine, such as spring onion, garlic and red pepper powder, are not used. Also, the ritual dish is served with a variety of jeon and sanjeok (skewers) made with dombaegi (“shark meat” in the local language), mackerel, and beef. Unlike other bibimbap traditions, diners may adjust the flavor of individual servings by adding soy sauce, sesame oil and its seeds, instead of red pepper paste. It tastes even better with tang-guk (beef and radish soup), a soup flavored with dried sea cucumber, octopus, seaweed, and sliced radish, all of which are diced into pieces and thrown into a clear broth.

 

 

▪ Tongyeong Bibimbap

 

Tongyeong, a coastal community, has an abundance of fresh seafood, making it the best feature of Tongyeong Bibimbap. Namul and vegetables are served on steamed rice and then mixed with shrimp, clams, and mussels blanched in boiling water and seasoned with sauce. If this process is too cumbersome for you, you can throw all the namul and vegetables in a pan and fry them in a rich seafood broth. This dish goes perfectly with clams and tofu soup. Tongyeong is also known for sea squirt bibimbap.

 

 

▪ Jinju Bibimbap

Jinju Bibimbap is a unique local food of Jinju in Gyeongsangnam-do. It is served with vegetables including cooked fern brakes and bean sprouts on top of steamed rice. Then, minced beef and jang-guk (clear soybean soup) is mixed in a bowl and served after being garnished with cheongpo (mung bean jelly), yukhoe, and red pepper sauce. Yukhoe is the symbol of Jinju bibimbap, but the cooked beef version is also served. Yukhoe-Bibimbap can be commonly found on the menu of restaurants in Jinju, which trace back to the 1920s, when Seoul and Jinju emerged as active markets in the cattle trade.