President Lee Jae-myung made a special appearance on the JTBC variety show "Please Take Care of My Refrigerator since 2014," expressing keen interest in the global potential of K-Food.

The episode, airing on October 6, featured President Lee and First Lady Kim Hye-kyung as special guests. In the released teaser, President Lee stated, "While K-pop and dramas are important, the true essence of culture is food. We need to export more K-Food." His remarks underscored his ambition to promote Korean cuisine as a central pillar of national soft power.

First Lady Kim added, "I hope the chefs can prepare dishes that would allow us to invite foreigners to our dining table," expressing excitement over the chefs’ upcoming creations. Responding with a light-hearted joke, President Lee teased, "Oh, it seems you practiced a lot," prompting laughter on set.

Both President Lee and the First Lady watched the chefs’ cooking process with anticipation, though President Lee appeared uneasy after observing ‘amateur chef’ Kim Poong at work. "Honestly, I’m quite hesitant," the President admitted, displaying a look of surprise after sampling the dish. The First Lady exclaimed, "Why is this actually tasty?" expressing wonder at the unexpected flavors, while President Lee also remarked, "It’s not what it looks like," marveling at the contrast between appearance and taste, which piqued viewers’ curiosity.

This episode was originally scheduled to air on October 5 but was postponed following a recent fire at the National Information Resources Service that resulted in the death of a Ministry of the Interior and Safety employee. Out of respect, the presidential office requested a delay to observe a period of mourning. As a result, the broadcast was rescheduled to air at 10 p.m. on October 6.

Photo: JTBC "Please Take Care of My Refrigerator"

Note “This article was translated from the original Korean version using AI assistance, and subsequently edited by a native-speaking journalist.”

Photo=JTBC 'Please Take Care of My Refrigerator'