Jordan Holman-Writer

Korean Food Guide: Explore 10 Must-Try Korean Dishes in Korea

Colorful visuals and and dynamic flavor meet in the “Land of the Morning Calm”

Full set of beef and pork ready for grill on stove serve with vegetable,soup and rice and side dish, Korean style barbecue

With the rise of Korean entertainment, tourism to South Korea has been at an all time high post pandemic. According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Korea saw the arrival of 11 million tourists by the end of 2023. Due to the rising popularity surrounding Korean culture and entertainment, the spotlight on Korean cuisine has grown exponentially as well. More people now know about the common dishes such as Kimchi jjigae, samgyeopsal, and bulgogi. However, are a few lesser known dishes that I think deserve a chance to shine.

If you’re like me and food plays an integral part of your travels, then check out 10 dishes (some lesser known ones are included) that represents the vibrant and abundant flavors that South Korea has to offer. I’ve listed some recommendations placed all over Seoul that are closer to common tourist destinations so they won’t be too out of your way.

1 닭갈비 Dak Galbi (Stir Fried Chicken)

Moist diced chicken thighs stir fried in gochujang (spicy pepper paste) with veggies, rice cake and cheese.

Dak Galbi, Korean spicy stir fried chicken with vegetable and Korean spicy sauce or Gochujang in big hot pan, with cheese

Flavors: Spicy, Slightly sweet

One of my favorite things to eat in Korea was Dak Galbi. Most people went for hangover soup after a night out, I went for Dak Galbi. If I had to describe it 3 words, it would be sweet, spicy, and cheesy! The most famous place to eat Dak Galbi is Chuncheon, but if I’m honest the best place I’ve had it is in Gwangju, Jeollnamdo; a city about 3 hours south of Seoul. 

Dakgalbi is marinated chicken thighs stir-fried in a skillet with cabbage, onions, and scallions. You have options to add other things like sweet potato, rice cake (tteok) and cheese. They even have sweet potato rice cakes at some places! They’re so delicious that it’s what I always recommend to people when they eat it. I’ve taken my sister, my brother and my dad to have dakgalbi and they’ve all loved it.

Recommendations

Here’s a couple of places that I’d recommend for you to try some top notch dakgalbi:

*Gapyeong is a place famous for it’s Dak Galbi that’s about an hour outside of Seoul. It’s also famous for tourist destinations such as Garden of the Morning Calm, Petite France, and Nami Island.

* This place is pretty far out of the way, but this was my favorite place when I lived in Korea and this may be biased, but Jeollanamdo has the best food.

2 비빔밥 Bibimbap (Mixed Rice Bowl)

AI Generated Image

Flavors: Spicy

There’s a couple of ways to enjoy Bibimbap: in a dolsot (a clay stone bowl) or in a metal bowl, but if you want my personal opinion, hearing the sizzling of the rice in the clay stone bowl is like hearing angels sing. Not to mention it keeps your food hot. I have burned my tongue many a time because I couldn’t wait for it to cool off.

Bibimbap literally translates to “mixed rice” and is a simple, healthy, and filling meal. Bibimbap is a bowl of rice with various blanched vegetables like beansprouts, spinach, carrots and zucchini; along with a fried egg, beef (either cooked or raw) and a gochujang sauce. It’s such a great visual that gets even better when you start mixing. Once everything is mixed together, you’re ready to eat!

There are some places that are famous for bibimbap like Jeonju, Jinju and Tongyeong, but there are plenty of places in Seoul you can try if these places seem a bit far on your trip.

Recommendations

Here are my 3 places to get some really good bibimbap in Seoul:

3 체육 볶음 Jeyuk Bokkum (Stir Fried Pork)

Thinly sliced pork stir fried in an addicting spicy and sweet marinade and paired with sticky white rice.

Flavors: Spicy, sweet

One of reoccurring combination of flavors that I love is sweet and spicy. This flavor culminates in the dish call Jeyuk bokkum or stir fried spicy pork. You can find it in some places that sell pork belly or kimchi stew. If you don’t want something as heavy as pork belly or you’re not quite feeling stew, this is a great alternative. It gives the same amount of kick as kimchi stew and it will fill you up like pork belly without being too heavy.

Recommendations

If you’re looking for some places to to try during your travels, check these out:

4 냉면 Naengmyeon (Cold Buckwheat Noodles)

Chewy buckwheat noodles served in either a chilled beef bone broth (mul-naengmyeon) or with a sweet and spicy gochujang sauce (bibim naengmyeon).

Photo by Dionysius Samuel on Unsplash

Flavors Cold; sweet a bit sour

Our first noodle dish of the list! Naengmyeon is a cold noodle dish that’s mostly served in the summer. Koreans find it a nice way to cool down in the hot and humid summer months. If I’m honest, my brain couldn’t comprehend purposely eating cold noodles, but after I tried it for the first time I loved it! It’s tangy and light, and being from Florida where hot and humid live, I miss it so much.

There’s a couple of variations that you can try: mul-naengmyeon and bibim-naengmyeon (remember the ‘bibim’ in bibimbap? Same one). Mul-naengmyeon is cold noodles served in a beef bone broth (it sometimes has ice in it) and Bibim-naengmyeon is cold noodles mixed in a spicy sweet sauce. They use the same sauce that you find bibimbap. I personally, am partial to the mul-naengmyeon. However, among my group of friends, I’m in the minority. Both are good, both are refreshing, and both will keep you cool.

Recommendations

Visiting Korea during the summer? Try some naengmyeon at these 4 places:

*There’s also a branch in Hongdae

5 김치 찌개 Kimchi Jjigae (Kimchi Stew)

Aromatic, spicy and vivid red stew with kimchi, pork belly, scallions, onions and diced tofu.

Image by jcomp on Freepik

Flavors: Spicy, salty, sweet and sour

If I offered you a spicy soup with perfectly cooked pork belly, sour kimchi and and flavorful broth what would you think? Sounds enticing, right? This stew has so many flavors and they just melt together so perfectly. I think that’s why this dish is as famous as it is.

Whenever I was stressed or frustrated my go to was always Kimchi Jjigae. The sourness of the kimchi and the spiciness of the broth is an automatic stress reliever. There’s not much to say because the soup speaks for itself.

Recommendations

I’ve never had a bad bowl kimchi jjigae in Korea, but here are some of the best places to try some:

6 삼계탕 Samgyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup)

A whole young chicken stuffed with ginseng, jujube, rice, and other medicinal herbs; boiled in aromatic vegetables and ginseng.

Image by makafood from Pixabay

Flavors: Savory

Note: Usually this dish is served in restaurants from late June to sometime in August/September so if you visit outside of this period, you most likely won’t be able to find it in restaurants.

Hot chicken soup in the middle of summer. I know that sounds strange, but hear me out. When someone told that I’d get hot chicken soup in the middle of the summer, I though the same thing you’re probably thinking now.

I need to cool down not heat up.

Koreans believe in fighting heat with heat so this ginseng chicken soup is what’s known as a summer health food. If you go during the summer months, you definitely need to try this savory, comforting soup.

Recommendations

If you’re in search for some samgyetang, check out these restaurants:

7 닭곰탕 Dak Gomtang (Korean Chicken Soup)

A hearty chicken soup usually made from a simmering a whole chicken and topped with green onion.

Flavors: Savory

Have you ever had dish that just feels like it touches your soul? For me it’s dak gomtang. This is what I call “samgyetang’s just as flavorful cousin”. It’s usually cooked the same way as samgyetang but the chicken ends up being shredded in the soup and you don’t usually need ginseng or jujubes for it. You can also have this with noodles (dak kalguksu) instead of rice. This dish is all used to combat the heat, but it’s good for warming you up in the winter as well.

Recommendations

In my opinion, this dish is easier to find outside of the summer months so here are some places I’d recommend:

8 오리 불고기 Ori Bulgogi (Duck Bulgogi)

Thinly sliced duck marinated in a sweet soy marinade and grilled with onions, carrots and green onion.

Flavors: Mellow sweetness or a spicy kick 

Samgyeopsal and beef bulgogi are travelers’ go to when they visit Korea, but a less common, but just as delicious option is duck bulgogi (ori bulgogi). I usually recommend it to anyone who asks.

It’s a bit lighter than samgyeopsal, a little bit less sweet than bulgogi and some places might even make it spicy instead. This is usually served at one of those cook it yourself places so if that isn’t for you, then you can skip this one.

Note: A lot of restaurants require at least 2 people to dine if you want to be served so you might want to bring a friend.

Recommendations

Add these restaurants to your list:

9 국밥 Gukbap (Rice Soup)

A flavorful, filling soup made with pork bone broth , sliced pork, salty shrimp paste, soy sauce and gojuchang (red pepper paste).

Guk bap Photo by makafood: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-shot-of-food-in-a-hot-pot-8954150/

Flavors: Spicy, Salty, Savory

There are a lot of variations of gukbap around, but the one I think would be best would just be the simple pork gukbap. The pork is tender and the broth is so warming. The good thing about this soup is that you can make as spicy or mild as you want it to be. The soup usually comes to you with a milky white broth. You can add the gochujang (red pepper paste) to add spiciness, green onion and sometimes soy sauce for saltiness.

Tip: Always add a little bit at a time as the flavors are quite strong.

Recommendations: 

10 짜장 Jjajangmeyeon (black bean noodles)

Chewy noodles smothered in a sweet black bean sauce with onions, carrots and cabbage.

Image by 709 K from Pixabay

Flavors: Sweet, slightly savory

I know this dish is last on the list, but it’s first in my heart. This is what’s called Korean Chinese food. Jjajangmyeon originally came from China, but they way Koreans make it now is a bit different. The sauce for Korean jjajangmyeon is a bit thicker in my opinion and definitely sweeter.

You’ll probably see this on a lot of different “try this” lists, and for good reason. If you go to the right place, the portions are huge and the prices are cheap. For a normal bowl of jjajangmyeon, the price is around 5 US dollars. Other common dishes you’ll find at these restaurants are jjampong, a spicy seafood stew with noodles, and tangsuyuk, deep fried pork in a sweet and sour sauce. If you have the time (and the space in your stomach), try those out as well.

Recommendations:

*This one is about an hour KTX train ride from Seoul, but I had to add it because not only is the Jjajangmyeon REALLY good, but they have the best Tangsuyuk (Fried pork with a sweet and sour sauce) I’ve had in Korea. If you venture outside of Seoul, I definitely recommend it.

Conclusion

Some of these dishes aren’t commonly found on lists like these, but they are just as delicious and just as filling as other, more popular dishes. These dishes are a bit personal to me as they provided comfort to me as I lived alone in a foreign country.

I think these dishes do a great job of representing Korean cuisine, but if you visit don’t stop there. Japchae, kimchi fried rice, and Korean pizza are good options to try if you’re looking for other things to try.

Are there any dishes you want to try? Any dishes you’ve tried? Let me know your thoughts down below.

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