When we eat, we consume nothing more nor less than the body of the world.

- Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma

Ceci n’est pas un Korean food blog. (This is not a Korean food blog.)

Apologies for the misnomer, such as it is. Korean food DOES make appearances, but it’s not the central focus of this site; I like eating far too much to limit myself to any one region, and besides, Korea is about the size of Indiana. That’s a pretty small area of food to eat.

So, uh, what’s with the name?

Kimchi for Beginners is a chronicle of adventures – more often than not, adventures on a budget, adventures in continually learning how to cook, and adventures in trying new things. I started this blog when I was teaching in Korea on a grant from a Government Program that has requested that I not affiliate myself with it in any way. I have since returned to the U S of A, but I’m still working the kimchi-as-metaphor idea here in these United States. I believe in food as a way to explore the world. So I believe in learning, even if it’s about a form of pickled vegetable that I don’t particularly like. (And I tried. For real.)

Finally, things you will never catch me eating, no matter what:

• baloney and other varieties of processed meat
• green peppers
• raw onions
• canned tuna
• copious amounts of mayonnaise
• eyes, from any animal