The World Institute of Kimchi announced that it held the ‘2021 Kimchi Master Chef Contest’ on the 22nd to develop recipes for kimchi applications in order to promote the various tastes and availability of kimchi at home and abroad.

Hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (Minister Hyeon-soo Kim) and Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (President Chun-jin Kim) and organized by the World Institute of Kimchi, this contest is held to commemorate the 'Kimchi Day (Nov 22)' designated as the first legal anniversary of food. It was held at The Plaza Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, and was broadcast live through the official YouTube channel of the World Institute of Kimchi (WiKim TV).

In this contest, held under the theme of ‘Collaboration with Korean Kimchi and Signature dish of Each Country, 4 teams were selected, including 1 grand prize, 1 first prize, and 2 excellent prize teams who got good records.

Left) The Faithful Collaboration with Napa Cabbage Kimchi and Seafood, Right) The Fantastic Orchestra of Kimchi and Chicken

The 'The Fateful Collaboration with Napa Cabbage Kimchi and Seafood' and 'The Fantastic Orchestra of Kimchi and Chicken' by team Young-san Bae and Yun-ji Shin were honored as the received the grand award, and The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Award and recipe development cost 5 million won were awarded.

Team Seung-hyeon Do and Jung-hyeon Uhm, who received the first prize, received the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation Presidential Award and recipe development cost 3 million won, Team Young-hoon Yang and Su-beom Kim and team Hyun-ah Kim and Seo-hyun Yoon, who received the Excellence Award, received the World Institute of Kimchi Research Director Award and the Korea Kimchi Association Chairman Award, respectively, as well as a recipe development fee of 1 million won.

In particular, the award-winning team selected this time will serve as the official chefs for domestic and international exhibitions, experiences, and education hosted by the World Institute of Kimchi and the recipes for kimchi applications developed through this contest will be actively used in overseas kimchi culture promotion events. .

Chef cho Hee-sook (Michelin star 1), who chaired the judging committee of this contest, said, “The judging of this contest was focused on creativity and product quality” “I hope that there will be many chefs who take pride in the development of kimchi and Korean food and actively participate in the future.”

Hae-choon Chang, Research Director of the World Institute of Kimchi said, “Through this contest, it was an opportunity to check the infinite possibilities of our kimchi.” “We will produce and spread multilingual contents so that the developed kimchi applied dish can be interested not only in Korea but also around the world.”.

Meanwhile, a special exhibition under the theme of ‘K-ICON KIMCHI’ was also held at the Chef Contest on this day. This exhibition received a great response from visitors by providing a glimpse into the future of kimchi culture and science, such as ‘kimchi as a daily item’ and ‘starter kimchi,’ as well as the diversity of kimchi that has become an icon representing Korean culture.

Starting with WiKim Newsletter No. 25 (Published Jun, 2019) to deliver various news from WiKim in more detail and vividly, we have prepared an on-the-scene reporting, "How Much Have You Seen Kimchi?". More useful information will be provided. We always look forward to your interest and support.