Chinatown London: A Guide to Korean Food | What to Order in Chinatown London

韩国美食指南

A Guide to Korean Food

Fire, fermentation and a table built for sharing, Korean dining in Chinatown is a meal you can take part in.

WHAT IS KOREAN FOOD?

Korean food is the cuisine of Korea and is built on rice, vegetables, grilled meats and fermented ingredients.

Kimchi, doenjang and gochujang (fermented chilli paste) give Korean dishes a tang and depth you won't find in Cantonese or Sichuan cooking, which lean on wok heat, roasting, and chilli with numbing spice. The table is different too. Cantonese meals tend to arrive dish by dish, while Korean tables fill with grills, soups, side dishes and rice at once.

HISTORY OF KOREAN FOOD

Korean cuisine grew out of a climate of long and cold winters that shaped it's technique of preserving ingredients. Salting, pickling and fermenting kept vegetables, fish and soybeans edible for longer. Rice sits at the centre of the meal with soups and side dishes built around it.

WHAT IS KOREAN BBQ

Korean BBQ is an interactive style of cooking that includes a grill in the centre, raw meats and a designated cook-it-yourself chef in charge of timings. Enjoy the cooked meats with rice, sauces and small side dishes.

How to eat the ssam wrap

A ssam is a wrap is grilled meat in a lettuce or perilla leaf, with sauce and a small extra, folded closed and eaten in one bite.

Take a lettuce or perilla leaf in your palm.
Add a piece of grilled meat.
Add a dab of ssamjang, a dipping paste of doenjang and gochujang.
Add one extra: a slice of raw garlic, a piece of kimchi or a sliver of green chilli.
Fold and eat it whole.