Latest news with #KoreaHouse
Korea Herald
01-07-2025
- General
- Korea Herald
Korea House to get overhaul for first time in 44 years
Cultural center in central Seoul dedicated to promoting Korean traditional culture to reopen in March 2026 Korea House in Jung-gu, central Seoul -- a cultural center dedicated to promoting Korean traditional culture by holding performances and dining experiences -- will undergo renovation for the first time since opening in 1981. The renovation began Tuesday, and its reopening is scheduled for March next year, according to the Korea Heritage Agency, which operates Korea House. The renovation will focus on remodeling the main hanok building and its annex, improving the garden through landscaping, upgrading convenience facilities, and making the space more modern and accessible for visitors. During the renovation period, traditional Korean wedding ceremonies and dining experiences will not be available. However, the Korean Cuisine Academy -- a cooking class led by chefs -- will remain open. The classes will take place at Chwiseongwan, a modern building next to Korea House. The KHA explained that the overhaul is part of a broader plan to elevate Korean heritage and cuisine by offering visitors a richer cultural and culinary experience.
Korea Herald
17-06-2025
- General
- Korea Herald
Remnants of Baekje's Ungjin period unearthed
Discovered artifacts help better understand Baekje Kingdom's story A state-run research center found remnants of artifacts from Baekje Kingdom's Ungjin period (475-538 CE), the Korea Heritage Service said Tuesday, offering a rare glimpse into how the empire engaged in diplomacy and trade even during political instability. "Baekje was the earliest of the three kingdoms (Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla) that rose to power and was successful. But we had difficulties in tracing the empire's golden age due to a lack of historical documents and artifacts left, often leaving us unclear about what Baekje was really like back then," Choi Eung-cheon, who heads the KHS, told reporters Tuesday during a press conference held at Korea House in central Seoul. "But the new finding will help us uncover and better understand Baekje's story," Choi noted. The Three Kingdoms of Korea were rival states that coexisted on the Korean Peninsula and parts of Manchuria from roughly the 1st century BC to the 7th century AD. Baekje's Ungjin era began when the kingdom moved its capital to Ungjin, now Gongju in South Chungcheong Province, after the fall of Hanseong and the death of King Gaero at the hands of Goguryeo forces under King Jangsu. The fall of the capital and the king's death plunged Baekje into deep turmoil, which continued to trouble the kingdom long after the capital was moved. Amid political instability, artifacts such as delicate gold earrings adorned with blue glass beads are a mixture of styles between earrings from Baekje's early Hanseong period and those worn by the queen during the later Ungjin period, indicating that the empire had advanced goldworking skills during that time, according to KHS. The research also found a silver ring with gold plating resembling those from Silla tombs, suggesting that Baekje's Ungjin period had close ties with Silla. A sword handle with a pentagonal silver decoration, also found in Naju and Nonsan, is believed to have been a gift from the Baekje royal family to local leaders. In addition, some 1,000 unearthed pieces of glass beads point out that Baekje had active trade links. The discovery found that the yellow and green beads were made with lead from Thailand, as the research found that they were the same material found in beads from King Muryeong's tomb. The KHS explained that this indicates that Baekje had diplomatic links with distant Southeast Asian countries at that time. The discovery was conducted by the Buyeo National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage — an affiliate of the KHS — as part of a long-term study of the royal tombs and the tomb of King Muryeong of Baekje in Gongju from September 2023.
South China Morning Post
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Why ‘Korea's olive oil', perilla seed oil, deserves to be trending around the world
When chef Son Jong-won of Seoul's one-Michelin-star Eatanic Garden was asked recently about the one ingredient he felt could be better represented outside Korea, he did not hesitate. Advertisement 'If you go to Italy, you know that olive oil is a staple that represents the country,' he says. The chef, who was speaking about the evolution and expansion of hansik, or Korean cuisine, said: 'Perilla oil is something we use [in Korea] that should be known more.' The golden oil, known in Korea as deulgireum, is derived from cold-pressing the seeds of the perilla plant – a fragrant herb better known by its Japanese name, shiso. It has a distinctive nuttiness and herbal quality, with a slight aniseed finish. 'You can incorporate perilla oil in salad dressings,' Son says, doubling down on the idea that the ingredient should be seen in the same realm as a good quality extra virgin olive oil. Chef Son Jong-won of Seoul's Eatanic Garden shared his thoughts about the evolution and expansion of Korean cuisine at a talk at Korea House in March 2025. Photo: Korean Food Promotion Institute He is not the only proponent of perilla seed oil. In March 2024, during an intriguing presentation on Korean ingredients, co-head chef Kim Do-yun of one-Michelin-star Yun Seoul – known for his appearance on Netflix reality cooking competition Culinary Class Wars – gave everyone in the audience a little noodle taster and a tiny bottle of perilla oil to take home.
South China Morning Post
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Korean ingredients' variety, flavour celebrated in dishes from top chefs and rising stars
In the kitchen of the historic Korea House in Seoul, chef Cho Hee-sook – the 'godmother of Korean cooking' – is deftly massaging three batches of blanched spinach, and seasoning each emerald bundle with doenjang (soybean paste), ganjang (soy sauce) and gochujang (chilli bean paste), the holy trinity of Korean fermented sauces. Advertisement 'Some people just assume the Korean dining table is very meat heavy because Korean barbecue is so popular,' she says, without breaking her rhythm as she works the different sauces into the spinach. 'But, actually, much of the Korean territory is mountainous, and we get a lot of different vegetables.' The season of spring greens, known as bom-namul, is highly anticipated in Korea; it is a time where a glorious bounty of herbaceous, sweet, nutty and bitter plants with complex flavours, aromas and textures arrives from the mountains and fields across the country. We joined chef Joseph Lidgerwood of two-Michelin-star Evett for a tour through Gyeongdong Market in the South Korean capital's Dongdaemun district, a warren of stalls overflowing with medicinal herbs and roots, fresh vegetables and dried seafood. Chef Joseph Lidgerwood and food consultant Summer Lee taking guests on a tour in Gyeongdong Market, Seoul. Photo: Charmaine Mok Compared to destinations such as Namdaemun Market or Gwangjang Market, there is nary a tourist in sight – just a steady flow of homemakers and, we're told, chefs and restaurant industry professionals out to monitor which seasonal ingredients are at their prime. Advertisement Accompanying Lidgerwood is food writer, restaurateur and consultant Summer Lee, who is an indispensable source of information for the various seasonal ingredients on display.
