[K-FOOD GOES GLOBAL] Spanish chef believes Korean jang will one day be essential in Western cuisine

In the wake of the surging popularity of plant-based diets and vegetarianism, a Spanish chef suggests that Korean cuisine has a considerable opportunity to make its mark in the world of plant-based cooking with its exceptional vegetarian dishes.

Jaume Biarnés, director of the Yondu Culinary Studio in New York [SEMPIO FOODS COMPANY]

In the wake of the surging popularity of plant-based diets and vegetarianism, a Spanish chef suggests that Korean cuisine has a considerable opportunity to make its mark in the world of plant-based cooking with its exceptional vegetarian dishes featuring fermented bean-based sauces: jang.

Jaume Biarnés, the culinary mastermind leading the Yondu Culinary Studio in New York, says that approximately 80 percent of Korea's traditional diet being plant-based can be attributed to the cultural use of jang, which is made from plant-derived ingredients. And he believes incorporating these plant-based jang-fused dishes could help widely promote Korean culinary culture globally.

Having closely observed the evolving status of Korean cuisine in the bustling New York food scene, Biarnés notes a notable shift in the perception of jang. Once unfamiliar to floreigners, ingredients like gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste) and ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste) are now becoming increasingly known as more people experience Korean cuisine in restaurants and encounter these flavorful sauces at grocery stores. This trend owes its success to the rise of K-content and the ingenuity of millennial Korean chefs, who have skillfully combined traditional pastes like ganjang (soy sauce) and doenjang (fermented soybean paste) in their dishes, garnering appreciation from diners for their distinct and enticing flavors.

Dispelling the misconception that the robust aroma of Korean sauces might not harmonize with other cuisines, Biarnés argues that jang can effortlessly enhance the flavors of various international dishes without compromising their original characteristics.

"The term 'jang' might not be familiar [to foreigners], but the flavor is," Biarnés said, adding many have already embraced Korean fermented bean sauces in their everyday cooking, incorporating gochujang as a hot sauce or using Yondu, Sempio Foods Company's fermented soybean food enhancer, as a flavorful broth base.

As the world gravitates toward prioritizing health and environmental consciousness, the widespread acceptance of Korean jang in global cuisine seems well within reach.

Before joining Sempio in 2017, Biarnés was the head chef at Barcelona's three-star-Michelin El Bulli restaurant and the Alicia Foundation in Spain. He joined forces with Sempio and the Alicia cooking research center to develop the "Jang Concept Map" and an array of 150 jang-based recipes that suggest seamless fusions of Yondu and other Korean sauces with diverse global ingredients and cooking methods.

The Korea JoongAng Daily discussed the potential of jang in the global food scene with Biarnés in an email interview.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q. What led you to explore the world of Korean fermented bean sauce?

A.Its flavor. Korean fermented seasonings have a unique flavor profile. I realized that jangs add flavor to any dish, especially vegetable dishes.

For a chef, it is always challenging to make vegetables taste delicious. It is hard to build a rich and deep flavor without using animal proteins, and that is why in the West, many people think that vegetables are bland or less interesting.

In Korea, vegetables taste delicious and are a big part of the diet. Actually, almost 80 percent of the traditional Korean diet is made up of vegetables. This is mostly because jangs provide an intense and satisfying flavor without adding animal protein.

I figured that jangs can be used in many ways outside the traditional Korean cuisine, and I started experimenting with recipes from all over the world. I quickly realized the enormous potential that these products have, and I became an advocate for jang in Western cuisine.

That is why Yondu plays such a big role. Yondu is an easy introduction to jang. Though Yondu is not a traditional jang, it definitely is one. It is a modern jang that can be used in any dish of any cuisine.

With Korean cuisine gaining popularity for its health-conscious image, especially in the vibrant food scene of New York, how would you assess the awareness and perception of Korean cuisine and sauces?

We are witnessing Korean cuisine becoming a part of popular culture in the United States.

In the last few years, going to a Korean restaurant has become a common experience, and people are already familiar with the basics, such as kimchi, bulgogi and gochujang. In addition, every grocery store has jang products. At least gochujang and sometimes ssamjang and even doenjang are on the shelves. This is a sign that there's a growing demand for it.

In New York, in particular, many top-tier restaurants are led by young Korean chefs, including Atomix, Jungsik, Jua, Joomak Banjum, Lysée and more. They are creative, elegant and sophisticated. Korean chefs dominate New York's fine-dining scene nowadays. This elevates the perception of Korean cuisine as high-quality and modern.

Of course, Korea's other cultural assets helped Korean cuisine gain popularity, like K-pop, K-drama and movies. Moreover, I like to think that a little bit of this success, just a little bit, is thanks to the work we have been doing at Sempio.

Have you noticed any changes in Korean cuisine's reputation?

Very few people knew what jang was five years ago. Whenever I met someone, I had to explain what gochujang is and what ssamjang is. This was exhausting. Nowadays, most people are already familiar with jangs, so I can focus on explaining how to use them, which is much more fun.

For example, some people who are comfortable with cooking already incorporate jangs into their daily cooking, using gochujang as a hot sauce and Yondu as a base for broth.

Korean sauces have a relatively small market share globally. What do you think would help enhance the globalization of Korean sauces?

The most important thing is that Korea continues to excel in everything it does by having Korean chefs at the top of the ranks, Korean movies win awards and Korean singers break records. This is how to increase reach to global audiences, regardless of their race or cultural background, because everyone is looking for the best out there.

In the United States, I think it is important to involve younger Korean Americans to help spread the word and the love for Korean cuisine. They understand Korean cuisine and American culture, so they are a valuable asset to grab people's attention.

Globalizing Korean sauces is a matter of time, but you cannot rush it. It took more than 100 years for Chinese cuisine to become popular in the United States and 40 years for Japanese cuisine to be what it is now. The advance of Korean cuisine, however, has been very fast in the last 10 years.

However, to become a pantry staple, you need time for people to get used to it. One day they will go to a Korean restaurant. Another day they will see a video recipe on Youtube, in a magazine or at a friend's house, and someday, they might want to try to cook with jang themselves. We are in this process right now, and we are on the right track.

What are your thoughts on the future potential?

Our strategy at Sempio is to offer a superior flavor profile and "clean label" products.

I believe Korean sauces will be part of the culinary landscape in Western countries one day. This means that every grocery store will carry jangs, and many consumers will be able to discern differences in their qualities.

When this day arrives, Sempio wants to be the reference brand for those who care about quality and authentic flavor. We want to be, for American consumers, the same trustworthy brand that we have been in Korea for more than 75 years.

Yondu is the perfect example. It is a jang product, but a modern one. It comes from a thousand-year-old tradition, but it is adapted to the needs of today. Yondu is like K-pop, the contemporary face of Korean culture that the world loves.

The term "fermented bean sauce" might not be familiar to non-Koreans. How would you introduce it and its distinctive features to someone from a different cultural background?

The term might not be familiar, but the flavor is. We need to get people to taste it because it is the best strategy to gain loyal customers. When we started promoting Yondu in the United States four years ago, nobody had ever heard about it. Now, we have thousands of fans who use it every day. And that's because they fell in love with its flavor.

In addition, there's a growing trend of eating plant-based fermented foods, and Yondu is an excellent flavor shortcut for those who are moving toward a healthier lifestyle but don't want to give up on flavor.

Pasta made using the Yondu sauce [SEMPIO FOODS COMPANY]

What are the potential applications of fermented bean sauce in foreign cuisine?

Jangs work surprisingly well in American, European, Mexican or Indian dishes, for example. A little bit of doenjang can make French cream or butter sauce taste deeper and more interesting. A spoonful of gochujang will take Spanish rice to a new dimension, and Yondu can be used in any dish to boost flavor, respecting the dish's original taste. In other words, adding jang doesn't transform Western dishes into Korean dishes. Instead, jangs help build flavor.

Likewise, Yondu's applications are limitless. It has a very clean umami flavor profile that works well with any cuisine. We have French, Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Thai, American and other restaurants using Yondu in the United States. It is being used in all sorts of cuisines and cooking traditions.

Actually, some of the best chefs in the United States use Yondu in their kitchens. It has become the secret ingredient for many chefs, and they apply it in very different dishes, from soups, noodles and salads to stir-fries.

At the end of the day, chefs' international language is flavor, and Korean jang is the king of flavor.

What does the Yondu Culinary Studio in New York do, and what is its role?

The Yondu Culinary Studio is a beautiful kitchen space in downtown Manhattan in the Financial District of New York. It is our culinary hub for the United States and Europe. Here we create new recipes using jangs that are adapted to global trends and preferences.

In addition, we host events to promote jang and Korean plant-based dishes, like cooking classes, chefs' demonstrations, expert panel events, book presentations and more. We collaborate with different organizations and New York-based chefs.

We also collaborate with Sempio's R&D team to develop new products. We test new ingredients in the kitchen and suggest improvements to the R&D department until we produce a product with a superior flavor profile and find the best use in the kitchen.

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]