Min Yo-han turns 18 seconds on TV into a 57-store side dish empire

Min Yo-han, who left a short but powerful impression on the Netflix cooking survival show 'Culinary Class Wars,' is set to reveal his success story on television. At just 28 years old, he has achieved 27 billion won in annual sales and operates 57 locations nationwide. He will appear on the EBS program 'Seo Jang-hoon's Neighboring Millionaire,' airing on the 15th at 9:55 PM.

The 18-second memory of being eliminated by Paik Jong-won's critique that 'the rice is too mushy'

During the broadcast, Min Yo-han will share behind-the-scenes stories from his time on 'Culinary Class Wars.' He recounts being eliminated during his judging by Paik Jong-won for his braised cod dish—not because of the main dish itself, but because of the 'rice.' He noted that Paik Jong-won's single comment, "The rice is too mushy," was the deciding factor, adding with a shy laugh that his actual screen time was only about 18 seconds.

He has since grown into a global side dish entrepreneur, operating 57 locations across the country and successfully expanding into Singapore. With a repertoire of approximately 1,000 recipes, he introduced himself by saying, "My title is CEO, but I am the youngest person in the company."

A side dish factory producing 1,000 servings a day and Seo Jang-hoon's 'vegetable noodle slurping'

The program will showcase the interior of the factory that serves as the core of Min Yo-han's side dish business. Various menus will appear, including jinmichae (seasoned dried shredded squid), stir-fried aged kimchi with perilla oil, seasoned crown daisy, braised tofu, and stir-fried seaweed stems, with 1,000 servings of jinmichae produced daily.

On-site, Seo Jang-hoon and Jang Ye-won will face the full table prepared by Min Yo-han. Seo Jang-hoon, who is known to enjoy cheonggukjang (extra-strong fermented soybean paste stew), continuously moved his chopsticks while tasting neat vegetable side dishes such as bean sprouts, radish, and aster scaber.

In particular, he demonstrated the flavor of the menu by performing what is known as 'vegetable noodle slurping,' inhaling the seasoned vegetables as if they were noodles.

A plate of seasoned aster scaber that moved Seo Jang-hoon to tears

While eating the vegetable side dishes, Seo Jang-hoon was left speechless by a single piece of seasoned aster scaber. He trailed off, saying, "It has been so long since I've eaten aster scaber. In the past, my mother would have made it for me at home, but now..."

Seo Jang-hoon, who lost his mother in 2024, shared this confession while facing vegetables that seemed to carry his mother's handmade touch, leaving the studio in a solemn atmosphere.

Min Yo-han's culinary career began with his appearance on 'School Cooking King' in 2014. Since 2021, he has been passing on recipes on EBS's 'The Best Cooking Secret' alongside Hwang Kwanghee, and has also shared his secrets to success on MBN's 'Altooran.' The story of how he built a nationwide brand at the age of 28 will air on EBS on the 15th at 9:55 PM.