Korean traditional food - The History of Kimchi

 Lack of history of kimchi In the literature of the Three Kingdoms Period and before the Unified Silla Period, there is no record of me referring to kimchi. However, considering the fact that the Korean people have enjoyed eating vegetables since ancient times and made and used salt, and historically, kimchi seems to have been made before the Three Kingdoms Period. The first record of Korean kimchi is in the Goguryeo Dynasty, the eastern part of China's Three Kingdoms, Weji, Dongjeon. "The Goguryeo people ate vegetables, used salt from afar, and the vegetation is similar to China, so they are good at jangyang (making liquor, making jang and salted fish), proving that fermented foods were already made into daily life during this period." There is also a part indicating that Goguryeo people ate vegetables in the Dongmyeongseong Dynasty, the founder of Goguryeo's Bongi, the Three Kingdoms Period. It can be confirmed from the literature that vegetables such as garlic, eggplant, and cucumber were edible around the Three Kingdoms Period. Considering that "Three Kingdoms' food products are the same as China," it is estimated that Koreans also enjoyed cucumbers, gourds, taro, monkfish, radish, garlic, green onions, chives, mustard, cabbage, ginger, and eggplants listed in China's "Jemin Magic." Kimchi of this era was pickled with only salt, such as turnips, eggplants, chives, and gobi. In addition, it is presumed that vegetables were pickled in soy sauce, vinegar, rice wine, and rice porridge. This is today's pickled vegetables method, and it can be estimated that pickled kimchi groups made of fish, grains, vegetables, and salt have developed based on abundant seafood, high-quality vegetables, and excellent fermentation technology. Some of the Baekje ruins tell the history of kimchi, including large earthenware with a height of 1m or more excavated from Mireuksa Temple Site in Iksan, Jeollabuk-do, which was founded around 600 AD. These earthenware found in the monks' residences are preserved in a relatively complete form and are likely to have been intentionally buried in the ground, so it is presumed to have been used for the same purpose as Kimjangdok in preparation for mistletoe. This is the only relic that can find traces of kimchi during the Three Kingdoms Period. In addition, there is a theory that the poison made of large stones in the precincts of Beopjusa Temple, built in the 19th year of King Seongdeok of Silla in AD 720, was used as a kimchi jar, and if this is true, it can be seen as the origin of kimchi. In the early Goryeo Dynasty, Buddhism was prosperous to the private sector, so meat food was restrained and vegetable dishes were preferred. The letter "Jeo," which means kimchi, first appears in "Goryeosa." This is the first record of Korean kimchi. Four types of jeo (buchujeo, turnipjeo, water parsleyjeo, and bamboo shootjeo) are shown in the table when performing the early morning control ritual in Volume 14 of Goryeosa Temple. Unlike the Three Kingdoms Period, which remained in the form of pickles, dongchimi and nabak kimchi were newly developed in the Goryeo Dynasty with the development of vegetable cultivation technology. In the "Gapoyukyeong" of Dongguk Sanggukjip, it is recorded that "Mucheong is embedded in the intestine, eaten in the summer, salted, and prepared for the winter," which means that pickles and kimchi were conceptually separated. In addition, considering that it is preparing for winter, it shows that the custom of making kimchi has already begun. At this time, salted kimchi can be said to be acupuncture vegetables such as nabakji and dongchimi, which are diluted with water today's salty radish. As such, kimchi, which stayed in pickled vegetables during the Three Kingdoms Period, was differentiated and developed into pickles, dongchimi, and nabak kimchi through the Unified Silla and Goryeo periods. The "Sangat Kimchi," "Oji," and "Nabak Kimchi," mentioned in the early records of the Joseon Dynasty, "Gyugon Si Bang" (Food Dimibang), may have continued since the Goryeo Dynasty. In addition, during the Goryeo Dynasty, vegetables used in kimchi, such as cucumbers, chives, water parsley, mustard, and bamboo shoots, were diversified, and seasoned kimchi with spices such as green onions and garlic emerged, away from simple salt pickles. In the poem "Sanchon Japyeong" by Lee Dal-chung at the end of the Goryeo Dynasty, there is a phrase "dried in the yeogwi grass and salted it," indicating that he enjoyed the taste of seasonal kimchi using kimchi wild grass. In addition, expressions such as Chimchae, Sangaeyeomchae, and Jangjang (pickled cucumber dipped in soybean paste) are also found in Mokjip. Here, kimchi is introduced by Chimchae, a direct Chinese character notation in Korean, and pickles are also introduced for the first time in the literature. Meanwhile, it is recorded that there were kimchi such as Geunjeo (Minari Kimchi), Gujeo (Buchu Kimchi), Cheongjeo (Nabak Kimchi), and Soonjeo (Bamboo Sun Kimchi) in the prediction of Goryeo history. In addition to kimchi related to such sacrificial food, there must have been more kinds. Vegetable cultivation technology improved thanks to the wide spread of agricultural books following the development of printing technology in the early Joseon Dynasty. In addition, various vegetables were introduced from abroad, making kimchi ingredients more diverse, and various types of quenching methods were also developed. However, even until this time, turnips, radishes, cucumbers, eggplants, dong-a, mountain mustard, bamboo shoots, and green onions are used as the main ingredients of kimchi. Kimchi also exhibits locality because it has changed differently depending on the products of each region. On the other hand, pheasant (raw fish) is used as an ingredient for kimchi, showing the form of meat added to vegetables. There were simple pickled pickles and kimchi in the form of Singji, and even water kimchi in the form of butterflies and dongchimi appear evenly. When making the color of the soup of kimchi, red was also made with mandramina or soft paper. In addition, the use of seasoning increases, making the distinction between the main ingredients and the ingredients clear. Chili peppers, cabbages, and salted seafood have not yet been used, and salivary sources were salt, soybean paste, and wheat flour. According to the Sogeum method, there were four types: Nabak kimchi dongchimi type, Singeonji salty topography type, mixed gourd type, and pickles type, of which pickled vegetables were the most common, followed by Singeon type. In the middle of the Joseon Dynasty, peppers flowed in and began to become one of the seasoning for kimchi. Pepper is a southern food introduced through Japan, and according to Volume 10 of Seongho Saseol, it has been widely distributed since Gwanghaegun, so the transition period can be seen as around the end of the 16th century. However, it is much later that peppers were used for kimchi due to the success of redistribution. Cucumber kimchi (1715) was the first to use red pepper powder in kimchi. As peppers were added to kimchi, salted fish were also used in various ways, and animal ingredients were added to vegetable ingredients to harmonize taste with nutrition and further improve the savory taste of kimchi. At the end of the Joseon Dynasty, large and fruitful cabbages began to be cultivated in this land (the end of 19C), and cabbages became the main ingredient of kimchi before radishes, cucumbers, and eggplants. The changes in kimchi during this period are well recorded in Jeungbo Forest Economy and Imwon Ten Six Kingdoms. Chili peppers are used as seasoning in kimchi introduced in Jeungbo Forest Economy, and salted seafood appears in kimchi introduced in Imwon Ten Sixteen. Although there is already a record of the use of salted fish in kimchi in the Gyuhapchongseo, the salted fish soup of "Imwon Ten Six Kingdoms" is more specific. The method of making kimchi has also been developed in various ways, such as pickled kimchi, water kimchi type, small gourd type, mixed gourd type, and glutinous kimchi type, and the manufacturing method has also developed into a "second-step dipping method" of making kimchi after removing salt. Published in 1766, Jeungbo Forest Economy contains as many as 41 kinds of kimchi in various forms, making it an extremely valuable documentary material. In this book, whole cabbage kimchi, the epitome of kimchi today, appears under the name Sungchimchae, which is unique in that it is accompanied by fish and meat. In addition, the original form of chonggak kimchi made with radish roots and leaves attached together is introduced for the first time in the literature, and small kimchi filled with red pepper powder and garlic seasoning, cabbage mixed with radish, and dongchimi are introduced. ----- I think it has its own history.