Actor Choo Ja-hyun apologizes for calling kimchi 'pao cai'

Actor Choo Ja-hyun [ILGAN SPORTS]

Actor Choo Ja-hyun publicly apologized on Tuesday for describing kimchi as a Chinese dish called pao cai.

"Even though I was aware of the things that could raise tension, I have acted in a way that caused worry and discomfort for many," said Choo in a statement through her agency BH Entertainment.

"From now on, I will try to use the right terms for Korean dishes and promote the correct expressions of the terms."

Choo uploaded a video on her Chinese social media channel Xiaohongshu, or Little Red Book, on Friday in which she called kimchi pao cai. After criticism arose, Choo deleted the video.

The actor said that she initially thought pao cai could be used as a translation of kimchi, but later found that the proper Chinese translation for the dish is xin qi.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Guidelines for Translation and Labeling of Public Terms in Foreign languages which was updated in July 2021, pao cai is not a proper translation for kimchi as it means Chinese pickled vegetable dish.

The revision to the guideline was made after Chinese media claimed kimchi was a traditional Chinese dish that originated from pao cai. Korea maintains that it is a separate dish that originated in Korea.

Choo debuted in 1996 in SBS teen drama “18, Feeling of Growing Up.” She is also famous in China where she is best-known for her role in the Chinese television drama "The Temptation to Go Home" (2011).

She is married to Chinese actor Yu Xiaoguang. The two have appeared on popular SBS reality TV show, “Same Bed, Different Dreams 2: You Are My Destiny,” in 2017.

More recently, Choo has starred in tvN drama "Arthdal Chronicles" in 2019. She is also set to star in JTBC drama series "Green Mothers Club" (translated) which will premiere on April 6.

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]