Healthy Korean food, Hansik

The Koreans have long considered food as medicine. This idea was due to the philosophy practiced in Korean food and the creation of food as antidotes. Even alcohol was called a medicine. The health philosophy practiced in Korean food, shown through the famous drama “Dae Jang Geum”, has moved the hearts of people around the world and Korean food has become a health food that is as good as the Mediterranean food.

The scientific side of healthiness in Korean food

The Western knowledge and scientific system dominated our view on health foods over traditional food. Fermented foods such as kimchi, ‘Doenjang’, ‘ Gochujang’, and ‘Jeotgal’, were avoided for modernization or sophistication of dietary life, are in fact proven to be effective in chronic diseases, cancer, and obesity.

Although we do recognize the healthiness of Korean food, we do not know how and why Korean food is healthy.

So, let ‘s take a look at the science behind Korean food that makes it so healthy. Korean food includes plenty of side dishes, soup, and rice as a staple. The core of a healthy diet, according to the Western side, is ‘balance’ and ‘diversity’. Korean food is an ideal health food that uses a variety of side dishes based on more of a vegetarian diet, which is about 8: 2 ratio of vegetarian and carnivorous diet. A balanced 8: 2 golden ratio of the vegetarian base was possible because it was able to consume proteins that were scarce from soy. Soy sauce, soybean paste, and ‘ Gochujang’ processed soybeans are our original fermented foods. Recently, vitamin B12, which is essential for longevity, has been found in these fermented foods. In other words, traditional rice and vegetable-based meals are low in fat intake, rich in dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals, and are well balanced in protein. It is nutritionally balanced compared to a western meal and effective in preventing obesity and chronic diseases. It is the orthodoxy of nutritional science.

The health of Korean food moves the world

In recent years, overeating is making the world sick and overfishing is threatening the global environment. The world-wide slow food and local food movements have begun to reappear with these serious food problems, and many in the world are joining them. The food at the heart of this movement is Korean food. Vegetarian foods based on greens and fermented foods are effective in the prevention of chronic diseases. It has been found to be healthy even in Western science system which denied Korean food. Looking back on these phenomena, the food philosophy of the Koreans is conceived due to the spirit of naturalism, which I think of as a way of life and love of nature. Especially pertaining to the ancestral food philosophy of my ancestors. The spiritual and physical healing effects of Korean food come from naturalism. Korean food will gradually become a  cure for the people around the world who fall ill by excessive meat eating.