When Herb Meets Kimchi
By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter
POCHEON ― The ``slow food'' movement is a growing trend in resistance to ``fast food.'' It seeks to consume healthy foods from plants, seeds and animals and other farming products cultivated in an eco-friendly fashion.
Among the slow foods, kimchi is undoubtedly one of the most nutritious dishes in the world. The US magazine Health once named kimchi on its list of top five ``World's Healthiest Foods'' for being rich in vitamins, aiding digestion, and even possibly retarding cancer growth.
Now, there is a place that's attempting to make this healthy kimchi into a healthier one. Doridol village, located in Dopyeong 3-ri in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, is getting attention from urbanites for its ``special'' kimchi, which is made from various kinds of herbs that grow in the village.
In 2004, the village was named as a slow food village specializing in medicinal herbs. The village is home to various healthy herbs and greens such as acantho panax, injin mugwort, boxthorn, small red beans, angelica gigas, epimedium koreanum, and milk vetch roots.
Among these, acantho panax, commonly known as Siberian ginseng, is one of the representative herbs in the region. In the ancient book of medicine, this was known as Sinseon's (an immortal of Taoism, a supernatural being) medicine for its outstanding efficacy.
Research shows that Siberian ginseng boasts stamina greater than regular ginseng and is particularly effective for assisting in spinal or bone fractures.
Milk vetch roots are also good for listlessness, loss of appetite, edema and in easing over-perspiration usually caused by weakened physical conditions. The roots are boiled with jujubes and the resultant juice should be taken cold.
As it is the season to make kimchi, villagers are immersed in making herbal kimchi.
Like other kimchi made of select vegetables with varied seasonings, herbal kimchi follows the same recipe but contains nutritious herbs.
Herbal kimchi is made with 15 different herbs along with a special fermentation process.
``Our village is located on the border between Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces, and remains a pristine region. So a variety of herbs have been cultivated but recently many imported herbal materials from China are compromising our products with cheaper prices,'' Song Chun-sik, a villager, said.
``To cope with the crisis with a decreasing number of herb growers, our villagers created herbal kimchi to develop as a regional brand,'' he said.
The herbal kimchi is known for its unique savory taste. To make it, they first boil 15 herbs including mulberry tree roots, elm tree bark and Siberian ginseng, in water for 12 hours. It has the same basic ingredients ― Korean cabbage and radish ― but also adds ``deodeok'' or codonopsis lanceolata.
Additional ingredients include spicy vegetables such as mustard leaf, garlic, green onion and ginger.
Then, after cooling the boiled herbal water, they mix in powdered red pepper and glutinous rice paste.
Villagers said that they do not use any pickled fish liquid for their kimchi, as they use the herbal sauce to get its unique flavor.
But they didn't reveal the secret of their kimchi-making recipe. Herbal kimchi is expected to be the village's cash cow, as it will be launched as a brand sometime next year.
Despite the quantity of herbs it uses, the herbal kimchi does not taste bitter; instead, its flavor is piquant and well matured.
``Many tourists who have tasted this kimchi do not forget the unique flavor. Not only its savory taste but also its healthy effects are luring tourists to eat this kimchi,'' Kim Gi-sun, a leader of the village, said.
Their kimchi is made from products that are solely grown in the region, he added.
Twenty-five of 360 villagers make a living by selling the herbs and greens, according to the village head.
The village has many highlands abundant with medicinal herbs ― these include Gakheul, Gwangduk, and Myeongsung mountains, which reach over 1,000 meters above sea level.
The village is also located in the vicinity of mountainous areas of Cheorwon and at the tip of Pocheon.
With little sun and a wide range of temperatures, the village has the best conditions for growing herbs. They have twice the efficacy compared to other herbs and wild greens on the market, and will remain fresh for even a week from the day you picked them, the villagers said.
It's no wonder the villagers, who live longer and show a healthier skin, routinely consume the herbs, Kim said.
``There has been no one who has suffered from any kind of cancer in the village's history probably because the villagers eat many herbs,'' Kim said.
He explained that the word ``Doridol'' means ``returning to the village'' where you would want to retire.
The village used to have a temple called ``Yaksa.'' The story is that a Buddha called ``Yaksa Yeorae'' cured many patients, and the place naturally became somewhere sick people went to rest and recuperate.
The legacy of Yaksa temple is carried on by villagers who mostly live on and cure themselves with the herbs and wild greens from the hills.
``Some of our residents are former urbanites who have relocated to our village to recuperate in our village's fresh and clean environment,'' Kim said.
He said that the village is open to outsiders. They can participate in the ``slow food'' experience such as digging up herbs in the nearby mountains and are allowed to keep them.
Visitors are free to collect herbs in the mountains at any time and can enjoy the clean water and fresh air in the Yaksa Valley.
The village also offers activities by season. In spring, people can gather medicinal herbs; in summer, trout fishing, hill mowing and night fishing; in autumn, gathering wild roots and making Korean medicinal starch syrup; and in winter, folk medicine and Korean medicinal tea.
Also traditional Korean medicinal dishes, medicinal herb courses, and brewing Korean wine can be enjoyed all year-round.
To get there, drive along National Highway No. 47 and go through Guri, Gwangneungnae, Naechon Seopa, Ildong, Idong and turn left at the Dopyeong intersection.
For more information, call (031) 536-2478.