The hansik table

What it is

The meal is built around rice. Soup or stew sits beside it. Kimchi is always present, along with soy sauce or other seasonings. Then come the side dishes, called banchan: seasoned vegetables, braised tofu, small fried pancakes, dried fish, pickles, steamed egg. Traditional settings were counted by the number of side dishes, in threes, fives, sevens and nines, with twelve reserved for the royal court. Banchan are refilled without charge in most Korean restaurants.

Where it comes from

The pattern of rice, soup and sides is very old and is shared in outline with other rice cultures of East Asia. Korea's own mark is fermentation: kimchi, soybean paste, soy sauce and chilli paste give the table its depth. The yearly making and sharing of kimchi before winter, called kimjang, is on the UNESCO list of intangible heritage. Hanjeongsik restaurants draw on the food of the royal court and of the old landowning households, and the south-western Jeolla region is known for the most generous tables.

How it works

Rice is placed to the left and soup to the right. A spoon is used for rice and soup, and chopsticks for the side dishes. Bowls stay on the table and are not lifted to the mouth. The eldest person at the table begins, and others follow. In a hanjeongsik restaurant you order by the set and by the number of people, and dishes may come in waves: porridge and cold starters, then grilled and braised dishes, then rice with stew.

How to do it

1. Wait for the eldest person to pick up their spoon.
2. Use the spoon for rice and soup, chopsticks for everything else.
3. Take banchan a piece at a time onto your rice.
4. Ask for more of any side dish you finish. Refills are normal.

Good manners

• Do not stand chopsticks or a spoon upright in rice.
• Leave rice and soup bowls on the table while eating.
• Pour drinks for others, not for yourself, and receive with two hands from an elder.

What is eaten

KimchiFermented and seasoned vegetables central to Korean mealsBanchanSmall Korean side dishes served with rice and shared at the tableJapchaeKorean sweet potato noodles stir-fried with vegetables, meat, and mushroomsBulgogiThin marinated beef grilled or pan-cooked, a classic of Korean barbecueKimchi-jjigaeKorean stew of kimchi simmered with meat, tofu and vegetables

Also part of it, and being written: Doenjang-jjigae, Namul, Jeon, Gyeran-jjim.

Sources and further reading

• Hanjeongsik on Wikipedia
• UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage: Kimjang, making and sharing kimchi
• Korean Food Promotion Institute (Hansik)