One of the most mouth-watering Korean dishes. Bibimbap is a hearty and tasty traditional dish that is suitable for all ages. The perfect combination of vegetables and rice delivers the taste of goodness in life.
What is Bibimbap
Bibimbap is basically a bowl of warm rice that is flavored with vegetables, paste and sauces on top. The rich flavour of the paste and sauces make the warm rice even more tasty. The healthy and tasty dish is full with nutrients and flavorful taste. For its powerful taste and nutrients, this hearty dish is enjoyed in every meal. In every breakfast, lunch and dinner, bibimbap is always the main choice for the people to kickstart the day.
History of the Bibimbap
Bibimbap is a traditional Korean dish. It was first recorded as hondon-ban during the Joseon Era in a history book called “Historical Notes of Gijae” by a Joseon scholar, Bak Dong-ryang. Another Joseon scholar called Gwon Sang-il later wrote about goldong-ban in the Diary of Chongdae.
In the 1700s, a variety of bibimbap has been recorded in Collected Works of Oju by Yi Gyu-Gyeong. He mentioned among the variety of the famous bibimbap are vegetable bibimbap, hoe bibimbap, prawn bibimbap, marinated crab bibimbap, fresh cucumber bibimbap, gochujang bibimbap and some more.
The locals have been enjoying various bibimbap since the 1500s. Bibimbap were said to be consumed during special occasions, namely the food offerings for jesa. The offerings consist of rice and side dishes that were made for sansinje and dongsinje where they were required to eat with the god.
However, lacking cooking pots, the locals started to mix all of the food offerings in one big bowl which later created the dish called bibimbap. ‘Bibim’ in bibimbap means mixing various ingredients while ‘bap’ means rice.
Bibimbap has been famous since then as you only need rice and any side dished to mix altogether to create a perfect and healthy dish. Common people of Korea would eat bibimbap on New Year’s Eve to finish leftover food before starting a new year. Eating bibimbap during that time has become a tradition.
In another story, farmers were said to enjoy bibimbap during the farming season as it is the easiest way to serve a lot of people. The rice was mixed with all kind of side dishes especially vegetables like kimchi and cucumber, and flavoured with soy bean sauce and gochujang paste.
Types of Bibimbap
There are a lot of bibimbap to date. People enjoy eating rice with all sorts of side dishes. Among the famous bibimbap are namul bibimbap which is a mixture of rice, vegetables, egg and gochujang.
Next is chicken bibimbap where the rice is mixed with vegetables, egg, marinated chicken bulgogi and gochujang. Next is chamchi bibimbap which is a warm bowl of rice is mixed with egg, tuna and gochujang. And, the most famous bibimbap is the kimchi bibimbap which is rice with vegetables, egg, gochujang and the famous kimchi.
Where to Find Bibimbap in Malaysia
Bibimbap can be found in the Out of Seoul restaurant. This restaurant serves a variety of delicious bibimbap. This dish can also be ordered from I love Topokki restaurant. Both of these restaurants serve the best bibimbap in town. This go-to dish can be enjoyed with your loved ones. Find more Korean food on foodpanda!
