The presence of Korean food has been steadily building over the past few years and it now seems like it is at its peak, with social media and younger audiences making it a trend in food markets. However, there is such a wide variety of unique and amazing dishes so those who are first acquainted with Korean cuisine may not know where to start; in this Blog we will name and briefly describe our Top 5 Korean dishes!

1.비빔밥 Bibimbap

Bibimbap is an infamous and iconic dish that is well-known by many Korean food lovers. The term ‘Bibim’ literally means mix while ‘bap’ means rice. The dish is served with hot Korean sticky rice in a Dolsot (or Ddukbaegi), topped with various different sauteed vegetables, option of meat and a fried egg. The dish is extremely popular for its colourful aesthetics as well as the impressive crackling sound of the rice at the bottom of the Ddukbaegi which is served straight off the fire. The dish dates back to the 1500s and now stands on the front line of Korean food culture.

We have our exclusive Bibimbap recipe for you to try it out yourself!

2.불고기 Bulgogi

Bulgogi (불고기), also known as Korean BBQ beef, is thinly sliced marinated beef in bulgogi sauce. Bulgogi can be cooked with vegetables over a stove (in a pan / skillet) or it can be cooked on a bbq grill without any vegetables. “Bul” means fire in Korean, and “gogi” is the general term for meat. While it can be made with other meats, unless specified, Bulgogi is made with beef. Bulgogi is also used to make Ddukbaegi Bulgogi which is a delicious, meaty, hot soup.

3.김치와 김치찌개 Kimchi and Kimchi jjigae

Kimchi is an iconic Korean traditional food which consists of fermented vegetables and a variety of seasonings including gochugaru (chilli powder), garlic and onions. Kimchi jjigae, made using Kimchi, is one of the most common and popular stews in Korean cuisine. Kimchi jjigae is often served with rice on the side and it is most impressive when it is served boiling hot, bubbling in a Ddukbaegi. Similar to many other Korean dishes, the Kimchi Jjigae also has many different varieties, with the ingredients being flexible. The only fundamental ingredient that must be included in Kimchi Jjigae is the Kimchi, but even the kimchi can vary in age and ripeness!

4.양념치킨 Yangnyeom Chicken

Korean fried chicken is the name for a variety of fried chicken dishes with different sauces and seasonings. This dish is a fairly modern dish, having developed during the Korean war and being popularized in the 1970s. It quickly became a favourite dish nationwide and particularly became popularized with the normalization of delivery food and ‘yasik’ (야식), which literally refers to eating food late at night. It is said that by 2013 there were more than 20,000 fried chicken restaurants in South Korea and by 2017 there were about 36,000. This shows the immense popularity of Korean fried chicken.

5.떡볶이 Ddeokbokki

Another popular dish is Ddeokbokki also known as Korean stir-fried rice cakes. The dish’s main ingredient is the rice cake and the main feature is the spice, made from the gochujang-based sauce (고추장). This combination first appeared in the 1950s, after the Korean war; since then Ddeokbokki has become a national favourite, enjoyed by everyone, everywhere. This spicy variant of Ddeokbokki is by far the most well-known and popular but there are many different types such as the non-spicy ‘gungjung-ddeokbokki (공중떡볶이) which has a soy-sauce base.

We highly recommend you try Ddeokbokki when you have the chance!

In this blog we briefly introduced just 5 dishes in the large and amazing domain of Korean foods! We encourage you to further explore the variety of Korean foods, maybe you could even try making some yourself! Explore our recipes to make different menus like the Bibimbap, Ddukbaegi bulgogi and Kimchi Jjigae using our authentic Korean Ddukbaegi.