Rising Cost of Kimchi Alarms Koreans

[lsanderson]

Koreans buy napa cabbages subsidized by the government after waiting in line for about an hour at the Tongin market in Seoul.
By MARK McDONALD
Published: October 14, 2010

SEOUL, South Korea — Even in the middle of a loud and bustling outdoor market, her voice drops to a whisper when she agrees to reveal the two secret ingredients that make her kimchi so popular with her customers.

“Fermented-anchovy paste and pickled-prune sauce,” says Kim Gil-soo, looking warily, both ways, down the alley in front of her store, called Prosperity.

“I special-order the sauce from a certain place in the countryside,” she said, still whispering. “I’m quite well known for my kimchi.” More