South Korea Develops ‘Five-Point Kimchi Scale’

Travel Blog  •  Michael Yessis  •  06.21.07 | 11:41 AM ET

imageDo you like your kimchi mild, slightly hot, moderately hot, very hot or extremely hot? The South Korean Ministry of Agriculture recently announced it has developed a five-point kimchi scale—Foreign Policy’s Blake Hounshell likens the “kimchi alert system” to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s threat advisory system—to help Westerners figure out what type of kimchi best suits their palates. The system will also measure fermentation levels. It’s all part of an ongoing effort to promote kimchi as a global food.

South Korea has worked with French culinary institute Le Cordon Blue to develop Westerner-friendly recipes and promote studies that tout the food’s anti-carcinogenic properties. But in the global food race, kimchi still trails behind a food from neighboring Japan: sushi. If that country’s newly empowered Sushi Police are too strict, however, it just might leave kimchi the opening it needs.

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Photo by Nagyman via Flickr, (Creative Commons).

Tags: Food, Asia, Japan, South Korea, News and Briefs


1 Comment for South Korea Develops ‘Five-Point Kimchi Scale’

sung kim 08.30.07 | 1:57 PM ET

I absolutely love kimchi and the variety and flexibility of the dish!

Variety comes in the form of the different vegetables that can be used to host the seasonings including garlic and red pepper. 

Flexibility abounds because it can be incorporated in different soups, stews, pancakes, and wraps.

Overall, it captures your mind where the flavor lingers in the memory of your taste buds from previous meals!!!!!!

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