[Herald Interview] Naming Korea’s unnamed and forgotten recipes

Discovering unnamed foods, gathering lesser-known recipes, documenting them and, finally, presenting them to the public to learn and enjoy is what drove Ha Mi-hyun, CEO of food research and archive company Spoken Company to carry on with her work despite the pandemic. 　 Ha founded Spoken Company, also known as Ipmal Eumsik, referring to dishes prepared with recipes passed by word of mouth, in 2015. The company has so far visited more than 70 regions in Korea, and recorded over 400 spoken recipe

FoodMarch 12, 2022

[Visual History of Korea] Kimchi, the indispensable national dish of Korea

Over its long history, Korea has suffered, losing at times and recovering her land, language, history and culture. But Koreans never lost their indispensable national dish, kimchi. Kimchi is the staple of Koreans everywhere, including the Korean diaspora, which stretches as far as North and South Americas, Europe and the Middle East, Africa and all of Asia. Growing up in the US, I didn‘t always have kimchi on my dining table, but I enjoyed it when I could. When journalists from Korea ac

FoodMarch 12, 2022

[Eye Plus] Moment of peace and silence in the evening at National Museum of Korea

When it comes to nightlife, Seoul may be a restless city with its glittering building signs, rowdy car horns and packed crowds spilling out from work. But there is always a place to take a break from urban life and take a small emotional refuge. With numerous ancient sculptures and artworks, the National Museum of Korea in Yongsan-gu, central Seoul, is a home to art from Korea and beyond. But the serene museum is also a place of peace and silence.  In a darkened part of the museum, a bl

CultureMarch 12, 2022

[Weekender] Deliver us...pretty much everything

When 65-year-old retiree Kim Ji-yeon decided to move to the outskirts of Seoul, she found that shopping for groceries could become a sizable hurdle for a senior couple living in a town several transfers away from the nearest retail store. Solution? Delivery apps. “There’s pretty much everything on Coupang, from food to daily necessities. There are also applications run by retail stores like E-mart or Costco, so I don’t really have to go shopping,” Kim said, adding that

CultureMarch 12, 2022

[Holly’s Korean Kitchen] Gyeranjjim, steamed egg

It almost looks like an egg pudding that is about to explode, doesn’t it? This fun Korean egg side dish is one of the “experimental” dishes of Korean cuisine. In other words, people like to make this unique Korean side dish not only for the delicious eggy taste, but also because it’s like doing a science experiment to see the result -- without the mess. The moment you open the lid of your stone pot, you will get a surprising view of volcanic eggs with piping hot steam sh

FoodMarch 12, 2022

Actor Kim Dong-wook makes Tving debut with mystery thriller ‘The King of Pigs’

Top movie star Kim Dong-wook will make his streaming platform debut with Tving’s upcoming series “The King of Pigs” on March 18. Kim, 38, takes on the role of Hwang Kyung-min, who was bullied in school in the past and is being investigated by police as the prime suspect in a serial murder case. Actor Kim Sung-kyu co-stars as detective Jung Jong-suk, who seeks to find the truth behind the killings. Adapted from the 90-minute animation of the same title by “Hellbound&rdq

FilmMarch 11, 2022

Two Korean novels in running for International Booker Prize

Two Korean novels have been named on the long list to qualify for the annual International Booker Prize, formerly known as the Man Booker International Prize. “Love in the Big City” by Park Sang-young and “Cursed Bunny” by Chung Bora are among 13 works announced as in the running for the international literary award announced Friday. In 2016, “The Vegetarian” by Han Kang won the prestigious international prize given to a book translated into English and pub

BooksMarch 11, 2022

Galleries Art Fair 2022 to be the largest ever

The recent art fever is likely to continue at the upcoming Galleries Art Fair 2022, the first major art fair of the year, with the largest number of galleries participating at a new venue in Seoul. The five-day art fair will kick off Wednesday at Seoul Trade Exhibition and Convention in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul. This is a change of venue for the annual fair which has been taking place at COEX in Seoul. Some 143 galleries will participate in this year’s art fair, continuing the momentu

Arts & DesignMarch 11, 2022

Traditional Korean music learning platform launched in German

Amid the global popularity of Korean cultural content, an online education platform for learning traditional Korean music in German has been launched. The Korean Cultural Center in Germany has started the service to assist Germans interested in studying traditional Korean music, according to the KCCG on Thursday. The platform was built in collaboration with the Hamburg University of Music and Theater with funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research of Germany, as part of the J

CultureMarch 11, 2022

'Squid Game' stars to present at US Critics Choice Awards

South Korean actors Lee Jung-jae, Jung Ho-yeon and Park Hae-soo of Netflix's smash hit "Squid Game" will present at this year's US Critics Choice Awards. The three were in the star-studded lineup of presenters who will take the stage at the 27th annual ceremony Monday (US time), the Critics Choice Association recently announced on its website. Among other presenters were Jimmy Kimmel and Alan Kim, an actor of the award-winning immigration film "Minari," as well as actors Kris

TelevisionMarch 11, 2022

Published screenplays of hit TV series make bestselling book lists

Popular TV series have recently made their presence felt not only on the global viewership charts but also on local bestselling book lists. The script book of the romantic comedy "Our Beloved Summer," published on Feb. 16, placed second on the weekly bestsellers list for the third week of February by Kyobo Book Center, the biggest bookstore chain in South Korea. On the weekly sales list of Yes24, a local online bookstore, preorders of the series' screenplay book also ranked third in th

BooksMarch 11, 2022

[Well-curated] Take time out for tea, enjoy wine at a secret den or solve your way out of an escape room

The culture of daily teatime with guests and acquaintances is prevalent in most ASEAN countries. Many artists have been inspired by the soothing ritual that offers a moment of quiet contemplation and an opportunity to recharge. A special exhibition, “Teatime and Coffee Break,” is being held at ASEAN Culture House’s Exhibition Gallery in Haeundae, Busan. The exhibition centers around three concepts -- coffee, tea and moments of pause.  The exhibition features some 40 work

CultureMarch 11, 2022

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Taean World Tulip Flower Festival The World Tulip Flower Festival is scheduled to run from April 9 to May 9 at Korea Flower Park in Taean, South Chungcheong Province. Some 200 types of flowers, including flamingo, lambada, red proud tulip and more, will be on full display. On-hand experiences, like a flower planting program, will not be offered at this year’s event to prevent any spread of COVID-19. The festival runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and tickets are 12,000 won for adults and 9,000

TravelMarch 11, 2022

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and packages

JW Marriott Hotel Seoul presents sakura teppanyaki Tamayura, the luxury Japanese dining destination on the second floor of JW Marriott Hotel Seoul, is showcasing an authentic teppanyaki course crafted from diverse seasonal ingredients. The main dish of the eight-course dinner menu is the hanwoo tenderloin, a cut of the highest grade of beef. Other highlights include a welcome dish of Sakizuke, hanwoo roast beef, grilled sirloin served with Tamayura’s own special sauce, live seafood Karas

FoodMarch 11, 2022

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

In Our Prime (Korea) Opened March 9 Drama Directed by Park Dong-hoon Lee Hak-sung (Choi Min-sik) works as a school’s security guard but is actually a mathematical genius that defected from North Korea. Hak-sung meets Ji-woo (Kim Dong-hwi), a student that is having a hard time fitting in at school due to his different social background. After finding out about Hak-sung’s talent, Ji-woo asks Hak-sung to teach him math. 　 The Batman (US) Opened March 1 Action Directed by Matt Reeves

FilmMarch 11, 2022

'Support but do not interfere’: Culture industry expresses concerns, hopes over Yoon

During the presidential campaign that ended with a narrow victory for opposition candidate Yoon Suk-yeol early Thursday morning, cultural issues took a backseat as the candidates focused on issues like soaring housing prices and recovery from the ongoing pandemic. But the culture industry, still reeling from the trauma of the previous conservative administrations’ blacklist of artists and cultural figures and hit hard by the pandemic, is urging the incoming administration to provide supp

CultureMarch 10, 2022

“Juvenile Justice” tops Netflix‘s non-English TV series chart

Netflix‘s original series “Juvenile Justice” topped the OTT platform’s non-English TV series chart on Thursday. The chart lists non-English TV series in an order of the number of hours that they were watched by the viewers weekly. According to the chart, Netflix subscribers in 190 different territories watched the Korean drama series “Juvenile Justice” for 45.93 million hours during the Feb. 28 to March 6 period. “Café con aroma de mujer”

FilmMarch 10, 2022

KBS comes out top in election coverage

Public broadcaster KBS had the most-watched presidential election coverage on TV in Korea Wednesday night. KBS1’s election coverage recorded a viewership rating of 11.1 percent, according to Nielsen Korea. It was the highest-rated election coverage, while SBS and MBC, which aired in the same time slot, followed with 6.1 percent and 5.6 percent viewership ratings, respectively. Claiming that the first metaverse ballot count and the broadcaster‘s own artificial intelligence predictio

TelevisionMarch 10, 2022

Five things about Korea’s president-elect Yoon Suk-yeol

Whether you like it or not, South Korea voted for Yoon Suk-yeol to lead the country for the next five years as the president. Here are some fun facts about him, from the book that changed his perspective on the economy to his favorite home-made comfort foods.  1. Avid baseball fan Proclaiming himself as an avid fan of baseball, President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol used to frequently visit baseball stadiums with colleagues when he worked as a local prosecutor in Daejeon, Daegu and Gwangju. &ld

PeopleMarch 10, 2022

Lee Hyo-ri to return with Tving reality show ‘Seoul Check-In’

In response to the huge popularity of the pilot episode of “Seoul Check-In,” which topped local streaming platform Tving’s most popular shows chart on the day of its premiere Jan. 29, K-pop star Lee Hyo-ri is scheduled to return in April with a regular season of the show. Helmed by television director Kim Tae-ho, who was behind two of South Korea’s longest-running and most successful variety shows -- “Infinite Challenge” from 2006 to 2018 and “Hangout W

TelevisionMarch 9, 2022