- Address: 35-4 Insadong-gil, Gwanhun-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
- Phone: +82 2-6002-6456
- Website: kimchikan.com
- Year of foundation: 1986
- Working hours: from 10:00 to 18:00
In 1986, an unusual museum was founded in Seoul , which was dedicated to a traditional Korean dish called kimchi. Exhibits tell about its history, varieties, as well as the importance of this dish for the entire Korean culture .
History of the Kimchi Museum
A year after the foundation, the kimchi museum was transferred to the management of Korean company Phulmuvon, which is the leading producer of food products in the country. In 1988, Seoul hosted the Olympic Games, and the museum exhibits were moved to the Korean World Trade Center. To popularize their national dishes, Koreans opened special courses at the museum where they could learn how to cook it: for adults it is the "Kimchi University", and for children - "Kimchi School".
In 2000 the area of the museum was expanded, and after 6 years the kimchi dish was brought by the American magazine Health to the list of the world's healthiest foods. On television, reports about this museum were shown, which made him even more famous.
In 2013, a dish of kimchi was added to the list of masterpieces of the intangible cultural heritage of mankind. And in 2015 the institution was renamed, and now it is called the Museum Kimchikan (Museum Kimchikan).
Expositions of the museum
Here are exhibited several permanent exhibitions:
- "Kimchi - a journey around the world" - will tell you about the way in which the dish was passed to recognition throughout the world.
- "Kimchi as a source of creative inspiration" - at this exhibition you can see the works of Korean artist Kim Yong-hoon;
- "The traditions of cooking and storing kimchi" - will reveal to you the secrets of all the components of these Korean pickles, and also show the process of cooking a dish of kimchi tako and whole cabbage thongpechu in all its details;
- "Science - the beneficial effects of kimchi" - will introduce visitors to the way this Korean dish affects the digestive processes in the human body.
Tourists in the museum can attend the master class, taste the prepared dish, listen to the educational program, and in the library - find the necessary reference book, scientific work or other necessary literature on kimchi. At the museum there is a specialized shop, where you can buy ingredients for cooking.
Features of kimchi
Koreans are confident that their traditional dish of sauerkraut or salted vegetables helps in combating excess kilograms, saves from colds and even helps with the morning hangover. It is rich in vitamins and destroys harmful bacteria. Kimchi is necessarily present on any table of Koreans, they can eat it three times a day.
There are about 200 varieties of kimchi dishes: red, green, overseas, Japanese, etc. All of them combine the presence of seasonings and a pungent taste. Sauce for any kind of kimchi is made from such basic ingredients:
- red sauce;
- radish;
- ginger;
- garlic;
- chokkal - seafood, giving a special taste to the dish.
Cabbage cabbage is aged for about 8 hours in salt water, then smeared with cooked sauce - and the dish, considered the main symbol of Korea, is ready. Prepare kimchi not only from cabbage, but also from cucumbers, young carrots, string beans.
How to get to the kimchi museum?
From the train station in Seoul to the Kimchi museum every 5 min. the bus leaves. This distance can be traveled in 15 minutes. If you decide to go down in the subway , then you need to go to the station "Samsung", which is located next to the museum. Another option is to take a taxi or rent a car.