Things That You Will Only Find In A Korean Household

Can you think of any items that everyone has as a Korean? Whether they are living with a big family or living alone in a studio, there are some essential items that Koreans must have at home.

Let's take a look at the list!

Ramen & Nickel-Silver Pots 

Whether Koreans are living with their family or alone, I can 100% assure that they have stocked different types of instant ramen and a nickel-silver pot to cook with. 

Instant ramen is an emergency food for Koreans. When you haven't done grocery shopping, or if you don't have much time to cook, or just don't feel like eating anything, Koreans look for their instant noodle as always. 

Also, instant ramen must be cooked in this nickel-silver pot: this is an unwritten rule. I also used a nickel-silver pot to cook my instant ramen when I was living alone. However, please note that if you are cooking with the pot for more than 30 minutes, the aluminum can melt into your food!   (Nickel-silver pots are only for quick foods like instant noodle)

Sesame Oil, Red Pepper Paste, Ssamjang 

Not only Korean families have these essentials in their refrigerator, but also even millennials in Korea who are living alone have these as well! Sesame oil has the unique nutty and savoury taste that goes very well with any Korean food and ingredients. Koreans use this to add the richer taste in their stews, veggies, bibimbap and so much more. 

Red pepper paste is one of the ingredients that are used often in any Korean dish! Also, this is the essential sauce that goes into bibimbap. Ssamjang is a thick sauce that is a mix of fermented soy paste and red pepper paste. Koreans usually eat ssamjang with ssam (when you wrap grilled meat with rice in leafy greens), pork belly, or any other barbecue meats. Eating pork belly with ssam is the rule among the Koreans. If you are not a big fan of meat, steamed cabbage/leaf with ssamjang is always delicious too, just like the picture below. 

Dried Seaweed 

Dried seaweed is a popular Korean product among international visitors! Even you can spot dried seaweed from your local Costco stores. Most of the Korean dried seaweed snack/sides are salted first, and they fry them in oil. There are also ones that are not salted, which are mostly for making gimbap. In 2017, the dried seaweed industry was valued at ₩53.8 billion (USD 53.8 million)

Foreign visitors love dried seaweed, but Koreans even go crazy with it! Dried seaweeds are quick and easy to eat with plain rice with kimchi. If you are Korean, you probably have some dried seaweed stacked somewhere on the shelves. Along with the instant noodle, dried seaweed is another crucial emergency supply food for Koreans. 

Instant Rice (Haetban, Ottugi) 

Instant rice is essential for every Koreans! Pre-cooked rice is inside the container so that consumers can easily microwave or cook with boiling water; prepping rice hasn't been this easy! It only takes 5-10 minutes to prep your rice. This is a must-have item for young Koreans who are living alone especially. 

@ Ottugi

Housewives also stock instant rice frequently for any emergencies; for instance, you can get lazy, or not enough rice ready for a meal. Instant rice is also essential for Koreans travelling abroad. When you bored with the local food at the travel destination, or just crave some Korean food, instant rice with meaty red pepper paste will save your life. 

Kimchi Refrigerator 

@ Homeplus

Kimchi refrigerators are for keeping your kimchi fresh and yummy for a longer time. You will be able to find this from Korea only! You might be wondering, "Does every Korean eat that much of kimchi? Do all Koreans have a kimchi fridge at home?"

Usually, kimchi fridges are more for families rather than people living alone, but to answer the question, the answer is yes. Koreans love eating kimchi and buying kimchi fridge is a norm.

@ LG Electronics

Since Kimchi is a fermented food, it requires appropriate storage with the right temperature to keep the food fresh for a longer time. These days, the fridge is smart enough to divide the sections of the fridge and set up different temperatures for different types of ingredients that you put in the fridge. @LG Electronics 

Did you find any new items from the blog post? As a Korean, I can relate to this post. What are your thoughts?

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