Chungjungone Sunchang Traditional Raw Doenjang uses meju crafted in Sunchang, North Jeolla Province — Korea's most celebrated region for fermented pastes. Meju is made by cooking and mashing soybeans, shaping them into brick-like blocks, binding them with straw, and hanging them in a warm place so that naturally occurring wild cultures can take hold. This is Korea's own fermentation starter. The meju blocks are then submerged in brine and left to mature through all four seasons, during which the soybean proteins break down to develop a deep, complex umami flavour.
This product is made using the traditional deotjang method — a process in which freshly prepared meju and brine are added to an already-matured batch of paste and fermented again. This double-fermentation technique produces a far richer and more robust flavour than a single-fermentation product. Because it is not heat-treated, this raw (saeng) doenjang preserves the live cultures and enzymes formed through natural fermentation. Chungjungone's parent company, Daesang, maintains consistent quality backed by over 30 years of accumulated fermentation expertise.
To draw a European parallel, doenjang holds a place in Korean cuisine comparable to Parmigiano Reggiano or a well-aged wine — a flavour that only time can create. Like sauerkraut, miso, or blue cheese, it belongs to the family of fermented foods shaped by tradition, and it is the foundational ingredient responsible for the deepest, most complex flavours on the Korean table.
