Sunjae
South Korean Buddhist nun and chef (born 1956)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sunjae (Korean: 선재; born 1956) is a Jogye Order Buddhist nun and chef of Korean cuisine.[1] Sunjae, who is known as Korea's "first master of temple cuisine", promotes Korean cuisine internationally.[2] She appeared on numerous television programs, including as a competitor on the second season of Culinary Class Wars.[2]
Early life and education
Sunjae was born in Suwon, the capital of Gyeonggi Province, in 1956.[3] Raised as an Anglican, she converted to Buddhism at 18 after hearing a monk speak at a temple.[3] After working as a civil servant for several years, she left home in 1980 to join the Sinheungsa temple and to focus on temple cuisine.[3][1] She was ordained as a nun in 1981.[3]
In 1994 Sunjae earned a bachelors degree from the Buddhist Joong-ang Sangha University with a thesis entitled "A Cultural Review of Temple Food".[1]
Career
She is known professionally as Sunjae Sunim, often translated as Venerable Sunjae (or Seonjae). As a writer, she has adopted the pen name "Mayul", meaning "to become the basis".[4]
Sunjae describes food as medicine, and credits her temple diet for curing her liver cirrhosis.[4][5][6]
In 2018 she was selected to lead the Korean Food Promotion Institution, and she travels around the world speaking about Korean cuisine.[4][7] Sunjae emphasizes similarities between Buddhist food traditions and Europe's Slow Food movement.[8] She stepped down from the institution in 2021.[9]
In 2025–2026 she appeared as a "white spoon" in the second season of the Netflix cooking competition, Culinary Class Wars.[2] In 2026 she also appeared in The Chefs of the Temple Kitchen, which streamed on Wavve.[6]
Works
- Venerable Sunjae's Temple Food (Korean: 선재 스님의 사찰음식), 2005, ISBN 9788970419176
- Temple Cuisine Seasoned with the Stories of Venerable Sunjae (Korean: 선재 스님의 이야기로 버무린 사찰음식), 2011, ISBN 9788974795962
- What Do You Eat to Live? (Korean: 당신은 무엇을 먹고 사십니까), 2016, ISBN 9788974793357[1]