What if everything your body and soul needed was already known by your ancestors?
In this episode of The Reconnection is Power Podcast, we travel deep into the ancestral kitchens of Korea—before refined sugar, before MSG, before global trade took over.
I’m revealing some of the most important foods to the ancestors of Korea, all 100% pre-colonial and pre-global trade. From sacred miyeok (seaweed) that honors mothers, to foraged namul greens that taught people to live in rhythm with nature, we break down the cultural significance, nutritional power, and ancestral truth behind each one.
You’ll hear about:
🥢 Why Koreans call family shikgu — “the people you eat with”
🌊 How seaweed soup became a birthday tradition tied to birth and blood
🧄 Why garlic wasn’t just for flavor, but for protection against evil spirits
🥣 And how fermented soy, barley, jujube, and more shaped not just meals—but medicine and memory
Tune in, reconnect, and download your FREE ancestral Korean shopping list of the 18 most important foods in pre-colonia, pre-global trade Korea linked in the show notes below or in my Instagram bio (@swankszn_).
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15UebC_DxTf0KMHNAy6JRdJSvvmak6VIP/view?usp=drivesdk
References:
Kim, M. J., & Lee, Y. M. (2020). Traditional fermented foods in Korean dietary culture and their health benefits. Journal of Ethnic Foods, 7(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s42779-020-00041-z
Choe, J. Y., & Yang, S. A. (2018). Historical review on rice consumption in Korea: Past and present. Korean Journal of Food and Nutrition, 31(1), 1–12.
Shin, H., & Lee, H. (2015). The nutritional and medicinal roles of Korean seaweeds. Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology, 7(3), 24–33.
Cho, S. H. (2008). Korean traditional food culture and fermented soybean products. Korean Journal of Culinary Research, 14(3), 1–12.
Park, J. H., & Han, J. Y. (2019). Namul: Edible wild plants in Korean culinary tradition. Korean Journal of Food Culture, 34(2), 121–139.
National Institute of Korean Language (2022). Understanding Korean words and culture: The origin of “Shikgu” (식구).
Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social relationships and mortality risk: A meta-analytic review. PLoS Medicine, 7(7), e1000316. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100727174909.htm
Donguibogam (동의보감). Compiled by Heo Jun, 1613. Translated edition, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine.