Currently in Europe, a new style of cooking is being introduced by star chef Sang-hoon, a Korean-Belgian who is widely recognized as a leading chef. This is why I was very eager to meet, so when I was working with Foundation Alicia, a Spanish cooking research center, I contacted him and let him know that I really wanted to stage in his kitchen, even if only for a few days, and this is how I had the good fortune to come to his restaurant.

Before I saw him at work in his kitchen and tried his cooking, I had imagined him to be a technical chef who was working with molecular cooking and other techniques, but tasting his food completely changed my mind.

His farm was especially impressive. Most of the ingredients used in Sang-hoon’s restaurant are from his farms. The herbs, flowers, and vegetables he uses are grown in his own garden and delivered fresh to the kitchen. After witnessing him frequently check each ingredient one-by-one and watching him cook, I discovered that his palette was highly tuned to detect subtleties of flavour, most likely because of his prior work as a sommelier.

I could sense his philosophy, which places importance on perfecting the inherent flavour of the dish and achieving harmony. Using cutting-edge techniques, he was seeking a balance between the essential ingredients.

He was one of the top sommeliers in Belgium by the age of 30 when he opened L’Air du Temps, which earned a one-star rating from Michelin after three years and was later awarded two stars. Not satisfied with this, he plans to launch a new restaurant in natural surroundings, a little far away from the present one. He has received offers to open restaurants in Paris and Brussels, and he has several projects underway in conjunction with scientists to try out new ideas.

In our short conversation, he expressed the following thoughts about the globalization of Korean food.

Q. As far as I know, in August 2009, you were invited to Korea by the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism. How did you like the Korean restaurants you went to?

A: They were quite impressive. I’d been to a Korean restaurant back in Belgium, but it was below average. The food I had in Korea, though, was much better, and while eating it, I could feel the Korean blood in my veins. It really suited me. I tried out a restaurant that was recommended to me and also happened to get into the kitchen. While I was watching the Koreans around me, I sort of “found myself”, which really impressed me. Before going to Korea, I thought that the cuisine of northern Europe was the best, particularly the restaurant Noma, but my opinion has changed. The combination of flavours and the acidity of the kimchi were very impressive.

Q: You gave a presentation about kimchi at the “Flemish Primitives” event (http://www.theflemishprimitives.com/).  World-famous chefs, like Adriana Renee of Noma and Ferran of El Bulli, are now starting to take an interest in kimchi.  Why do you think world-class chefs, including yourself, are so interested in kimchi?

A: The trend at the restaurant Noma, which is currently regarded as the best restaurant, is “cook it raw”. In other words, you find the best local ingredients from the area and bring out their own unique flavours. What do you think will be the next big trend? I guess it will be fermentation. The textures and flavours of the vegetables and the unique acidity are quite interesting. Among Korean foods, fermented food is definitely going to be a great resource for top chefs who are seeking a new trend. I’ve been thinking about how to preserve the fresh ingredients from my garden for a long time. I’ve tried various methods, and I think kimchi can definitely be a good model to help me find the right way.

Q: What is your opinion about the globalization of Korean food?

A: The food I tried in the restaurants I visited in Korea was already globalized in my opinion. When I was invited by the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism, they showed me some piles of papers with figures related to the globalization of Korean food. (Of course, I could not read them because they were in Korean.) But, I was quite surprised. With continued aggressive efforts to globalize Korean food, it’ll be successful. I want to use Korean furniture and ingredients in the Korean restaurant I’m going to open. Unfortunately, though, it isn’t very easy to find Korean interior accessories in Belgium.

Interviewed and written by Chef Choi Jung Yoon