The story is spun off of the Korean historical drama Dae Jang Geum, though it is aimed for a younger audience. The plot is basically the same: a girl named Jang Geum with a dream of becoming a palace chef (??). However, the complex line of corruption and sometimes even murder present in Dae Jang Geum does not appear in Jang Geum's Dream. The fate of Jang Geum's parents is never revealed and no one in the story dies. The plot is kept light throughout with quite a bit of comedy. Through the story, Jang Geum enters the palace and amazes people with her skills and willingness to learn.
However, after receiving much approval from the royals and upper sang gong, she abandons her thought of cooking to see people's smiles and turns to winning and impressing. Lady Han, a sang gong that has always watched over her, warns her of the path she is taking but Jang Geum continues to strive to impress. Finally she is found out by the sang gongs after stealing a sacred book and thrown out of the palace with her friends, Yeon Shan and Chang Yi. Jang Geum travels with her friends and slowly realizes the mistakes she made and turns back to the train of thought she once had. She realizes that she had forgotten the importance of natural flavor. At the end of this series, Jang Geum wins a competition by preparing food that is beneficial to each individual eating it and is allowed back into the palace. However, she demotes herself to the lowest palace maid because she wants to start over. The story continues with Jang Geum's Dream Season 2 in 2007.