Sinan to actively promote the popular K-food, gimbap

The chef, Oh Yeong-ho introduces a gimbap with a seaweed filling at a tasting event held at the 1004 Museum Park in Jaeun-do, Sinan-gun, Jeollanam-do on October 11 ahead of the 1st Sinan World Gimbap Festa, which opens on October 20.

You place a variety of fillings on cooked rice spread out on some seaweed and roll it into what is known as gimbap (kimbap). Gimbap was a favorite for packed lunches and picnic food in the 1960s and 70s because it was convenient with no need for separate side dishes. Gimbap, which is made of mostly seaweed (laver) and vegetables, has become known as a healthy dish that is also easy to enjoy and is captivating taste buds around the world. The frozen gimbap that a grocery store chain with over five hundred stores throughout the United States released in August sold out in less than a month.

For the first time in South Korea, Sinan, Jeollanam-do will host a festival where people can enjoy the charms of gimbap, a rising star in K-food. Sinan produces many of the ingredients that go into gimbap, such as laver, rice, spinach, and sesame seeds.

On October 11, Sinan-gun announced, “We will hold the 1st Sinan World Gimbap Festa at the 1004 Museum Park in Jaeun-myeon this coming October 20-23.” Ten teams in the student division and ten in the general division will take part in a contest presenting various gimbap using ingredients from Sinan during the festival. The public will be introduced to the Heuksan skate and wild seaweed gimbap, Imja vegan temple Welsh onion gimbap, Sinui mudflat octopus minor gimbap, Bigeum spinach saeujeot (salted shrimp) gimbap, and Sinan Palgeum-myeon bracken tornado gimbap for the first time. The county also prepared a corner where foreigners can get a hands-on experience in making gimbap and a talk show with gimbap masters. Visitors can taste gimbap cooked by eight professional chefs using agricultural and marine products from Sinan for affordable prices at the festival. They can taste over thirty types of gimbap with various ingredients including abalone, shrimp, Korean rockfish, octopus minor, a variety of seaweeds, and jangajji (preserved vegetables) throughout the entire festival.

Sinan was the first local government to host a gimbap festival because a number of agricultural and marine products produced in the area go into gimbap. Sinan is a major producer of the seaweed or laver (gim) used in gimbap. Last year, the region produced 59,500 tons of gim, accounting for 9% of the nation’s production. Although there are many islands in this area, Sinan also produces a lot of rice. It produces eco-friendly rice in 3,632 hectares of land and is second in rice production in Jeollanam-do, a major rice producing province.

The spinach grown in Bigeum-do Island is famously known as Bigeum spinach or seomcho. The region produces 11,820 tons of Bigeum spinach a year. Sinan also produces the second highest volume of sesame seeds in Jeollanam-do. The seeds are used to make the rich sesame oil.

Gimbap recently emerged as a key K-food drawing global attention. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that the nation recorded $6.31 billion in exports of agricultural and food products as of September 16, up 0.4% from the same period last year. In particular, exports of processed foods with rice, including gimbap, rose by 16.2%. The agricultural ministry explained, “Local demand for gimbap in the U.S. and other countries is increasing as recognition of K-food grows throughout the world and as more people prefer healthy and convenient food, so we have high expectations for growth.”

Sinan-gun plans to use the festival to turn gimbap into an international dish. Kim Jeong-hwa, director of the Sinan-gun Agricultural Technology Center, said, “We will take the festival as an opportunity to turn gimbap into a dish that can take part in international gourmet contests.”