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– Record-high competition ratio of 56:1… Winning dish “Kimpacho“ selected after final round among eight contestants
– Kimchi recipes from professional chefs to home cooks draw attention
SEOUL, South Korea, Oct. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Daesang’s kimchi brand ‘Jongga’, together with the prestigious U.S. culinary school ‘Institute of Culinary Education’ and SF Globalize, successfully concluded the ‘2025 Jongga Kimchi Cook Off’ in New York.
Winners and judges of the “Jongga Kimchi Cook-off” in the United States posed for a commemorative photo on September 30.
The Jongga Kimchi Cook Off is a global event held across the U.S., U.K., and France to showcase the appeal and excellence of kimchi worldwide. In the U.S., the competition has been co-hosted with the Institute of Culinary Education since 2020, drawing growing participation each year as contestants present increasingly diverse dishes featuring kimchi. This year, following successful events in France and the U.K., Daesang wrapped up the U.S. competition, further reinforcing Jongga’s standing as a leading global kimchi brand.
The U.S. round of the Jongga Kimchi Cook Off took place on the 30th (local time) at New York campus of the Institute of Culinary Education. This year’s contest featured the highest-ever competition rate of 56:1, with eight finalists selected to compete. Participants came from a wide range of backgrounds, including professional chefs, accountants, architects, and medical students, highlighting the strong interest in kimchi across the U.S. In particular, Steven Gao, a culinary influencer with 870,000 followers, joined as a special guest and presented recipes using Jongga’s U.S.-exclusive Sanhowon Kimchi and Cucumber(Oi) Kimchi, drawing significant attention.
The judging panel included Richard La Marita, Lead Chef-Instructor of Culinary Arts at ICE, and Samantha Landwehr, Chef-Instructor at ICE, with guest judge Chef Sungchul Shim, who runs a fine dining Korean restaurant in New York. The judges evaluated each dish based on creativity, artistry, and harmony with kimchi, supported by their deep expertise in Korean cuisine.
The grand prize went to chef Zofia Gallick from Brooklyn for her dish “Kimpacho,” a chilled soup made with Jongga Kimchi Sliced, tomato, cucumber, and jalapeño. The judges praised the dish for its vibrant flavors and textures. Second place went to Daniel Bologna for “Crispy Kimchi Jam Patty Melt,” third place to Onyinyechi Attah for “Kimchi Juice Ayo,” and the special Jongga Award was presented to Min Kyu Kim for “Cheung Fun Ssam.”
Lead Chef-Instructor Richard La Marita commented, “The level of entries this year was remarkably high. Many dishes showed a deep understanding of kimchi’s fermentation and used it in highly creative ways.” Guest judge Chef Sungchul Shim added, “I never expected to see such variety and sophistication in kimchi-based dishes here in the U.S. It was clear that kimchi is being embraced and integrated into local food culture as a new culinary genre.”
Oh Yeon-taek, Head of Daesang’s Kimchi CIC, stated, “The tremendous interest in this year’s competition reaffirmed that kimchi is becoming a familiar part of everyday life for American consumers. We will continue to promote Korean food globally through Jongga and O’food, ensuring people around the world can enjoy and connect with it.”
Currently, Jongga products are distributed in more than 80 countries worldwide, with the U.S. rising to the No.1 export market for Jongga kimchi since 2023. To meet rapidly growing demand, Jongga established a large-scale kimchi factory in Los Angeles in 2022, the first of its kind by a Korean food company, and has since been producing a variety of products tailored to local food culture. As the world’s No.1 packaged kimchi brand, Jongga is also actively expanding consumer touchpoints by hosting cooking competitions, participating in music festivals, and running food truck campaigns to showcase the excellence and versatility of kimchi to global audiences.
About Daesang Corporation
Founded in 1956, Daesang Corporation has been one of the world’s largest producers of fermented food products for over 60 years, and has grown to be the global leading Korean based food company by operating global brands such as Jongga, and O’Food which provides sauce, ready-to-eat meals, and many more products. Headquartered in South Korea, the company has also manufacturing subsidiaries in United States, Poland, China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Visit www.daesang.com/en for more information.
