Bi-Bomb-Bap - The Best of Korea's National Dish

Quick Facts:
Name: 한국집 (Hanguk Jib)
Location: Joenju, Jeolla buk-do
How to Find: Go to Hotel Davin, it is on the side street behind the hotel.
Map Location

A beautiful bibimbap. Before mixing.

This is my long and ridiculous history with what is Korea's national dish: Bi-Bim-Bap. I'll tell you how I found it, where it came form, how it's made and perhaps most importantly, where to find the best one. So here we go!

Let's go back 10 years. If somebody said they were going to Korea, they'd be asked something like"Isn't that dangerous?" or "Isn't that where the crazy guy is?" or "Isn't there a war there?" or
"Do you know that they just eat dogs?" I know, I was asked such questions when I announced my intention to visit the Korean peninsular in September 2009. These questions were strange to me. Seoul had very successfully hosted and even saved the Olympic games in 1988. Korea had co-hosted the 2002 football/soccer world cup with Japan and had even reaches the semi-finals of that tournament. So why on earth would I visit Korea?

An Accidental Trip

I'm not going to say that I knew an awful lot about Korea before booking my first flight. I'm not even going to pretend that it was a well planned cultural experience. It wasn't the plan at all. My plan was to go to Atlanta. Yes! Atlanta, Georgia! The city in the USA! Not only is that nowhere near Korea, it's not even Asia. It is in fact completely the opposite direction from the UK. 

The story starts with some wine in a disused old folks home in Coventry, the home of Tony Carter. Somebody, maybe even myself, came up with the idea of going to watch some American Egg chasing (or American Football if you insist). After some more wine, a computer was turned on and a good deal was found to a city with an NFL franchise. Atlanta had become the definite destination of our next trip. 2 more friends were informed and they jumped at the idea. There was going to be a  Barge Boyz (Michael, Tony Carter, Johnny Burga and myself) trip to the US of A! So each of us went to our various employers (except for the then vagrant Tony Carter) to ask for days off and all of our requests were successful. It was time to buy our tickets. But disaster! The plane tickets had nearly doubled in price and an alternative deal within our budgets was impossible to find. Our USA adventure was over before it even began. It was time to drink beer. As you know, beer fosters creativity. We all had time of work, we had all sorted out our budgets. We might as well go somewhere. It was time to hit the "Everywhere" option on skyscanner and see what would come up within our budget. One option leaped out form the list, Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Spurred on by our memories of 2002 and our fondness for Guus Hiddink, it was decided there and then that The Barge Boyz, were going to Seoul. 

First Encounter with Korean Food

Korean food, at that time was not very well known. Even today, you would still struggle to find a Korean restaurant in the UK, outside of London. We knew the square-root of nothing. We hadn't even tried Kimchi! 

Since we were on a budget, our flights would not be direct. We ended up with a great deal from Turkish airlines. A connection in Istanbul and some good Turkish food was what we expected. However, we (except for Tony Carter who had ordered a Hindu menu for some strange reason) were about to be given a rude awakening. When the flight attendant came with the meal choices, the chicken and the beef were finished. The only choice was something called Bimbimbap? "What the hell is a bi-bi-m-bap?" exclaimed Johnny Burga. Tony, at that time looked extremely proud of his choice of curried industrial waste. His smugness would be short lived!

As we received our in-flight meals, the first reaction was immense confusion. A tub of rice and leaves was accompanied by other little tubs and tubes of things. What should we do? Word was finally given to us that we should mix everything together. We did as we were told and we were very happy with the results. In your face Tony Carter! It was better than the Hindu menu. It was, in fact, pretty good.

We liked BI-BI-M-BAP as we came to call it. It was even fun to say, it was like roadrunner speak.

The End of Ignorance

Fast-forward two years. We had a great trip to Seoul in 2009. It is now 2011, a coworker named Tom tells me of his plan to go and teach in Korea. I'd been there. I liked it. But why would he want to move there? He told me that a teacher could live like a king. This planted an idea in my mind. I was already toying with the idea of a gap year or a working holiday. But Korea seemed to offer a more realistic, more interesting option. I researched, I liked what I read. I applied for a job, had an interview and was offered a contract. 2 months after the conversation, I was on my way back to Korea. 

I wanted me some of the Bi-Bi-M-Bap stuff. So, I asked my coworkers where I could get a good one. They looked at me as though I had 2 heads. You see it isn't Bi-Bi-M-Bap. You don't speak like road runner. You should say Bi-Bim-Bap. In Korean, words are spelled out syllable by syllable. Bibimbap is 비빔밥 in Hangul, Korean alphabet. 비 = Bi, 빔 = Bim, 밥 = Bap. 비빔 or Bibim means mix. 밥 is the Korean word for rice. The name literally means mixed rice.

A glorious mixed bimbimbap. Ready to eat.

Sounds Simple - A Complicated History

The origins of bibimbap are actually unclear.  There are many different versions of many fundamentally different theories.

Theory 1: Rights to the Gods
Some people think that the dish was created when ancestors used to climb mountains to give rights to  gods. Korean food traditionally comprises of rice and banchan or side dishes made of vegetables. There can be many side dishes, sometimes in excess of 20. This was simply too much for people to carry up a mountain for a picnic. The result was to throw them all into one bowl and mix it all up.

Theory 2: Food for Farmers
It has equally been argued that it's origins are similar to those of the British pasty. Hungry workers without the time, space or maybe even the chopsticks to eat food in the traditional manner, chucked all of the side dishes into their own bowl to eat from instead of all dipping into communal side dishes.

Theory 3: Breakfast of Leftovers

Maybe there is no elaborate story. Maybe it is as simple as parents, who were short of time, trying to prepare breakfast. There would be leftover side dishes from the night before so they'd put them in a bowl with rice and mix. Off you go kids!

What is increasingly agreed upon is that Bibimbap originated somewhere in or around the town of Jeonju in the South West of South Korea. 

What to mix?

Good question. There is no single correct answer. Obviously, there will be rice. But the vegetables can vary quite a bit. You could find a bibimbap with any 5 or 6 of the following; carrots, cucumber, mushrooms, lettuce, raddish, beansprouts, broad beans, sesame seeds, seaweed, mustard leaves, spinach, spring onion or cabbage. You will probably also find some beef. Sometimes cooked, sometimes raw. On most occasions, you will also be served an egg. Again, sometimes cooked (fried) but often raw. 

These days, you will find something Called 고추장. Korean red pepper paste. Although, in the past this wasn't always true. Some say that it masked the taste of poorly prepared vegetables. But nowadays it is a part of 99% of bibimbaps.

As simple as it sounds, a good bibimbap is hard to nail. The vegetables have to be prepared individually. The ingredients have to be fresh and added in perfect balance. There is a sweet spot where the flavors and textures combine to make a divine dish. It is actually easy to notice when the balance is wrong. 

Look at how hard it was for the chefs to do make a bibimbap on Masterchef USA. (Jump to 19 minutes for explanation followed by the challenge.

The Best Spot

Each person has their best spot for a bibimbap. Personally, I've never really had a bad one. Food critics though are unanimous in their belief that one place stands head and shoulders above them all.

Outside the Hanguk Jib

This place is the Michelin guided 한국집 or Hanguk Jib. This translates to Korean House. The Korean House has a wide range of Korean classics on its menu. But make no mistake, everybody else is here for 1 of 2 dishes. The bibimbap! There are 2 main choices of bibimbap. A Jeonju bibimbap with cooked eggs and cooked beef or my preference the 육회 or Yukhoe/Yuk-hwe bibimbap with raw beef.

The expensive but worth it menu.

Inside the restaurant.

Honestly, I have to agree with the critics. Hanguk Jib does really elevate this dish. The balance of ingredients is on another level. The quality of their sauce is top notch. And the beef? Well it is the finest Korean Hanwoo available. I am a big fan. It was the best bimbimbap of my life. It was certainly a long way ahead of the Turkish Airlines attempt. The downside is that this bibimbap costs 13,000 Korean wons or $13. Usually a bibimbap costs around 5 or 6,000 won. For a one-off treat though, I have to say it is worth the experience. It's bomb!

I would recommend anybody to visit the historic city of Jeonju and its traditional Korean village. Make a stop at the Hanguk Jib for lunch and you will have a great day. Just be aware that this place is extremely popular and as a result it has a waiting list. People are known to gather outside more than an hour before opening time. However, if you just rock-up, you are very likely to be served, as long as you are patient. The staff are helpful, polite and very professional. It is everything that you would expect from a Michelin rated restaurant. 

Moral of the Story

You needn't bother reserving yourself a hindu meal on a flight to Korea. A bibimbap will be a great choice if you ever see it on a menu. Don't waste your time with curried industrial waste and get a healthy and delicious taste of Korean food!

Perfectly accompanied by local Makgeoli, Korean rice wine.