韩国庆祝泡菜节

AS IT IS 2015-11-24 Korea Celebrates Kimchi-Making Tradition 韩国庆祝泡菜节

Some people will start to sweat just hearing the word "kimchi."

Kimchi is made from a vegetable called cabbage. And it is an important part of Korean culture.

So important that the city of Seoul held a festival this month celebrating the traditional Korean dish.

The kimchi festival is part of city officials' efforts to keep older traditions alive in country. These traditions are no longer very popular.

Technology and the modern world make the complex process of traditional kimchi-making unnecessary. The name of this process is kimjang.

Thousands of people attended the event, called the Kimjang Festival. Organizers made the open public area near Seoul's main city government building into kimchi production lines.

Volunteers mixed almost 50 tons of cabbage with kimchi sauce. The sauce combines hot peppers and specially¹ prepared seafood². Combining the cabbage and sauce creates the spicy³ sour food.

Seoul Mayor⁴ Park Won-soon joined in the event. Also, Korea traditional dancers and musicians gave the event more of a cultural feeling.

Before modern methods of production and refrigeration, Korean families and communities would come together to make kimchi. Because kimchi is fermented⁵ with salt, it is preserved.

Kimchi-making happened after the fall harvest but before the first snow. Traditionally, it was stored in jars buried in the dirt to maintain⁶ temperature.

"It is sad that this culture is [disappearing]."said festival organizer Sohn Hyung-chae.

Koreans still eat kimchi nearly every day. Kimchi can be bought in markets year-round. Also, modern life is fast and busy. Few people have time to make large amounts of kimchi the way they did before.

Kimjang is an important part of Korean Culture, though.

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, is a special organization that works⁷ to protect and share cultures around the world. UNESCO listed kimjang as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage⁸ of Humanity⁹. 

This is UNESCO's international list of the most important traditions of human culture.

Many Koreans also see kimchi as a necessary part of their diet.

"We can eat a large amount of food during winter, as we can make [many different] kinds of dishes with kimchi," said festival volunteer Chun Seong-hee.

Foreigners joined in the activities.  But, some do not enjoy the Korean national food. Natalia Sukhora is a Russian citizen living in Seoul.

"It's a bit spicy for me because I'm from Russia," she said.

The festival ran for three days. There were demonstrations¹⁰ of different kinds of kimchi. There were also classes to learn how to make special kimchi dishes. On the last day organizers made the open public area into a cabbage garden. The garden had over 5,000 plants and games for children.

Organizations that help poor people will receive much of the kimchi made at the festival. Festival organizers say they will donate most of the 50 to these organizations.

North Korea is a much poorer nation than South Korea. North Korea will not receive any of the kimchi made at the festival in Seoul. But, organizers hope to create a kimjang festival next year that includes both countries.

This will let the organizers share the traditional food with Koreans in both countries.

Words in This Story

cabbage – n. a leafy vegetable that has several forms

sauce – n. a thick liquid that is eaten with or on food to add taste to it

pepper(s) – n. a hollow¹¹ vegetable that is usually red, green, or yellow and that is eaten raw or cooked

seafood – n. fish and shellfish that live in the ocean and are used for food

spicy – adj. tasting of strong spices that cause a burning feeling in your mouth

sour – adj. having an acid¹² taste

refrigeration – n. – the ability to keep something such as food cold to keep it fresh

fermented – adj.  gone through a chemical change that results in the production of alcohol¹³

preserved – adj. protected from losing freshness

dish(es) – n. food that is prepared in a special way

1 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

2 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

3 spicy   

adj.加香料的；辛辣的，有风味的

参考例句：

• The soup tasted mildly spicy.汤尝起来略有点辣。
• Very spicy food doesn't suit her stomach.太辣的东西她吃了胃不舒服。

4 mayor   

n.市长

参考例句：

• The new mayor said he would clean the city up.新市长说，他要整顿本市。
• The mayor hurried into his office,brushing off the reporters.市长赶快走进办公室，拒不接见记者。

5 fermented   

v.（使）发酵( ferment的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）激动；骚动；骚扰

参考例句：

• When wine is fermented, it gives off gas. 酒发酵时发出气泡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His speeches fermented trouble among the workers. 他的演讲在工人中引起骚动。 来自辞典例句

6 maintain   

vt.支撑；赡养，抚养；维持，保有

参考例句：

• He has to maintain a large family on a small salary.他不得不依靠很少的工资养活一家人。
• We must do our best to maintain sales at their usual rate.我们要尽力使销售额保持在平日的水平上。

7 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

8 heritage   

n.传统，遗产，继承物

参考例句：

• The ancient buildings are part of the national heritage.这些古建筑是民族遗产的一部分。
• We Chinese have a great cultural heritage.我们中国人有伟大的文化遗产。

9 humanity   

n.人类，[总称]人(性)，人道[pl.]人文学科

参考例句：

• Such an act is a disgrace to humanity.这种行为是人类的耻辱。
• We should treat animals with humanity.我们应该以仁慈之心对待动物。

10 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

11 hollow   

adj.空的，中空的，空心的；空洞的，无价值的

参考例句：

• The boys scraped out a hollow place for planting trees.那些孩子挖了个坑准备栽树。
• Bamboo is a sort of hollow plant.竹子是一种中空的植物。

12 acid   

n.酸；酸性物质；adj.酸的，酸性的

参考例句：

• Handle with care,or the acid may get out.小心轻放，否则酸会溢出来。
• The acid has been eating away the sides of the container.酸腐蚀着容器的四壁。

13 alcohol   

n.酒精，乙醇；含酒精的饮料

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors.法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。
• The alcohol is industrial.这些酒精是供工业用的。