With Korean food becoming increasingly popular around the world, CJ Newsroom is spotlighting gimbap — the world’s newest K-food favorite
Over the past few years, Korean delicacies that were once considered relatively unknown outside of Korea have found themselves becoming an obsession in the West, with mandu, tteokbokki and Korean-style corn dogs being just a few of these favorites. Of all these Korean classics, perhaps none is as elegantly simple, yet nutrient-dense as “gimbap.”
Translated as dried seaweed (“gim”) and cooked rice (“bap”), gimbap, or more widely known as kimbap, is a popular Korean lunchbox staple often split between groups of friends on picnics. The nutritionally balanced dish – typically involving a combination of ingredients including julienned carrots, sautéed spinach, sliced omelet, seafood sticks, marinated beef (or “bulgogi”), tuna or spiced fish cake with an outer layer of cooked rice all rolled up in dried seaweed – is also a perfect grab-and-go food for busy days.
Gimbap Flies Off Shelves Around the World
Now, gimbap is taking off outside of Korea. In the U.S. in particular, frozen gimbap products have been flying off the shelves and are proving a viral fixture on social media. Earlier this year, U.S. viewers were introduced to gimbap through CJ ENM’s Korean street food reality show “Jinny’s Kitchen” – available on Amazon Prime – and now, more are learning about it through CJ ENM’s “Unexpected Business in California.”
Starring actors Cha Tae-hyun and Zo In-sung, the reality show follows their efforts running a real Korean food store in California, with the actors learning how to prepare fresh gimbap early in the morning for maximum freshness and to be ready for the queues of customers.
Aside from American consumers, global foodies are also becoming gimbap fans. In March of this year, global food manufacturing leader CJ CheilJedang released its bibigo gimbap in Japan in three flavors – vegetable, bulgogi and kimchi cheese – for the first time, followed by tuna mayo flavor released in September. An unprecedented hit in the local market, bibigo quickly achieved first-month rollout sales of 200,000 units and enjoyed an appearance on Nippon TV’s morning news show “ZIP!” Following the success of the four gimbap flavors in Japan, CJ CheilJedang plans to bring them to other countries too, including the U.S., and new strategic markets such as Europe and Australia.
Preparing Your Own Gimbap is Quick, Simple and Delicious
Gimbap’s many varieties are easy to identify. A colorful slice down the middle reveals how all the ingredients have been rolled together, with carrots, spinach, cucumber and radish resting alongside sliced omelet, bulgogi mince, strips of fish cake, sautéed SPAM and more. While gimbap is the perfect store-bought snack, it is also an easy and enjoyable meal to prepare at home while experimenting with different flavors and ingredient combinations.
While gimbap can take various forms, from beef and tuna to veggie-based options, the general steps to follow are overall straightforward. Simply prepare rice, the ingredients of your choice and large seaweed sheets and roll them up all together using a sushi rolling mat. Once you’ve compiled the basic ingredients, the rest is up to you. As gimbap is a highly-customizable food, it allows for seamless substitutions, with some gimbap lovers preferring to go rice-less and add more sliced omelet for a simple yet delicious keto meal.
bibigo Sauces and Marinades: A Spicy Perfection
In Korea, gimbap is often enjoyed with various sauces, too. Some may dip it in their tteokbokki sauce while eating at a food truck while others may enjoy it with a small dish of soy sauce. Some gimbap fans around the world also like to dunk their gimbap in a variety of dips such as mayonnaise, sriracha and chipotle hot sauce to add an extra kick of flavor, spice or texture.
bibigo’s lineup of sauces and marinades is the perfect complement for homemade gimbap of all sorts, including bibigo Hot & Sweet Go-chu-jang Sauce, bibigo Original Korean BBQ Marinade and Sauce and bibigo Classic Gotchu Korean Hot Sauce.
Check out the link to see a great first-time gimbap recipe from bibigo – “Kimchi Tuna Kimbap with Spring Veggies” – and explore bibigo’s official sauce range for some excellent dipping options.
