An urn for storing pickles

Before pepper was introduced into Korea from America, kimchi was originally called "Shen Cai" (Middle Korean:? Dimchae). Probably because it was originally a sauerkraut or pickles made from local vegetables, it was named after the way vegetables were submerged in water, and later the pronunciation became today's name. Chinese cabbage, the main ingredient used to sink vegetables, was not native to the Korean Peninsula, but was introduced to the Korean Peninsula in China during the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, according to the Records of the Three Kingdoms, when the king of Shen Wen married the princess in 683, the betrothal gifts included soy sauce, soy sauce, sauces and other foods. That is to say, kimchi appeared in China under the name of Yan 3000 years ago, and spread to North Korea during the Three Kingdoms period. After the unification of Silla era and Koryo era, its production methods changed constantly. At that time, kimchi may mainly be pickled radish, kimchi and kimchi with radish as the main raw material.

Korean kimchi culture has a deep trace of Confucian culture in China. The word "Qu" appeared in China's Book of Songs, which was interpreted as sauerkraut in China's dictionary, and it was this pickled sauerkraut that was introduced to South Korea.

[Kimchi]

pickled vegetables

Kimchi has gone through several important stages. Introduced from China in the Three Kingdoms period, bracken, bamboo shoots, Adenophora adenophora, eggplant, cucumber, radish were salted with salt, rice porridge, vinegar, distiller's grains and sauce. In the Koryo era, the cultivation techniques of vegetables were improved. Fresh vegetables such as kimchi, celery and bamboo shoots were added to kimchi, and sauerkraut soup was produced after being salted with salt water and served with soup. In the Korean era, the production methods of kimchi began to be rich and the raw materials were more diverse. Because Korea is surrounded by the sea on three sides and is rich in aquatic products, various seafood such as fish, shrimp and crab are added to kimchi. By the end of the Korean era, due to a large number of cultivation, cabbage had become the main raw material more commonly used than radish, cucumber and eggplant. At this time, the introduction of pepper revolutionized the production of kimchi. Pepper is considered as an excellent condiment for making kimchi, because it can remove the fishy smell produced by fish when making kimchi, and make it colorful and appetizing, thus replacing the traditional method of pickling with salt from China.