In the verdant valleys of Changpyeongmyeon, South Korea, nestled amidst lush mountains, lies Kisoondo, an institution of Korean culinary tradition. For nearly seven decades, this master of soy sauce has upheld the art of making ‘jang’, a Korean term that translates to ‘sauce.’ Her craft focuses on everything around fermentations, resulting in a range of condiments, including soy sauce and gochujang—a chili-based paste now popular in kitchens worldwide.

Within Kisoondo farm, hundreds of brown clay pots (onggi) immediately command attention. Arrayed before the main estate, they house soy sauce at various stages of its maturation. But this is not a large production operation, it is an abode of shared knowledge and warm hospitality, as we discovered during the visit.

Ki Soon Do, the affable matriarch of the farm, invited us for afternoon tea, an affair replete with traditional rice cakes, seasonal fruits, and a dazzling array of candied sweets. The highlight was the traditional Korean honey cake, a delicacy with roots in the Joseon dynasty. These deep-fried cakes, bathed in a honey syrup, are aptly titled the ‘king’s cake’, reflecting their royal history.

After tea, we were guided through all the processes involving soy sauce making. Our first task was washing organic, heritage soybeans, which were harvested in early September and dried in anticipation of the soy sauce season commencing in October. The beans, once boiled, half of them were puréed and the other half cracked, a process that allows air access to promote mould growth within the soybean bricks, known as ‘meju.’ For maturation, these meju bricks were hung outdoors on wet rice straws for approximately two weeks.

Once matured, the meju is cleaned and put in onggi clay pots with a brine made from bamboo salt, a signature Kisoondo touch. This particular salt, less salty yet more flavourful, is produced by compressing sea salt inside a bamboo and baking it for two days. Dried chillies, dried jujube, and charcoal are added to the mix to accelerate ageing, impart flavour, and purify the liquid, respectively. The concoction then sits for a year, after which the liquid and meju are strained. The meju is transformed into doenjang, the Korean miso paste, while the liquid becomes cheongjang, a light-coloured sauce with a slightly sweet, sour, and salty taste.

Soy sauce – ganjang, on the other hand, is a result of fermenting the same liquid for one to four years. Its mature flavour is perfect for seasoning bulgogi and kimchi. The pièce de résistance, however, is Kisoondo’s most famous creation – jinjang – a soy sauce aged for over five years. The result is a complex, balsamic-like soy sauce that is the farm’s crowning glory.

Our day didn’t end with there. Ki Soon Do then demonstrated the method of producing gochujang, a three-step fermentation process involving red pepper, soybean, rice, glutinous rice, barley, malted barley, ganjang, and bamboo salt. Ki Soon Do even makes a unique strawberry variant, adding crushed strawberries to the third fermentation phase for a floral, fruity undertone.

We were then treated to a traditional dinner prepared by Ki Soon Do herself. The menu, featuring her homemade sauces, included bulgogi, fried perilla seeds, bamboo shoots, crispy seaweed crisps, steamed spinach with garlic, dureup with sesame seeds, kimchi, and beef tartare served with perilla oil and Korean pear. The meal was accompanied with a traditional Korean soybean soup made with doenjang, tofu, and small soybeans.

As we dined amidst the tranquil beauty of the Korean countryside, it was clear that we were partaking in something far greater than a simple meal. This was a feast of tradition, a celebration of a culinary heritage that Ki Soon Do has preserved and nurtured over the years. The flavours were not just of the sauces and dishes, but of the work that went into each pot of soy sauce, each batch of gochujang, and every dish served.

Kisoondo goes beyond the traditional techniques of sauce making and delves into the values of patience, dedication, and respect for the natural ingredients. In a world increasingly dominated by mass production and fast food, Ki Soon Do serves as a poignant reminder of the value of slow food and artisan practices. A visit to this idyllic soy sauce farm is not merely a trip; it’s an experience that leaves you enriched and humbled, with a new-found appreciation for the art of Korean sauce making.