Kimchi in Korea

KIMCHI

It is the most common side dish served in Korea and it eaten along with rice and other side dishes. Kimchi is also a common ingredient in dishes like Kimchi Stew and Kimchi Fried Rice.

The history of Kimchi dates back to more than 2,600 years ago. Even an ancient Chinese poetry book makes reference to this dish. The earliest form of this dish was made from cabbage, and it is only in the 12th century that spices were introduced into the dish to create flavors like sweet and sour.

In most forms of Kimchi, chili peppers are a common and important ingredient. Chili peppers were introduced into Korea in the early 17th century and since then the most common form of Kimchi consists of a variety of Chinese Cabbage and chili peppers.

Kimchi is considered to be quite healthy. In fact, a US magazine named this dish as one of the top five of the world’s healthiest foods. The dish is rich in vitamins and due to the various vegetables, it high in dietary fiber. In addition, it is low in calories. Kimchi provides 80 percent of the daily requirement of ascorbic acid and carotene.

Kimchi is rich in Vitamin A, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Calcium, and Iron. It is believed that the dish also aids in retarding the growth of cancer. However, some research has proved that eating high-sodium diet can lead to gastric cancer and Kimchi does contain large amounts of sodium. However, an oncological study has shown that one type of Kimchi, if consumed, can prevent against gastric cancer, while two other types which are rich in sodium can be risk factors contributing to gastric cancer.

Article & photos owned by: Cybertraveltips