'Spicy Stir-fried Pepper Gimbap' Triumphs Over 144 Teams to Become Gimcheon's Signature Gimbap

Gold Prize at Gimcheon Gimbap Cook King Competition
Debuting at October Festival,
Set for Release in CU Convenience Stores

After intense competition among 144 teams from across the country to represent Gimcheon’s signature gimbap, the “Spicy Stir-fried Pepper Gimbap” claimed the final victory.

On August 8, Gimcheon City held the final round of the “2026 Gimcheon Gimbap Cook King Competition” in the nutrition and cooking studio at Gimcheon Health Center, selecting the winners including the gold prize.

This year marks the third edition of the competition, which attracted 144 teams nationwide.

A panel of five expert judges evaluated the teams based on hygiene, taste and nutrition, creativity, and marketability, selecting seven teams to advance to the finals.

The 2026 Gimcheon Gimbap Cooking Competition held its final contest and selected winners including the Gold Prize [Photo by Gimcheon City]

The gold prize went to the team of Chanhee Moon and Jihye Kim with their “Spicy Stir-fried Pepper Gimbap.”

The dish received high marks for its harmony of spicy stir-fried peppers and savory flavors, using Gimcheon rice and Jirye black pork. The cash prize was 2 million won.

The silver prize was awarded to “Walnut-Stuffed Black Pork Grilled Gimbap,” while the bronze prize went to “Chupungnyeong Black Pork Cutlet Gimbap.”

The gold prize-winning gimbap will be unveiled to visitors for the first time during the “2026 Gimcheon Gimbap Festival,” which will be held from October 23 to 25 at the Jikji Culture Park and the Samyeong-Daesa Park area.

After the festival, it is scheduled to be released as a product at CU convenience stores nationwide.

Gimcheon City will also select about three finalist teams and offer them the opportunity to sell their gimbap directly at the festival site.

Park Mijeong, Director of Tourism Policy, said, “The competition concluded successfully with nationwide interest and participation,” adding, “We will present new flavors and content at the Gimbap Festival in October.”

As gimbap that triumphed among 144 teams goes beyond festival food to become a convenience store product, the nationwide branding potential of ‘Gimcheon Gimbap’ is on the rise.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.