Korean Cooking Class with Bibimbap & Side Dishes Seoul

A Korean cooking class in Jongno, central Seoul

Jongno is the historic core of Seoul, the district of royal palaces, old markets and narrow hanok lanes, and it is a fitting place to learn everyday Korean cooking. The cooking studio sits on the seventh floor of a building fifteen metres from Jonggak Station, with individual stations, all ingredients prepared and a chef who teaches in fluent English while sharing stories about where each dish comes from.

Classes run three times a day, every day of the week, so you can choose a brunch, lunch or early-dinner session to fit your Seoul plans. The pace is relaxed and suited to beginners: you chop, season, fry and assemble with your own hands, then sit down together to eat. If you are searching for the best Korean cooking class in Seoul in English, this two-and-a-half-hour session gives you a complete meal and recipes to repeat.

Jeon: Korean savoury pancakes to start

Every class opens with jeon, the pan-fried savoury pancakes Koreans make for festivals and rainy days. You prepare three or four kinds from a selection that includes donggeurangttaeng meatball patties, pollack fillets dipped in egg, pajeon with spring onion and seafood, beef pancakes, tofu pancakes and fragrant sesame-leaf pancakes, depending on the day and on any dietary needs in the group.

The chef shows you how to make a light batter, how hot the pan should be and how to flip each piece so it turns golden without breaking. Jeon is served with a soy and vinegar dipping sauce you mix yourself. It is the dish most guests say they will cook again, because it uses simple ingredients you can find in any supermarket at the end of your trip.

Japchae, bulgogi and Jeonju bibimbap

The main course brings together three of the best-known Korean dishes. Japchae is a festive stir-fry of sweet-potato glass noodles with vegetables, sesame oil and soy. Bulgogi, thinly sliced beef marinated in soy, garlic and pear, is cooked until caramelised. Then comes Jeonju bibimbap, the version from the southern city of Jeonju famous for its many neatly arranged toppings over warm rice.

Working as a group, you prepare the vegetables, cook the beef and noodles and learn the classic way to arrange bibimbap before mixing it with gochujang chilli paste. The chef explains the balance of colours and flavours behind each dish and adapts the recipes for vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian or gluten-free guests when told in advance. A bibimbap cooking class in Seoul rarely covers this much in one session.

Banchan, kimchi and Korean dessert

No Korean meal is complete without banchan, the small side dishes that fill the table. With your meal you try about ten of them, which may include napa cabbage kimchi, radish kimchi, rolled egg omelette, stir-fried anchovies, seasoned soybean sprouts, seasoned spinach and spicy cucumber. The chef explains how kimchi is fermented and why every Korean family has its own recipe.

The meal ends with a Korean dessert that changes daily, often bingsu, the shaved-ice treat topped with sweet red beans, fruit or condensed milk that Koreans love in every season. Throughout the class you can drink water, sikhye, a traditional sweet rice drink, and Korean tea. By the end you will have cooked and eaten a meal far richer than a typical restaurant lunch in Seoul.

Around Jonggak: Insadong, Ikseondong and Gwangjang Market

The studio's location makes it easy to plan the rest of your day. Insadong, with its tea houses, craft shops and galleries, is a minute away, and the small hanok cafés and restaurants of Ikseondong are just beyond it. Gwangjang Market, the best place in Seoul for street-food stalls selling bindaetteok mung bean pancakes and gimbap, is a short walk east along Jongno.

Gyeongbokgung Palace, Myeongdong and the Cheonggyecheon stream are all within about ten minutes on foot. How to get to the class: take subway Line 1 to Jonggak Station, leave by Exit 12, walk straight ahead and take the first right around the corner café; the entrance is next to an orange-fronted game arcade in the same building. A morning session followed by an afternoon in Insadong makes a perfect Seoul day.