EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is based on an interview Daniel Dae Kim conducted with Corey Lee for K-Everything, a CNN Original Series hosted by Kim exploring the global impact of South Korean culture.
Long before he became the first Korean chef to earn three Michelin stars, Corey Lee grew up in a New Jersey suburb where Korean food was scarce. Gochujang paste wasn’t a household staple, and kimchi wasn’t a trendy topping in hip urban eateries.
“If you asked me 10 years ago, I would never think that I’d be serving kimchi at a fine dining restaurant,” says Lee.
It’s a different landscape today, though. The Hallyu or Korean wave, has swept the globe, from K-pop to K-beauty, and Korean cuisine has soared in popularity, with exports like kimchi hitting an all-time high last year, and overseas outlets of Korean food companies increasing nearly 25% since 2020.
Lee, 48, started his career in kitchens focused on French culinary techniques, but has gravitated back to his Korean heritage over the past 15 years: first with the East Asian-inspired contemporary restaurant Benu, which earned him those three Michelin stars in 2015; and more recently, with a smart-casual, Michelin-awarded Korean barbecue joint in San Francisco, a Korean concept restaurant in a Singaporean car factory, and a collaboration with one of South Korea’s most popular kimchi brand to create gourmet kimchi products.
In photos: The creative cuisine of Corey Lee
Born in Seoul in 1977, Lee moved with his family to the US when he was five, growing up in New York and later, Tenafly, New Jersey. Raised by Korean parents in the US, Lee didn’t grow up watching cooking shows or with dreams of being a chef.
That all changed in 1995. Fresh out of high school and waiting to start college, Lee took a summer job at Blue Ribbon Brasserie in New York. Once inside the kitchen, Lee “fell in love with it right away”: the intensity, the creativity, the physical demands, and the sense of purpose shared by everyone in the room.
The job was supposed to last a summer. Instead, it altered the trajectory of his life.
“I was hooked from day one,” Lee recalls.
That decision wasn’t popular with his parents. Lee’s mother, like many Korean parents of her generation, strongly opposed the idea of her son working in a kitchen.
It would take international recognition — and coverage in a Korean newspaper about Lee’s accolades — before his mother finally accepted that cooking could be a “real profession.”
Working under chefs trained in French cooking techniques, Lee immersed himself in learning this classic culinary style, moving to London and working in some of its most demanding kitchens before joining Thomas Keller’s team at The French Laundry in 2001. There, he rose through the ranks to become head chef, and helmed the kitchen when it was awarded three Michelin stars in 2007.
What stayed with him was not just technique, but Keller’s approach to weaving personal memory into his menu.
“He (Keller) was able to reflect his upbringing, his Florida roots, his humble childhood — the kind of low-brow food that we don’t associate typically with fine dining, like mac and cheese — and really celebrate them,” says Lee.
When Lee left to open Benu — his contemporary Asian, San Francisco restaurant — in 2010, he mirrored Keller’s approach, drawing on his Korean heritage to “celebrate the things that were dear to me in the kind of food that I grew up with.”
“Living as a Korean family in the US, food was such a big part of what we talked about; we tried to recreate Korean cuisine in America,” Lee recalls.
His mother’s mild and clean home cooking style, as well as his grandmother’s strict Buddhist diet — which favors aromatic herbs, fermented products and rich broths to create umami flavors, rather than “pungent” spices like onion and garlic — has been a major influence on his approach to balancing seasoning in his dishes.
Benu’s menu combines influences from East Asia — quintessential Chinese ingredients like 1,000-year-old eggs and Jinhua ham; Japanese sake and wasabi; Korean perilla (a type of mint leaf) and fermented chili — with French fine dining techniques and fresh California produce.
San Francisco food critic Michael Bauer, who reviewed the restaurant shortly after opening, described its ever-changing 12-course tasting menu (then priced at $160, now upward of $425) as an experience packed with “complex” flavors and “unfamiliar ingredients and cutting-edge techniques.”
Within six months of its opening, The New York Times listed Benu as one of 10 restaurants worth a plane ride, and in 2012, the restaurant received two stars in the San Francisco Michelin Guide, before being promoted to three in 2015, which it’s held every year since.
Lee is one of several pioneering chefs who helped to push Korean cuisine from niche to mainstream in the US.
In 2008, Roy Choi’s Kogi BBQ food truck “brought Korean food to people in such a different way,” with its Korean-style tacos, says Lee.
“That was revolutionary,” Lee recalls. “That really stands out as a moment where I stopped and thought, ‘Oh wow, something’s changed.’”
Kkomak muchim (seasoned cockle salad): Small cockles, a type of clam, are blanched and tossed in a spicy-sour sauce. This dish is often described as a “taste of the sea,” by locals, and Beolgyo’s tidal flats in Boseong County, South Jeolla province, provide some of Korea’s most prized cockles.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1334″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Hongeo muchim (seasoned fermented skate): A dish made by mixing fermented skate fish with radish, garlic and chili. Known for its bold aroma and intense savory umami flavor, hongeo is a delicacy in Jeolla Province.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1335″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Gim jaban bokkeum (stir-fried seaweed flakes): A pantry staple with complex umami (savory) flavors. Dried seaweed is stir-fried with soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil until crispy and savory.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>
Ueong jorim (braised burdock root): Burdock root is simmered in soy sauce, mirin (Japanese rice wine) and sugar until tender and glossy. The crunchy, sweet and salty dish is also flavored with sesame or perilla oil, garlic and sugar.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Gulbi jorim or gulbi gui (braised or grilled dried yellow croaker fish): Gulbi is a prized Jeolla delicacy, often gifted during holidays. Whether braised in soy-based broth or grilled, it embodies the region’s love for seafood. Its strong, salty flavor means it’s typically eaten in small bites alongside plain rice, plus other banchan like pickled and fresh vegetable dishes.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Musaengchae (spicy radish salad): Thinly sliced radish is mixed with chili powder, vinegar and garlic for a tangy side dish. While it might look like kimchi, musaengchae is not fermented, and is eaten fresh.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Maneuljjong muchim (seasoned garlic scapes): Garlic scapes, the curled green shoots that grow out of garlic bulbs, are tossed with crisp radish slivers, chili powder, vinegar and garlic. With a chili bite, it cuts through heavier flavors in dishes like Korean barbecue or hearty stews.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Gat kimchi (mustard leaf kimchi): Originating from Yeosu, South Jeolla, this pungent kimchi is made with mustard greens and known for its spicy, peppery bite and tangy finish. The coastal climate of Yeosu contributes to the greens’ unique flavor, making this kimchi a regional standout.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Ojingeochae muchim (spicy dried squid salad): Shredded dried squid is mixed with a sweet and spicy sauce, including gochujang, a Korean fermented red chili paste. Because the squid is dried, it has a long shelf-life and was historically a practical pantry food; today, it’s commonly enjoyed as a snack across Korea.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Cheongpomuk muchim (seasoned mung bean jelly): Made from mung bean starch, this jelly is sliced and mixed with cucumbers, onions and tangy soy-vinegar dressing. In traditional Korean medicine, mung beans are recognized for having cooling and detoxifying effects on the body, making this a popular dish especially in warm weather.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1333″ width=”2000″ loading=’lazy’/>
Korean food is more than kimchi. Discover 10 lesser-known classic side dishes
At the same time as Lee’s Benu was scooping up awards, Hooni Kim’s New York-based Danji became the first Korean restaurant globally to win a Michelin star; followed by Jungsik New York a year later, which became the first Korean restaurant to achieve three stars in 2024.
With his latest ventures, Lee is now exploring how to translate fine dining techniques beyond elite eateries.
“I’m really interested in taking what I’ve learned over decades and being able to reach more people,” he says.
Keeping prices down means a more casual service style, and less luxurious ingredients — but that doesn’t mean the dish development process, culinary techniques, or ingredient quality is any less rigorous, Lee adds.
At Na Oh, some ingredients come from its in-house hydroponic smart farm, where robots harvest leafy greens like kale and Swiss chard that are incorporated into its seasonal set menu.
Each meal includes a main dish and a variety of sides, known as “banchan,” representing a modern take on Korean traditions.
Priced at 78 Singapore dollars ($62), Lee believes it allows diners to “experience something that has been prepared with as much intention and as much care as a fine dining restaurant, but in a much more accessible and affordable way.”
This three-Michelin-starred chef opened a restaurant in a Singapore car factory
With Korean food’s popularity soaring worldwide, Lee hopes his more approachable concepts can offer an elevated and unusual perspective on the cuisine.
“I think people are a lot more adventurous now. People are a lot more aware of how other cultures eat, and they want to try it,” says Lee.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The CNN Original Series, K-Everything, hosted by Kim will release on CNN International and stream on HBO Max this spring.
