'ACC Asia Food and Culture Travel' to run 13 sessions total
The Asia Culture Center (ACC), led by director Kim Sang-uk, will run its second-half "ACC Asia Food and Culture Travel" program from July through November at Cultural Education Room 1, offering participants hands-on experiences of Asia's diverse food cultures.
"ACC Asia Food and Culture Travel" is the center's flagship cultural arts education program, giving citizens a deeper understanding of Asian cultures through the lens of food.
This year's second-half lineup spans 13 sessions — seven under the "Asia Jang Road" series and six under "Asia Fruit Road." The newly introduced "Asia Jang Road" examines the history and characteristics of major fermented pastes from Northeast Asia, including gochujang, doubanjiang, soy sauce and miso doenjang.
"Asia Fruit Road" builds on last year's exploration of how Southeast Asian fruits spread across the region, turning this year to the history of fruits from Southwest Asia — among them pomegranates, grapes and oranges. The series aims to help participants develop a broad understanding of the historical and cultural exchanges embedded in Asian food traditions.
The "Asia Jang Road" lectures open July 7, 14 and 28, with two sessions each day for a total of six classes. Lee Jeong-min will lead the series. She is a certified instructor in Joseon royal court cuisine — designated National Intangible Heritage No. 38 — and a professor in the hotel culinary and patisserie department at Joseon University of Science and Technology. Lee also served as a culinary consultant on the recently aired tvN drama series "Bon Appétit, Your Majesty" and will guide participants through the origins and history of fermented paste dishes across Korea, China and Japan.
"Asia Fruit Road" follows in October and November, led by food culture writer Yun Deok-no, author of "A World History Through Fruit." Drawing on his extensive archive of global food culture research, Yun plans to trace the history and cultural significance hidden within the spread of Southwest Asian fruits across the continent.
The program is linked to Joseon University of Science and Technology's RISE project, a cultural tourism workforce development initiative, and will include special food-tasting experiences tied to each lecture topic.
"We have again divided the second-half Asia Food and Culture Travel sessions into lunch and evening classes so that more citizens can take part," ACC director Kim Sang-uk said. "The ACC will continue to develop and run high-quality programs that help citizens deeply understand and appreciate the diversity and unique appeal of Asian cultures."
sij@heraldcorp.com
