THE Asean Culinary Festival 2017, a promotional culinary and tourism expo, took place at Coex in Seoul recently to mark the 50th anniversary of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the Asean-Korea Cultural Exchange Year.
Ten celebrity chefs from 10 Asean member countries flew into Korea’s capital city to participate in the event (organised by the Asean-Korea Centre), showcasing their respective national dishes. These included Brunei’s ikan goreng berkuah (gravy fried fish), Cambodia’s prahok ktiss, Indonesia’s sate maranggi, Laos’ laab kai, Malaysia’s pulut kuning (yellow glutinous rice) and rendang (gravy beef), Myanmar’s shan noodle salad, the Philippines’ adobo, Singapore’s kaya toast, Thailand’s tom yang kung, and Vietnam’s bun cha.
During the opening ceremony, crowds were treated to a live cooking show staged by a Filipino chef, alongside a coffee-making presentation featuring local coffee varieties.
Asean ambassadors and diplomats, Korea World Travel Fair officials, journalists, professors, government officials and members of the Asean-Korea Centre in Seoul attended the event.
A promotional tourism pavilion was also set up at the festival, offering printed and online information on tourism sites across Asean and various other promotional events. The regional bloc is offering 50 special tourism packages in celebration of its 50th anniversary and Asean-Korea Cultural Exchange Year. Additional information is available at www.visitasean50.com/top-deals.
Asean chefs showcasing their national delicacies at the Asean Culinary Festival 2017 in Seoul . – ASEAN-KOREA CENTRE
“The Asean Culinary Festival 2017 will arouse the taste buds of all food lovers and introduce exciting destinations for travellers looking for unexplored places,” Kim Young-sun, the centre’s Secretary-General enthused.
“In much the same extent as kimchi is important to Koreans, the dishes presented here represent the pride of the Asean member states,” said Dato Paduka Haji Mohd Rosli bin Haji Sabtu, Ambassador of Brunei Darussalam to the Republic of Korea.
“The introduction of the Asean cafe, cultural performances and other features will surely add to the excitement and attraction of the booths (set up at the festival). It will be a truly unique experience for visitors.”
Highlighting the “thriving” people-to-people ties between Asean and Korea, Dato Paduka Haji Mohd Rosli added that the growing exchanges between the two are set to continue as both sides intensify efforts to deepen relations.
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