In the 1960s, the founder of Amorepacific, Suh Sung-whan, kept thinking about the ginseng fields he grew up around in Gaeseong. If ginseng was good for the body, he reasoned, it might be good for the skin too. At the time there was almost no research on ginseng for anything other than food. In 1966 his company released ABC Ginseng Cream, which Amorepacific describes as the world's first ginseng-based cosmetic, and decades of that research eventually became Sulwhasoo, one of the brands in this edit.

I like that origin because it is the opposite of a trend. Korean skincare has a reputation for ten-step routines and viral ingredients, but at its heart it is patient: lots of hydration, gentle cleansing, a barrier kept strong and sunscreen every single day. You do not need ten steps to get most of that. Five or six will do.

Every brand here is Korean, and each step has an easy pick. The first grid is the start of the routine: oil cleanser, foam cleanser, toner and a treatment step. The second is the end of it: creams, a retinol serum, sunscreen and a mask for a night off.

Here is the order to remember: cleanse, tone, treat, moisturize, protect. Thin textures go on before thick ones. If you change only one habit, make it the double cleanse at night, oil first and then a gentle foam.

The double cleanse is the part of Korean skincare I would keep if I dropped everything else. At night, massage an oil cleanser onto dry skin to melt sunscreen and makeup, rinse, then follow with a gentle foam or gel to wash the oil away. Your skin ends up clean without feeling stripped.

Sulwhasoo's Gentle Cleansing Oil is the first step, and it melts even waterproof makeup. For the second, Beauty of Joseon's Green Plum cleanser is pH-balanced, with plum and mung bean, and it supports the moisture barrier while it cleans. Innisfree's Jeju Green Tea foam is sulfate-free with amino acids, a classic that does not leave skin tight.

Toner in Korean routines is not the astringent kind. It is the first layer of hydration, patted in with your hands. Beauty of Joseon's Rice Milk Toner uses rice extract and rice amino acids for all-day hydration, with a little sebum control. Laneige's Cream Skin Milky Toner is richer, with ceramides and peptides, closer to a light moisturizer. Sulwhasoo's Essential Revitalizing Water is a watery gel toner that hydrates and helps skin look firmer and clearer.

Then a treatment step if you want one. Sulwhasoo's First Care Activating Serum is built on ginseng aged for 500 hours, and as the name suggests it goes on first, to strengthen the barrier and add radiance. Rejuran's Turnover Ampoule uses c-PDRN to smooth texture, calm skin and bring out a glow.

What I would skip: the oil cleanser in the morning. A splash of water or the foam alone is plenty.

Korean moisturizers are built around one idea: a strong skin barrier. Ceramides, the fats that hold skin cells together, show up in almost everything, and the textures are lighter than you expect for how much moisture they hold.

Laneige's Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream is the easy, all-round choice, a barrier-boosting cream with long-lasting hydration. Aestura's Atobarrier365 is richer and dermatologist-tested, with a patented ceramide blend, and the brand says it hydrates for up to 120 hours. It is the one I would give someone with very dry or sensitive skin. Dr. Jart+'s Ceramidin is cushiony and fast-absorbing, with five ceramides and panthenol. Sulwhasoo's Concentrated Ginseng Rejuvenating Cream is the luxurious one, ginseng actives with a ginseng peptide and vitamin C derivative for wrinkles and plumpness, a modern descendant of that 1966 ginseng cream.

At night, add innisfree's Retinol Green Tea PDRN serum, a vegan retinol that smooths and firms. Start two or three nights a week.

In the morning, sunscreen, always. Beauty of Joseon's Day Dew is lightweight and water-resistant with SPF 50, no white cast and a dewy finish, the kind of sunscreen that makes daily SPF easy. Dr. Jart+'s Every Sun Day stick is SPF 40 with a matte, invisible finish, easy to swipe over makeup.

And for a night off, Biodance's Bio Collagen Real Deep Mask, a concentrated gel mask with collagen and hyaluronic acid that the brand recommends wearing as an overnight mask, six to eight hours, for bounce and hydration.

What I would skip: retinol on the same night as an exfoliating mask. Give your skin a rest between them.

I think the best thing Korean skincare taught the rest of the world is patience. Not ten steps, but gentle cleansing, steady hydration and sunscreen every day, repeated until it is automatic.

So keep it to five: oil cleanser, foam cleanser, toner, cream and SPF. Do that for a month. Once it feels like brushing your teeth, add a serum or an ampoule and see what changes. Consistency does more for skin than any single product, and a kind routine you keep beats a perfect one you abandon.