Corey Verkouteren
Korean food made a surprise appearance at the Gilman Dining Hall on October 11th. Spicing up traditional Parkhurst dining, the Global Connections department and Dr. Shim took over the dining hall for dinner. The event was part of “Flavors of the World” and/or “Taste of Diversity,” movement. This movement seeks to introduce new culturally diverse foods to students. So, if you missed out, you can still look forward to their future event!
Featuring kimbap (seaweed rice rolls), kimchi (fermented vegetables), haemul-pajeon (seafood pancake), dak-gangjeong (seasoned fried chicken), and bulgogi (stir fried beef), students welcomed the unique and flavorful cuisine. Particularly, the haemul-pajeon surprised most students, who had never tried anything like it before.
Dr. Shim, who grew up in Korea and helped curate the dishes for the event, ran the kimbap station with a few Global Connections members. Kimbap is the most popular picnic food in Korea, and for Shim, it reminds her of her mom. The dish looks similar to sushi but includes sesame oil seasoned rice and filings like egg and kimchi instead of vinegar seasoned rice and traditional sushi filings like raw fish. Shim wants to thank Nagisa and Haruka for helping prepare the kimbap. Shim also thanks Global Connections and the Gilman staff for the opportunity and for helping her share Korean culture with the students.
Kimchi, being the most popular Korean side dish, was also notable to Shim. It is so ubiquitous that she, while being in the United States for more than 20 years has, “always had a jar of kimchi in [her] refrigerator.” The fermentation of the vegetables—typically including cabbage—gives it its pleasant sour, spicy flavor.
The event was a success, with many students and even some faculty members stopping in to try the food. From bulgogi to haemul-pajeon, all the recipes got praise. It was a fantastic opportunity to try something new, and Shim hopes it will encourage students to explore more culturally.
To keep up to date on the events held by Global Connections follow them on Instagram @mcglobalconnections.
