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A bowl of fresh kimchi alongside bulgogi and rice, evoking a Korean private chef in Valencia
Korean cuisine

Korean private chef in Valencia

Real Korean home cooking is hard to find in Valencia outside a handful of restaurants, and almost none of it is the kind of banchan-and-rice spread Korean families actually eat at home. A private Korean chef brings that to your table, either as a hands-on class or full catering for a dinner or event.

What Korean home cooking actually tastes like

Three dishes that show up in almost every Korean home kitchen, and that our chefs teach or cook most often.

Korean bulgogi, marinated grilled beef, prepared by a private chef in Valencia

Bulgogi

Thin-sliced marinated beef, sweet and savory from pear, soy and garlic, grilled fast and wrapped in lettuce with rice and ssamjang.

Korean japchae, stir-fried glass noodles with vegetables, prepared by a private chef in Valencia

Japchae

Glass noodles stir-fried with beef, spinach, carrot and mushroom in sesame oil, served warm or at room temperature at any gathering.

Korean kimchi jjigae, spicy fermented kimchi stew, prepared by a private chef in Valencia

Kimchi jjigae

A deep, sour-spicy stew built on fermented kimchi, pork and tofu, the dish most Koreans call their real comfort food.

Korean home cooking spread of bulgogi, japchae and kimchi jjigae prepared by a private chef in Valencia

Classes vs catering

Every Korean chef we work with offers both. Pick whichever fits your evening.

Cooking classes

Hands-on, at your rental or the chef's kitchen. You make bulgogi, japchae or kimchi jjigae yourself, banchan side dishes included, and eat what you cook.

  • 2 to 3 hours, hands-on, at your rental or the chef's kitchen
  • Small groups, usually 2 to 8 people
  • You cook and eat what you make, chef guides every step

Home catering

The chef cooks a full Korean spread in your kitchen for a dinner party, birthday or small corporate event, banchan and all, while you and your guests just sit down to eat.

  • Chef cooks in your kitchen, you and your guests just eat
  • Works for 4 to 20+ people depending on the menu
  • Chef handles shopping, prep, cooking and clean-up

Menu shape: four guests, twelve, or thirty

A Korean dinner is not served in courses. For four people the chef lays the table all at once: five or six banchan, rice, a pot of kimchi jjigae in the middle, and a hot main such as bulgogi arriving last. That format suits a small kitchen well, because most banchan are made ahead and served cold or at room temperature.

At twelve the banchan does not multiply per head, it splits into two or three shared clusters along the table. Grilling at the table stays practical up to roughly eight on portable burners; past that the chef grills in batches in the kitchen and brings platters out, since four rings and one oven only cook so much at a time. Ask early whether the chef needs to bring burners, trays or fridge space, because a Valencian apartment kitchen fills up fast.

For thirty, plated service stops making sense and the meal becomes a station: a ssam bar or build-your-own bibimbap, one large pot of jjigae, banchan topped up from the kitchen. It feeds a room without anyone waiting on a pass.

What booking a Korean chef actually involves

You send the date, the headcount, the address and any dietary restrictions. The chef replies with a menu proposal and you get one round of changes on it, so this is the moment to swap dishes rather than the night itself.

Allergies and halal, vegetarian or vegan requirements are settled at menu stage, never at the door. That matters more here than in most cuisines: standard kimchi usually carries shrimp or fish sauce, and a vegan version has to be made or sourced days ahead.

On the day the chef shops for produce and meat, normally a market run plus the Asian grocers around the city for gochujang, doenjang and sweet potato noodles. They arrive within an agreed window before service, set out the cold banchan first, cook, serve, and leave your kitchen as they found it.

What it typically costs

Catering for a Korean home-cooked spread typically runs EUR 45 to 75 per person depending on the menu and headcount. Hands-on classes usually start around EUR 65 per person for a small group.

These are rough estimates to help you plan, not a fixed price. The chef confirms an exact quote once you share your headcount, menu and date.

Want a Korean chef for your next dinner?

Tell us your date, headcount and whether you want a class or catering, and we will match you with a Korean private chef and come back with a price range.

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Michael Bastin, founder of ValenciaMove
Michael BastinFounder, ValenciaMove

Resident in Valencia since 2016. Founder of BeTranslated. 25+ years in translation, interpretation and multilingual SEO.

Reviewed 8 July 2026 by Michael Bastin

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