National Heritage Week: Exploring Korea’s Heritage through Korean Cuisine Culture

Kicking Off Nationwide in October

Across the country, venues celebrating the fusion of local foods with national heritage sites will be held, offering audiences a cultural experience unique to each region.

'National Heritage Week' Poster/National Heritage Administration.

The National Heritage Administration announced on September 9 that, together with the Korean Cultural Heritage Utilization Association, it will operate "National Heritage Week" throughout October at sixteen municipalities across five national regions. The initiative will feature 380 local heritage experience programs as well as a mobile stamp tour, providing a diverse range of interactive activities.

This year’s central theme is “Korean Cuisine Culture.” Each region will present special programs that combine representative local foods with historical sites and narratives. In the Seoul and Gangwon region, “Awakening the Flavors of Hanyang with the Night Breeze of Yanghwanaru” will take place at the Seoul Yanghwanaru and Jamdubong archaeological sites, where participants can taste dishes featuring Mapo salted shrimp, Samhaeju rice wine, and glutinous rice cakes while enjoying Gayageum byeongchang performances. In the Gyeonggi and Incheon region, “A Delicious National Heritage Journey: Incheon’s Table” will offer tours of modern architectural heritage, such as the Former First Bank of Japan Incheon Branch, alongside hands-on experiences making Jjajangmyeon and sweet crispy chicken (Dakgangjeong).

In the southern Chungcheong region and beyond, participants will have opportunities to experience traditional food culture preserved in old cookbooks, clan houses, and ancient water facilities. In the Chungcheong region, “Bringing the Flavors of Cheongju from 100 Years Ago to Our Table” will highlight traditional liquors and temple cuisine inspired by the century-old cookbook “Banchan Deungsok.” In the Jeolla region, “The Power of Rice: National Heritage” will take place at the Byeokgolje in Gimje, where participants will cook rice using horizon-grown rice in a traditional cauldron and prepare a table with side dishes and hwachae (fruit punch).

In the Gyeongsang region, visitors can embark on a nighttime tour of the Choi Clan House in Gyeongju, where they will make “Myeongtae Bopfuraegi,” a traditional heirloom dish. The program “Choi Clan of Gyeongju: Honored Guests Have Arrived” will also allow guests to enjoy performances featuring the Gayageum and Daegeum, paired with tea snacks and Nuruk Sikhye, a traditional rice beverage, in the Sarangchae hall.

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