One of the things I love most about writing every month on the topic of pantry-friendly meals is that it has forced me to think outside of my own notion of the kitchen pantry. The ingredients I typically have on hand could be vastly different from those found in my neighbour’s kitchen.
Take a look inside Eric Kim’s kitchen and you’ll likely find seasoned roasted seaweed, also known as gim. In his debut cookbook, Korean American, Kim highlights the versatility of gim in a recipe for creamy bucatini, “a simple, perfect little black dress of a pantry dish”, he writes. Though often marketed as a snack, Kim’s mantra is that roasted seaweed is much more than that: “It’s a powerhouse ingredient,” he writes, calling it “one of the greatest Korean pantry items of all time.”
