In search for kimchi

There was a time when I ate kimchi at nearly every single meal. Simply eaten with just rice or wrapped in seaweed, kimchi was my sustenance when time was too valuable to waste on preparing an actual meal. Well, that time (aka college), is over but my love for kimchi is not. Even with fully prepared food available to me at every meal time (thanks Mom!), I still get cravings for that spicy, pickled goodness. 

Problem is, good kimchi is hard to come by in the Southbay. There isn't as large a Korean population in San Jose, so (good) Korean markets and restaurants are lacking. Back in the Eastbay, I used to take the bus to Oakland--a 20+ min ride on the rapid, 40 min on the regular line--to Koreana Plaza on Telegraph, where I would stock up on all sorts of Korean side dishes and of course, kimchi. I was spoiled then.

My quest to find good kimchi took me to Seoul Market, the only Korean market in San Jose (there are others in nearby Sunnyvale/Cupertino, but I didn't want to make the drive out there). I read the reviews on Yelp and they weren't so bad and I thought, "I've never had bad kimchi before, so what's the risk?" Well, how wrong I was.

Seoul Market is located on West San Carlos, in the part of San Jose I call 'old San Jose' because of all the old neon signs in that area that suggested it was once a bustling business area 30 years ago. Bustling wouldn't be the word I would use to describe it today. There's a lot of strip malls, vintage shops, used car dealerships that are usually empty when I pass by.

Finding the small market along all these strip malls was easy enough, what with the large sign jutting out. It's also located right next to an animal hospital. Funny, because in Vietnam a lot of meat shops were also located right next to veterinary services.

 

From the outside window lined with videos, the market looks more video store than grocery market. This is because the market doubly functions as a video shop in front and grocery store in back. Upon entering, you are greeted with posters advertising the latest Korean dramas.

 

The grocery store itself is nothing notable. It's like any other Asian market, a little grimier than I expected though. Not as grimy as a Vietnamese market, but much more than Koreana Plaza, which was always tip-top clean. The selection of side dishes was small, but they did look delicious. They didn't have the squid salad I was looking for, but I did pick up a box of seaweed salad in sesame oil.

The kimchi selection was also limited. I noticed right away that there weren't labels on the jars, suggesting that the kimchi was made fresh, on location. I was excited. I purchased a small jar for 8.99 (which was a bit expensive for its size).

 

When I got home, I immediately went about prepping my meal to taste my purchases. Like a sacred ritual, I laid everything out--the rice, shredded meat pieces, seaweed wrap, and my appetizers in front of me and went about the eating ritual (which my roommates and I affectionately termed 'poor college food').

 

Step 1: take a seaweed wrap and place rice on top. Step 2: Load up on as much appetizers to your liking. 

Step 3: Fold/wrap. And, voila! Easy peasy...

Okay, so the verdict on the kimchi. How can I put this...It was the WORST KIMCHI EVER. EVER. And this judgment is coming from a nonexpert who really could eat about any kind of kimchi, even the Safeway kind that is made to trick non-Koreans that they are eating something 'exotic.' This was hands-down the worst kimchi I've had the unfortunate opportunity of putting into my mouth. I can't say that it lacked flavor, because mind you, there was some undefinable flavor going on there. It really tasted like whoever made it cut the cabbage just that day and placed it into a wierd concoction of pickled juice, skipping the entire fermentation process that is crucial to the flavoring of kimchi.

It was so bad that when my dad tasted it, he asked for my permission to add some salt. I said yes because whatever he was planning to do to it couldn't have made it taste worse than it already did. My dad added I don't know how many tablespoonfuls of salt. It made me feel sick just watching him add so much salt. And, it helped! It tasted a LOT better. Passably edible. Now instead of retching from the nastiness of it, I will just eat it with the fear of hypertension in the back of my mind. Great.

The seaweed appetizer was the only saving grace.Very tasty. The only complaint I have is that there was a bit too much sesame oil, which left an oily filminess in my mouth. However, delicious seaweed appetizer is not enough to erase my food memory of the awful kimchi nor persuade me to make another trip out to Seoul Market. As I mentioned above, I was spoiled then. Sigh.

Oh! And here is a picture of me and Judy, way back when we went to Paris four years ago, enjoying what I believe is my first meal with kimchi. (Eating kimchi in Paris, the gastronomical capital of the world??! I know right? Again, emphasis on poor college food.) I have her to thank for introducing me to kimchi and all other types of Korean food. Thanks Judy! You made me a lifelong fan of Korean food!