Top 12 Must-Try Delicacies in South Korea

Kimchi has long been a symbol of South Korea. There are hundreds of different types of kimchi, but most of them have a spicy taste, suitable for the cold climate of Korea. Making kimchi is not difficult, so many people in Vietnam now make kimchi for their daily meals. Although it may not have the exact taste of Korea, especially since Vietnamese people may not tolerate spice as well as Koreans, kimchi is still a favorite dish in Vietnamese households.

To make kimchi, although not difficult, you need to understand the recipes, secrets, and processes to make the dish appealing with its sour, crispy, and rich taste. The steps to make kimchi may seem simple, but they must be closely linked because if there is an error in one step, the kimchi is considered completely ruined. With the following improved Korean-style kimchi recipe, you will create delicious and enticing kimchi that enhances the flavor of your meal. Kimchi can be served with many other dishes such as grilled meat, noodles, soup, rice... to complete the taste of your meal.

Korean Seaweed Rice Rolls are delicious, with a flavor everyone loves. Anyone who loves the land of kimchi is no stranger to this Korean seaweed rice roll recipe, a dish that meets all 3 criteria: tasty, convenient, and nutritious. Even children adore this visually appealing and colorful Korean dish.

Gimbap is often compared to sushi - a rice dish also wrapped in seaweed from Japan. However, gimbap is larger and thinner in shape. Inside the Korean rice rolls, there are also more ingredients compared to sushi. The ingredients for making gimbap include seaweed, rice, and various fillings such as egg, meat, carrots, and green vegetables.

Bibimbap, also known as Korean Mixed Rice, is a popular dish among Koreans and loved in many countries around the world, including Vietnam. It's a perfect combination of white rice and various toppings such as meat, egg, vegetables, and a flavorful chili soy sauce, not only visually appealing but also incredibly delicious and nutritious.

Bibimbap captivates diners at first sight with its vibrant colors. On average, a bowl of bibimbap has 6 to 7 or more toppings, each with a different color, stimulating the senses of the eater. There's the white of rice, yellow of egg, brown of meat, green of vegetables, orange of finely sliced carrots... Depending on personal preference, diners can add various other vegetables like cucumbers, bean sprouts... All these ingredients are mixed thoroughly with rice and chili sauce to create a dish with irresistible flavors.

Although not as iconic as the dishes mentioned above, it would be a big miss not to mention this dish given the recent craze for 7-level spicy noodles in Vietnam. The broth, made from bones and seasoned with spiciness, can be customized with additional chili according to the diner's preference. The chewy noodles combined with the sweetness of seafood or beef create an irresistibly delicious dish.

Korean Spicy Noodles seem to have become a familiar dish for everyone, especially for young people who love to explore Korean cuisine. The noodles with 7 levels of spiciness ranging from mild to tongue-burning are enticing. Essentially, Korean spicy noodles are not overly complicated or elaborate, with ingredients and cooking methods similar to a mini hotpot for one person, featuring various mushrooms, some seafood, sausage, possibly beef, and, of course, noodles.

Korean Mixed Glass Noodles - Japchae is one of the royal dishes, traditionally served only to the king; now it has become popular in the daily meals of Koreans. Along with kimbap, gimbap, bibimbap... Japchae is a famous Korean dish loved in many countries around the world. The main ingredients of this dish are glass noodles, meat (usually beef), and seasonal vegetables (carrots, mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, onions) that are not only delicious but also rich in nutrients.

The main ingredients to make this dish are glass noodles and seasonal vegetables (usually thinly sliced ​​carrots, onions, spinach, and mushrooms) and meat (usually beef). Koreans use sesame oil to stir-fry to prevent the dish from being greasy and fattening. The main seasonings are soy sauce and chili along with sesame seeds. Japchae can be served hot or cold depending on preference and the season.

One of the most famous dishes in Korea is cold noodles. Cold noodles often have a strong aroma, refreshing taste, suitable for the summer weather. However, in cold weather, people can still enjoy this dish by combining meat broth with kimchi water to create a spicy flavor for the dish.

Korean Cold Noodles are considered a favorite dish of both Koreans and Koreans. Here, cold noodles are divided into many different types, but the most popular is still Naengmyeon, with its characteristic thin, long, chewy noodles made from a mixture of buckwheat flour, potato flour, sweet potato flour, arrowroot flour, and kudzu flour. Naengmyeon cold noodles originated from Korea after spreading from North Korea and have a history dating back to the Joseon period.

Spicy rice cakes are a famous street food dish loved in Korea. We can easily make this dish at home with readily available ingredients and a simple recipe. Tokbokki is made from rice flour mixed with water and some traditional spices. After forming into a block, it will be kneaded into long strips of dough. Depending on the intended use, Tokbokki can be cut into small pieces or thinly sliced.

Presently, Tokbokki is made from a rice cake dish called garaetteok stir-fried with various ingredients such as beef, bean sprouts, scallions, mushrooms, carrots, onions, fish cakes... and spicy chili paste (known as gochujang). Therefore, it's a favorite fast food of Koreans, especially during the cold winter, thanks to its spicy heat.

Koreans often use this dish on the hottest days of the year to cool down their bodies. Clean young chicken is stuffed with ginseng, glutinous rice, jujube, then sewn with thread, and simmered in a pot for hours. Traditional ginseng chicken soup becomes a nutritious dish, adding vitality to the summer in the land of kimchi. This dish uses the main ingredients of young chicken stewed in royal water, inside the abdomen is sticky rice, ginseng, jujube, garlic.

Ginseng chicken soup is researched and created based on the principle of yin and yang of the universe and in the human body, taking heat to overcome heat. According to the folklore of Koreans, the dish made from chicken and ginseng both has the cooling effect to prevent external cold from the body. In addition, chicken meat combined with ginseng will help dispel fatigue, enhance immunity.

In the ginseng chicken soup, Koreans also use glutinous rice and garlic with a cooling effect to protect the stomach and intestines, restore lost energy due to sweating under the heat. To get delicious and nutritious ginseng chicken soup like Koreans, you need to know how to choose ingredients, combine spices, and enjoy the style...

Seaweed soup is a traditional dish that cannot be missed on every Korean's birthday. According to the belief of the land of kimchi, seaweed soup symbolizes happiness and peace, it replaces the best wishes sent to the diners. The ingredients for cooking this dish are quite simple including dried seaweed, dried shrimp, dried onions, ginger, dried garlic,... The important thing is that we have to know how to process our dish so that it's both refreshing and eliminates the fishy smell.

Seaweed soup is a type of soup in Korea and is very popular in our country. This dish uses dried seaweed as the main ingredient, can be cooked vegetarian or with beef. The soup is cool, nutritious for health and also has a beautifying effect. However, if not processed skillfully, the dish can easily become fishy.

Beef marinated with soy sauce (soy sauce) and sugar, that's what makes the dish tender and fragrant - a flavor that everyone can feel. This is a favorite dish in the land of kimchi because of its attractiveness and short cooking time. When eating Bulgogi, people often wrap it in perilla leaves, sesame leaves, or some other leaves. This eating style brings a more authentic taste and more nutrition than just eating Bulgogi alone.

For Koreans, Bulgogi is a dish full of the meaning of prosperity and prosperity. This is a dish that only on special occasions, family gatherings, nothing is better than enjoying delicious grilled Bulgogi together.

There is no need to discuss the fame of this dish, Bulgogi is considered one of the cultural symbols of Korean cuisine. Appearing in most culinary magazines and travel guides, this is a dish you must try when visiting this country.

Sindubu-jjigae is a spicy tofu stew with clams in a fiery broth. The soft tofu is made from soaked soybeans, dubbed as 'beef in the vegetable garden.' It's incredibly tender and has a distinctive flavor. This dish is perfect for the Korean climate. Enjoying Spicy Braised Tofu Soondubu-jjigae with steamed rice in the winter is truly delightful. It's a signature dish of Korean cuisine and is considered a heartwarming comfort food.

Soft tofu made from soaked soybeans, dubbed as 'beef in the vegetable garden.' The dish is very tender and has a distinctive flavor. Since ancient times, Koreans have developed and elevated their skills with various dishes made from tofu.

This is a type of sweet pancake often sold at stalls on the streets of Korea, a favorite snack of students and young people. The dough or glutinous rice flour is rolled into flat, round pieces, mixed with brown sugar, peanuts, and cinnamon powder, then grilled on a hot iron plate.

Hotteok pancakes consist of two main parts: the pancake shell and the filling. The pancake shell is a mixture of various flours and leavening agents. The filling is more diverse with brown sugar, cinnamon powder, and finely chopped nuts such as walnuts, roasted peanuts, almonds, and hazelnuts. However, nowadays, there are some variations of Hotteok pancakes where people even add honey, butter, cheese, or even vegetables to the filling.