According to Yonhap News, Ryu Soo Young's Lifetime Recipes, a 272-page cookbook released on 25/6, has become a hot topic on Naver, Daum, and various book and food forums. After just over a week, the book ranked 4th on Kyobo Bookstore's bestseller list and second on Yes24, a leading South Korean e-commerce platform specializing in books and stationery. The publisher plans to print more copies to meet reader demand.

Ryu Soo Young's Lifetime Recipes features 79 favorite dishes that are delicious, easy to make, and cost around 10,000 won (190,000 VND). The actor says the book is perfect for anyone who constantly asks, "What should I eat for lunch/dinner today?"—from those learning to cook, newlyweds, and busy office workers to recently retired middle-aged individuals.

Ryu Soo Young says his desire is to create dishes that bring joy to both the cook and the diner. Photo: Semicolon

At the beginning of the cookbook, Ryu Soo Young shares his love for cooking for others and the joy of watching family and friends enjoy his creations. "In the 20 years since my debut as an actor, cooking has become an important part of my daily life and work. I'm happy to be able to share a variety of recipes with more people," he writes in the book.

The book is divided into five sections, listing detailed ingredients, spice measurements, and cooking steps. The first section, 'Special Dishes,' focuses on Korean cuisine, including soy crab sauce, seasoned crab sauce, sashimi squid salad with perilla pancakes, stir-fried pork, dried chicken with anchovies, one-pan pork loin, and butter-basted beef ribs.

The 'Rice' section features dishes like kimbap, fried rice with egg/kimchi/spicy crab meat, abalone porridge with shredded egg, risotto, and paella. The 'Noodles' section offers a variety of pasta, somen, and ramen dishes, including one-pan tomato butter noodles, stir-fried beef pasta, pollack roe pasta, and fish cake noodle soup.

The book details the ingredients and steps for preparing 79 dishes, selected from over 300 dishes the South Korean star has made on the show "Stars' Top Recipe at Fun-Staurant." Photo: Semicolon

The 'Soup/Stew/Soup' section includes staples such as kimchi stew, soybean beef stew, clam soup, seaweed soup, spicy mung bean samgyetang, and yukgaejang (spicy beef soup). Finally, the 'Snacks' section offers spicy rice cakes, egg sandwiches, oyster pancakes, one-time grilled tteok skewers, salmon and cream cheese sandwiches, and honey shrimp pizza.

Ryu Soo Young also includes his own tips for enhancing each dish: adding a tablespoon of vinegar to the end of kimchi stew, soybean stew, doenjang stew, or gochujang stew to enhance the flavor and remove any fishy smell; stir-frying all ingredients with carrot oil before rolling kimbap; and boiling seaweed soup with a whole apple.

At a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on 8/7, Ryu Soo Young expressed his surprise at the positive response to the cookbook, saying it motivates him to write more. He shared that he has loved cooking since he was 9, experimenting with recipes and inviting neighbors to try them. "The women often complimented my cooking, saying it was delicious and unique, which made me feel that cooking is easier and more fun than you might think," he said.

During five years of filming Stars' Top Recipe at Fun-Staurant, a cooking show for celebrities, Ryu Soo Young showcased his talent, creating unique recipes, earning him the nickname "Mr. Eo Nam Sun" (his real name) from fans. Xportsnews reported that many South Koreans have learned from Ryu Soo Young how to choose fresh ingredients and follow simple cooking steps. Due to the show's popularity, colleagues and fans encouraged him to compile his tips into a book, but he initially declined, worried about "teaching grandma to suck eggs."

"Later, I changed my mind because my wife (actress Park Ha Sun) said, 'Just do it. You love cooking, and I really like your suggestions.' When I listen to my wife, I become wealthy and blessed. I'm proud that the book is selling well," he told Yonhap News.

Born in 1979, Ryu Soo Young began acting in 1998 and is known for roles in dramas like Successful Story of a Bright Girl, The Last Dance, Save the Last Dance for Me, Seoul 1945, My Princess, and Father, I'll Take Care of You. He and actress Park Ha Sun met on the set of Two Weeks, married in 2017, and have a daughter.

Thien Lam (via Yonhap News)