The key ingredients of kimchi are napa cabbage, radish, carrot, garlic, chili pepper, onion, ginger, pepper, mustard, watercress, salt and sugar, sometimes accompanied by salted shrimp, anchovies or other seafood.
Sometimes soy sauce and sesame are added to the pickle.
The most controversial topping, pineapple, was added by a Greek immigrant, Sam Panopoulos, to a pizza served in his restaurant, Satellite, in Chatham, Canada.
Dr. Navindra P. Seeram, an American professor who studies medicinal plants and their natural derivatives, said: “I continue to say that nature is the best chemist, and that maple syrup is becoming a champion food when it comes to the number and variety of beneficial compounds found in it.”
He added that his team's research showed the presence of numerous antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds to fight cancer, diabetes, and bacterial diseases.