2005-2162

Corey Lee, head chef at the Michelin
three-star restaurant French Laundry in
Napa Valley, California.
Lee said one of the most popular
dishes at his restaurant is an acorn pudding.
“Whenever my grandmother visited
us, she made acorn jelly,” Lee said in
an interview. Lee emigrated to the United
States from Korea when he was 7
years old. “The taste of Korean food still
influences me as a cook.” He said he creates
his own cuisine by combining multinational
materials and techniques.
For the 2009 Amazing Korean Table,
he served a Korean-style porridge made
with pumpkin, rice and mushroom. “It
is important to reinterpret and recreate
Korean food materials and tastes,” Lee
said. “Rather than introducing a handful
of Korean foods to the world, we
should integrate the elements of Korean
food with international cuisines.”
Bottura, 47, said he had never tasted
Korean food before taking part in the
event. “Korean food is similar to Italian
food because garlic is used a lot for both
types,” he said. “It’s interesting that there
are many fermented foods in Korean
cuisine.” Bottura made a bean soup with
doenjang (soybean paste) and beef marinated
in black garlic sauce.
On Nov. 6, the globalization campaign
spread to a bar near Hongik University
in central Seoul. This time the
target was makgeolli, traditional Korean
rice wine, which was served with Italian
dishes, under the direction of Italian
Promotions
range from
high-brow
fusion dinners
to makgeolli
wine tastings
at bars near
Hongik
University.
News in Focus
chef Giuseppe Barone.
Barone said the first Korean food or
drink he tasted when he came to Korea
was makgeolli. He described it as having
a natural, elegant but slightly bitter flavor
and a sweet aftertaste. According to
Barone, Italian food goes well with makgeolli
because it is not very spicy.
Asked whether Europeans would
like makgeolli, he said, “Of course,” but
added, “We cannot recommend makgeolli
just because it is good. We must
explain why and take things a step at a
time.”
Makgeolli is experiencing a comeback
here, outselling beer and sake in
branches of Lotte Department Store,
while in Japan, makgeolli is enjoying
huge popularity, absorbing 86.8 percent
of all Korean exports of the drink.
“Even on the trendy streets of Shinjuku
in Tokyo, makgeolli bars have
opened recently,” said Yasushi Hatta, a
33-year-old Japanese food columnist, in
an e-mail. “There are not only makgeolli
cocktails but also fruit makgeolli.”
Kooksoondang Brewery’s makgeolli
has even been offered to passengers on
Asiana Airlines flights between Korea
and Japan since October.
But traditional wines still account
for only 3.6 percent of the alcoholic beverage
market here. The Korean government
intends to contribute 133 billion
won in subsidies to makers of traditional
wines in the next five years to change
that. By Limb Jae-un
[JoongAng Ilbo]
Gimbap
Sinseollo
French-style kimchi and foie gras toast made
by Jerome Roy, the chef at Pierre Gagnaire
Seoul in the Lotte Hotel
December 2009 korea 21