KCCUK holds Korean Temple Food lecture at Le Cordon Bleu London
The Korean Cultural Centre UK (Director Seunghye Sun, KCCUK), in collaboration with the Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism (Director Ven. Mandang, hereinafter Cultural Corps) and the Le Cordon Bleu London, presented a series of Korean spring temple food lectures at Le Cordon Bleu London on Tuesday, May 20th, and Wednesday, May 21st 2025.
Dr Seunghye Sun, Director of the Korean Cultural Centre UK said “I hope the flavours—like a koan leading to enlightenment—can connect hearts to hearts. In the moment British citizens smile while holding a dish of spring temple cuisine, I wish for them to feel a connection to Korean aesthetics”
The spring semester lectures were led by Venerable Yeogeo (Head Nun of Geukrak-sa Temple in Yongin), a master of temple food.
On Tuesday, May 20th, a special lecture on temple food was held for culinary industry professionals and the public. In the lecture, attended by 60 people, temple-style tofu gimbap, cabbage doenjangguk (soybean paste soup), and cucumber kkakdugi kimchi were introduced. Various spring temple dishes, utilising ingredients easily obtainable in the UK, were demonstrated. After the lecture, numerous questions followed regarding temple food ingredients and monastic life, showing a keen interest in Korean temple food and Buddhist culture.
On Wednesday, May 21st, a lecture was held as a part of Le Cordon Bleu London's Vegan culinary arts programme. This lecture featured demonstrations of four dishes: perilla seed potato ongsimi (dumplings), cabbage and cucumber mul-kimchi (water kimchi), sorghum potato pancakes, and seasoned vegetables with kelp vinegar. The lecture was designed to enhance student engagement, with students directly writing recipes after observing Venerable Yeogeo's demonstrations.
In the subsequent practical session for students, three of the four demonstrated dishes were practiced: perilla seed potato ongsimi, cabbage and cucumber mul-kimchi, and sorghum potato pancakes. Students enhanced their understanding of Korean Buddhist culture and temple food by directly cooking seasonal Korean temple dishes using locally available ingredients. Kyle, one of the students, shared his impressions, saying, "It was an honour to learn Korean temple food directly from the Venerable, which is not something we typically learn at school, and it was great to understand the differences in cooking methods." Other students also expressed their gratitude, finding it deeply meaningful to learn Korean temple food firsthand and gain detailed knowledge about the Venerable's Balwoo Gongyang (monastic meal etiquette).
KCCUK signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Cultural Corps and Le Cordon Bleu London in 2020 and has been conducting Korean temple food lectures since 2021. KCCUK plans to continue promoting various Korean foods and Korean culture in the UK.