When she was a kid in Canada, Suin was the family taste tester: "My mom realized I had this knack for finishing the flavors for our food. So she actually had me taste it and then finish the seasoning at a very young age."
Suin's career became a series of pivots: she started as woman's wear designer in Montreal, worked at a Cajun Creole restaurant with zero food training, moved to a Toronto financial management corporation, then Samsung's sales and marketing department, all while raising two kids.
With her husband Keith, she moved to Queens and into the fish wholesale/retail business seven days a week. When her mom sadly passed away, Suin took a break and began to pick up where her mother left off, making kimchi at home for friends and family.
"God, if this could help me," she told herself, "maybe it could help other people."
"THE BOWL THAT MY MOM USED TO MAKE KIMCHI"
This belonged to my mom. This is the bowl that we used to make kimchi growing up.
This is that bowl that comes out every year when my mom and her friends gathered around to make kimjang. Kimjang is kimchi that is made at the end of the harvest, which is going to be stored for the following year... to last for the following year until vegetable is available again.
She came to Canada with this from Korea. So this is something we've had in the family for a really long time.
It's maybe about two feet in diameter.
I use this to make all my kimchi that I produce, jar, and sell.