KFPI to hold 3 seminars on hansik this year

As "hansik," or Korean food, is winning over palates around the world, the Korea Food Promotion Institute and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs are jointly holding three academic seminars this year to explore the diverse flavors and charms of hansik.

The first seminar, taking place May 23 at the Hansik Space Eeum in Jongno-gu, central Seoul, will shed light on how Korean food has spread and changed as Korean people migrated.

The seminar will explore how Korean immigrants have adapted their food habits to their new homes, the Korean diaspora's dietary patterns in Uzbekistan and how Korean immigrants' food habits look today. The session will also discuss how Korean restaurants in France and the US have developed throughout the years.

More information about registering for the event will be announced later this month through the KFPI's official Instagram account.

The second seminar will focus on traditional Korean ways of making fermented soybean-based pastes and sauces, known as "jang," which was listed in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December of last year. The session will explore how to protect and pass down the practices of jang-making after the UNESCO recognition.

Jang -- a staple of South Korean cuisine -- refers to a family of fermented soybean-based sauces, including soybean paste, soy sauce and red chile paste.

Aiming to introduce regional dishes and stories of how these food traditions are being handed down from generation to generation, the third seminar will delve into the regional cuisine of North Chungcheong Province.

While the dates for the second and third seminars have yet to be announced, they will take place in September and December, respectively.