By Park Hye Ri and Lee Jihae

Emily Kim is a New York-based vlogger who promotes Korean food all over the world through her YouTube channel Maangchi. Born Kim Gwang-sook in Yeosu, Jeollanam-do Province, she immigrated to Canada in 2002 and moved to the U.S. in 2008. 

Since launching Maangchi in 2007, she has 3.5 million subscribers as of July 4, the most of any YouTuber focusing on Korean food. She communicates with people around the world about Korean food via YouTube and social media.

Maangchi, the Korean word for "hammer," is a nickname she used in "City of Heroes," an online game she used to play.

On her vlog channel, she introduces recipes for Korean cuisine such as kimchijjigae (kimchi stew), bibimbap, (mixed rice), kalguksu (chicken noodle soup from scratch), cheonggukjangjjigae (extra-strong fermented soybean paste stew) and maejakgwa (ginger cookies).

The following are excerpts from Korea.net's written interview with Kim.

-Your YouTube channel has the world's largest number of subscribers among channels focusing on Korean food. How do you feel about this?

Twelve years ago, I started running Maangchi simply as a hobby. I'm happy whenever I hear from my subscribers that they followed my recipe and made Korean food enjoyed by their entire family. It also motivates me more to spread recipes that are easy to follow and lead to good Korean food.

-Do you get help from anyone when directing, producing or editing your clips?

One of the best things about YouTube is that one can fully be in charge of production. So I decide everything that goes into production, from what kind of food to make to when to upload my videos.

When selecting dishes, I try to use seasonal ingredients and make dishes using main ingredients such as vegetables, meat, fish or desserts. I sometimes get help from my family or a professional production staff when making videos. But I edit the videos myself.


-Your channel debuted on YouTube 12 years ago. Have you ever lost the motivation to maintain your vlog?

I never have probably because I've never considered my vlog as a job. I've grown much busier and happier since starting the channel. Every morning, I wake up and read the messages of support I get from subscribers. My filming and editing skills are improving and I'm always happy.

-You actively interact with your fans. What kind of efforts do you make to this end?

I sometimes hold fan meetings because I want to meet in person the subscribers whom I interact with online. I'm curious about what kind of kimchi they make, what their favorite Korean dishes are among the ones they made or anything interesting that occurred in their cooking experiences.

-Do you have any specific clips you recommend to novices in Korean cooking?

The recipes for gamjajeon (potato pancake), haemuljeon (seafood pancake), jaeyook bookeum (spicy pork stir-fry) and chamchi kimchijjigae (kimchi stew with tuna) are easy to follow, so I'd recommend those to beginners.

-What are your upcoming projects?

I've been working on my cookbook for about two years and it'll be published in October. I'll be busy for a while promoting the book.

hrhr@korea.kr