Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (2024)

Healthy Korean Food
What makes Korean food healthy

Korean food is well-known globally for being spicy, flavourful and delicious. But did you know that Korean cuisine also offers numerous health benefits? Korean cuisine is so healthy that South Korea boasts of an obesity rate of just 3.5 percent. Now, contrast that obesity rate with the likes of the United States (34.4%), the U.K (25%), Mexico (30%) and New Zealand (25%).

Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (1)

Many may attribute such low obesity rate to genetics of Asians in comparison with Caucasians - the latter being bigger in build than the former etc. - but that's not true either. Koreans are healthier than many people largely because of their diet, proof of which is the Cambridge World History of Food's report that the average Korean meal contains 13 percent less fat than those found in the diets of Americans and Europeans.

General Health Benefits of Korean Cuisine

Aside from the fact that Korean food lends itself well to a non-obese population, it also offers many other health benefits. Said benefits to good health will not come as a surprise once the ingredients, condiments and materials used as well as the cooking tools, techniques and technologies applied are considered.

The most common ingredients used in Korean cuisine are vegetables, which we all know to be full of the macronutrients and micronutrients essential in the maintenance of good health. From the side dish to the main dish and from fresh to fermented, vegetables like cabbages, bean sprouts and spinach are generously used. Add in the generous uses of garlic, ginger and other beneficial spices and Korean cuisine is very healthy.

Meat, by contrast, is used sparingly which magnifies Korean cuisine's health benefits. Even when it is a meat dish, the Koreans prefer the lean and healthy types like lean beef, chicken breasts and fatty fishes. As a result, the risks for cardiovascular diseases are significantly lower, thanks to lower saturated fat and cholesterol content in Korean cuisine.

The cooking tools, techniques and technologies used for preparing Korean food are the healthy types. Grilling, stir-frying, stewing and fermenting are the most popular ways to cook Korean cuisine, all of which means that the foods are cooked in their own juices. In contrast, many foods in countries with high obesity rates like the United States are deep fried in vats of oil.

Here are a few of the expected health benefits when one adopts the Korean mindset to food and Korean cuisine itself:

• Lower risks for cardiovascular diseases like hypertension as well as neurological illnesses like strokes and dementia
• Lower risks for certain types of cancer because of the anti-carcinogenic properties of vegetables
• Stronger internal organs especially the liver and the kidneys
• Better digestion because of increased appetite for easily digestible food
• Stronger bones due to the presence of isoflavones in beans and mushrooms
• Healthier skin since there are lesser amounts of preservatives

Nutrition Information of Healthy Korean Foods

Each of the popular Korean foods has its own health benefits by virtue of the ingredients and cooking techniques used on it. The following are just a few of most popular:

Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (2)

• Bulgogi is a grilled dish consisting of marinated barbecue beef although it can also be made from chicken (dak) and pork (dwaeji). Since this is grilled over an open flame, it cooks on its own juices and, hence, no fatty oils are used. Caloric content is 310 per serving.

Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (3)

• Jeyuk bokkeum is fiery pork served with rice, leaves of lettuce, Chinese cabbage, perilla (Sesame leaves) and other large leafy green vegetables as well as slices of raw garlic and chili peppers. Calorie per serving is 221.

Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (4)

• Bibimbap may have slightly higher calorie content - 560 calories for a single serving - than other types of Korean food but the health benefits are still there, nonetheless, thanks to the seasoned vegetables, tofu, egg, meat or seafood in the dish.

Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (5)

• Ddukbokki is made from rice cake combined with fish cakes, garlic and onions. Very hot and spicy has many of the benefits associated with gochujang and chilli's, as well as being very low in fat. Calorie count is 378 per serving.

A discussion on the health benefits of Korean cuisine will not be complete without mention of kimchi, a traditional spicy Korean condiment served from morning till night in virtually all dishes. It is known to improve the circulatory system because of the garlic, fish paste and chilli as its main ingredients,click here for more health benefits of Kimchi.

It's not just food which makes the Korean diet so healthy, South Koreans also gain a lot of health benefits from the drinks that they consume, the teas such as green and ginseng are full of anti-oxidants and aide the bodies systems while drinks containing barley like Shik-Hye and Barley tea, help the digestive system.

Adopting a Korean diet could help improve your health, help you loose weight, prevent diseases and improve your general well being, as the Korean wave continues to gather steam and spread around the world, don't miss out of one of the worlds most interesting cultures.


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Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy (2024)

FAQs

Healthy Korean Food: What Makes Korean Food Healthy? ›

From the side dish to the main dish and from fresh to fermented, vegetables like cabbages, bean sprouts and spinach are generously used. Add in the generous uses of garlic, ginger and other beneficial spices and Korean cuisine is very healthy.

What makes Korean food so healthy? ›

Korean cuisine is characterized by plenty of vegetables, rice, and meat or fish. Meals are often served with a variety of small sides, broth-based soups, and fermented cabbage (kimchi). It's generally considered healthy and known for incorporating many health-promoting ingredients like fermented foods.

What is healthy in Korea? ›

Balanced Diet with Banchan

Koreans traditionally follow a diet rich in vegetables, grains, and lean proteins. Meals often include banchan, which are small side dishes that provide a variety of nutrients. The emphasis on diverse, colourful foods ensures a well-rounded and balanced diet.

What is South Korea Guide to healthy Eating? ›

Messages
  • Eat a variety of foods including rice & other grains, vegetables, fruits, milk & dairy products, meat, fish, eggs, and beans.
  • Do not skip breakfast.
  • Avoid binge eating or over-eating and increase physical activity.
  • Choose foods lower in salt, sugar, and fat.
  • Drink plain water and refrain from sugary drinks.

What is the advantage of Korean food? ›

Korean food has many health benefits and it is more than just a trend. The Korean diet , also known as traditional Korean cuisine, is known for its health benefits, including promoting better heart health. Korean food emphasises on fresh and fermented ingredients, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins.

Why are Korean people so healthy? ›

“More specific examples are consuming colourful foods, enhancing circulation through hot and cold temperatures, and spending time hiking in nature. “Korean culture also embraces the principles of natural beauty and healing, which I think translates to their generally healthy lifestyle approach.”

Why is Korean food the best? ›

Popular Korean foods all have things in common: they are flavoursome and comforting. Food is designed to be good for the soul as well as the body. Although it is pleasurable to eat Korean food anywhere anyhow, there is something very special in eating Korean food how it was meant to be: shared with friends and family.

Is Korea a healthy country? ›

Korea has reached favorable health indicators such as a dramatic increase in life expectancy and significant decreases in mortality rates overall. This is due to a national focus on health efforts backed by a rapidly growing economy.

What do Koreans eat everyday? ›

The specific go-to dishes that each Korean household consumes varies widely. But the setup is the same! A typical Hansik - Korean meal - includes: (1) rice, (2) soup/stew (3) a main dish and (4) few banchans (side dishes).

What country has the healthiest food? ›

The Countries with the Healthiest Diets in the World
  • Japan. Japan is generally thought of as having one of the healthiest diets in the world. ...
  • Iceland. Iceland is another country that has a healthy diet thanks to its abundance of fresh fish. ...
  • Senegal. ...
  • Thailand.
Oct 24, 2023

How many eggs do Koreans eat a day? ›

Mean per capita egg consumption per day South Korea 2012-2021. An average South Korean person consumed around 33 grams of eggs per day in 2021. That year, the average daily per capita food consumption in South Korea amounted to about 1.46 kilograms.

What is the healthy Eating Index in Korea? ›

The KHEI score was defined to range from the minimum of 0 point to the maximum of 100 points. Among Korean adults, the total KHEI score was 63.2 out of 100. Gender and age differences were found in the average of total KHEI scores. Women showed higher score than men (61.7 in men and 64.7 in women, respectively).

What is the best thing to eat in Korea? ›

10 Great Korean Dishes
  • Red rice cakes (tteokbokki) Good for: Food. ...
  • Bulgogi. Good for: Food. ...
  • Korean stew (jjigae) Good for: Food. ...
  • Jajangmyeon. Good for: Food. ...
  • Samgyeopsal. Good for: Food. ...
  • Korean fried chicken. Good for: Food. ...
  • Spicy cold noodle (bibim nengmyun) Good for: Food. ...
  • Ginseng chicken soup (samgyetang) Good for: Food.

What makes Korean food healthy? ›

The traditional Korean diet comprises plenty of fresh vegetables, fermented foods such as kimchi, and soups, seafood, rice and meat — all making up a healthy diet. Healthy Korean dishes include the famous bibimbap, a hearty rice bowl topped with loads of vegetables and meat.

What makes Korean food special? ›

Farmers worked hard to intensively cultivate the land. As a result, Korean food tends to be hearty, much more so than in neighboring Japan or China. A traditional Korean breakfast, for instance is not a bowl of leftover rice gruel, as in China, but a rich soup made of either beef ribs or pork intestines (tripe).

Do Korean eat rice everyday? ›

Yes, typically, if we don't go out for meal or eat some special kinds of foods. We eat some kinds of Banchan (side dish) with rice, and often eat soup too. Unlike Japan, Koreans use spoons with chopsticks and don't lift the soup bowl to drink it.

Is Korean food healthier than Japanese food? ›

A: Both Japanese and Korean diets are healthy in their own right. Japanese cuisine encompasses fresh seafood and vegetables, while Korean dishes often include fermented foods rich in probiotics. However, personal health depends on individual dietary choices and overall balance.

Is Korean food anti-inflammatory? ›

Because the traditional Korean diet (K-diet) is high in vegetables and fibers, moderate to high in legumes and fishes, and low in red meat and calories [9], previous Korean nationwide studies have demonstrated the anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory capability of K-diet with high phytochemical contents [10,11].

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