Sempio, one of South Korea's oldest and largest fermented food companies and a leading soy sauce brand founded in 1946, is expanding its live online Korean cooking program for consumers in the United States through its partnership with Asian supermarket chain H Mart. Following a successful pilot on the East Coast earlier this year, the program will now extend participation to the West Coast and become a recurring nationwide series.

The company announced Friday that its "Cook Korean Live" classes will launch as a regular bimonthly program beginning in August, with sessions scheduled on the first Sunday of every even-numbered month. The move comes as Korean food continues to gain traction internationally, driven in part by the global spread of K-dramas, K-pop, and YouTube cooking content that has introduced Korean dishes to new audiences.

According to the 2026 Global Hallyu Survey released by the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange, food ranked as the most widely experienced aspect of Korean culture among overseas respondents, cited by 78 percent. Sempio noted that while Korean food content has become increasingly accessible online, opportunities for overseas consumers to learn authentic Korean cooking have remained limited. The online classes are designed to address that gap by teaching participants not only recipes but also practical guidance, including where to purchase Korean ingredients abroad and how to store and reuse leftovers.

The August 2 session will focus on bibimbap, one of Korea's signature dishes, and will be held at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The menu was chosen in response to requests from participants in the pilot class held in May, when attendees learned to make rolled omelet gimbap and asked for more representative Korean dishes. Future sessions will feature tteokbokki in October and bulgogi in December, as Sempio plans to broaden the program amid growing interest in Korean cuisine.

The classes will be led by Moon Jun-seo, a researcher at Sempio's Woorimat Research Center and a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, alongside Stella, a member of the company's global marketing team originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Participants can register through H Mart stores, the retailer's website, or Sempio's global website. Ingredient lists and recipes will be provided in advance to ensure the classes are accessible for beginners.

Following the positive response to the pilot program, Sempio said it decided to expand participation nationwide and establish the classes as a recurring series. Drawing on its experience operating the Yeondu Culinary Studio in New York, the company plans to continue developing educational content and interactive programs to help overseas consumers prepare Korean dishes more easily and healthily at home.