Koreans enjoy sharing food with family and friends. As such, there is a tendency in Korean culture toprepare better food than you normally eat when there are guests present for a meal.
A typical Korean meal consists of rice, soup, and side dishes. Similar to soup, hot stews are alsopopular, as well as side dishes such as vegetables, steamed foods, hardboiled foods, roasted meat, stirfried foods, and pan-fried foods. One of the side dishes always present on the Korean table is kimchi.As a substitute for rice, people will sometimes eat hot or cold noodles, wheat flake soup, or rice cakes.As working couples increase and family structures change, there are more single-portion meals,convenience food, and delivery food.
Many foreigners find it is easier to familiarize themselves with Korean food when enjoying it withKorean friends. Getting used to Korean food is one of the best ways to adapt to Korea more quickly.When you learn to like Korean food, life in Korea will become much more enjoyable.
You don't need to worry about the drinking water in Korea. Most Koreans use a water purifier orboil water to make tea, which they drink cool. The tap water is drinkable, but most Koreans eitherboil it or filter it using a water purifier. Although you could have a stomachache for a couple dayswhen you first get here, it usually goes away in a few days. If you are having severe pains, it isadvised to see a doctor. Water is provided for free at restaurants and snack bars. Bottled water canbe easily bought at any store.
Korean rice is stickier than Southeast Asian rice. Those whoare not used to this type of rice may experience a slightstomachache or indigestion at first. It takes about a week toget used to Korean rice.
Bibimbap is a representative food of Korea made by mixingvegetables, beef, seasoning, sesame oil, red pepper paste, etc.with steamed rice. Bibimbap is a representative food of Jeonju,and ‘Jeonju Bibimbap’ is very famous nationwide and has evenbeen sampled by world-famous celebrities
These four kinds of foods are cooked by boiling vegetables and beef, pork, or fish in water. They are named according to their ingredients and how they are prepared: 00 guk, 00 tang, 00 jjigae, or 00 jeongol.
Kimchi is one of the most important foods in Korea andis said to have the perfect balance of taste, nutrition,and storage quality. Kimchi is made by rubbing pickledvegetables such as radish, cabbage, or cucumber, (etc.)in salt and adding seasonings such as pepper, garlic,green onion, ginger, salted fish and other supplementaryingredients. Kimchi must be stored at a consistenttemperature and allowed to ferment before it can beserved and eaten. Cabbages are not in season in winter,so from late November to early December Koreans makelarge batches of kimchi to be eaten during the winter. Thiskimchi-making period is called 'Kimjang'. Since peoplemake large batches of Kimchi during Kimjang, closerelatives gather and make Kimchi together.
Korea is a country with distinctive 4 seasons—spring, summer, fall, and winter—that boasts freshseasonal fruits each season. Thanks to the increased use of greenhouses, many of these delicious fruitsare available throughout the year. Still, fruit is always the most delicious when it is in season. Manydiscount or department stores even carry exotic fruits, giving foreigners a little taste of home.