Culture always has its unique trait that separates them from all others =, even when it comes to food. For famous cultures, when you talk about their food, you will always have one dish that would come to mind. For Korean culture, we often think of kimchi almost automatically. It’s because this is the staple side dish. Together with rice, kimchi accompanies every meal, There are a lot of other Korean foods that gained fame among the tourists and the food enthusiasts. Following is a list of top 8 must eat food on your trip to Korea.
1. Bibimbap – This is probably the most popular Korean Food when in Korea you need to eat Bibimbap. It is a tice dish topped with veggies, such as bean sprouts, carrot, spinach, egg and (sometimes) beef, with Gochujang(Red pepper paste) as the seasoning. While regular Bibimbap is served in a bowl with a sunny side up, Dolsot Bibimbap is the one that is served in a stone pot. While this meal looks vegetarian-friendly, it often includes a small amount of cooked ground beef.
2. Mandu – Whether grilled, fried, steamed, or boiled, Mandu is the general term for Korean dumplings. similar to Japanese gyoza or Chinese jiaozi, mandu are usually served with kimchi and soy-vinegar-chili dipping sauce. A bigger type of Mandu called wang mandu. Filled with pork and vegetables, think of it as a cross between a siopao and a dumpling.
3. Korean Fired Chicken – KFC stands for Korean Fried Chicken. Juicy, full of flavors, bone or boneless both are delicious. The main ingredient, chicken, they use a certain size of the chicken, usually not too big. Eating fried chicken in Korea is very popular along with drinking beer.
4. Tteokbokki – Ubiquitous in food markets and subway stops, Tteolbokki is a hugely popular snack food made from soft rice cake, fish cake, and sweet red chili sauce.
5. Tokkebi Hot Dog – Another popular snack, a Tokkebi hot dog, is a corn dog coated in deep-fried crinkle-cut potatoes.
6. Jjukumi – Baby octopuses marinated in a red chili gochujang sauce, then stir-fried. Though delicious, be warned that this dish is popular for its spiciness, even amongst locals. It is devilishly hot.
