Beondegi is a classic South Korean street food consisting of silkworm pupae insects. These tiny animals are usually boiled or steamed and then seasoned before they are served in small cups. Although of an acquired taste, beondegi is available at numerous street stalls throughout the country, while the canned version is occasionally found in supermarkets.
Some restaurants even serve the insects as a side dish. Beondegi became a popular option during Korean War when food was scarce, and there was a shortage of protein-rich ingredients.
Yeot is a group of South Korean confectionery made with steamed glutinous rice, sweet potatoes, and corn. There is a big variety of yeot candies such as hobakyeot (made with pumpkin), kkaeyeot (rolled in sesame seeds), and boriyeot (made with barley).
These traditional products can be produced either in liquid or solid form. Solid yeot is commonly consumed as a snack, while liquid yeot is often used as a replacement for sugar in a variety of sweet dishes.
Hailing from the province of Jeolla, hongeo or hongeo-hoe is a South Korean specialty that consists of skate that gets fermented in its urine. This cartilaginous fish is known to eliminate urine through its skin, thus allowing for natural fermentation to take place in the flesh and helping to preserve it.
The process lends the fish its signature aromas that bring to mind the strong and pungent odors of ammonia and dirty public toilets. As this unpleasant odor follows diners long after they’ve had their share of hongeo, restaurants which specialize in this delicacy often offer their customers services such as keeping their jackets in sealed bags and spraying them with deodorant upon leaving.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Gamjasaelleodeu is a traditional potato salad originating from South Korea. Although there are many variations, the salad is usually made with a combination of potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, onions, hard-boiled eggs, Fuji apples, mayonnaise (Kewpie is preferred), salt, and black pepper.
The potatoes and carrots are cut into cubes and boiled until fully cooked. The cucumbers and onions are diced and sprinkled with salt. The potatoes are gently mashed and mixed with the carrots, cucumbers, onions, eggs, apple chunks, and mayonnaise.
The salad is seasoned with salt and pepper to taste before serving.
A common staple at every special occasion in Korea is a rich and sweet rice cake known as yaksik. It is made with a combination of steamed glutinous rice, honey, pine nuts, dried jujube fruit, and chestnuts. The dessert is infused with a dark brown sauce consisting of caramelized sugar, cinnamon, soy sauce, and sesame oil.
The cake is then steamed until all the elements are bound and the sauce develops a more pronounced flavor. The sticky and warm yaksik is usually scooped with a spoon from the tray, and when chilled, it is easily cut into squares and can be eaten by hand.
OTHER VARIATIONS OF Tteok
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Dalgona is a traditional and nostalgic candy originating from South Korea. It has recently been popularized by the Netflix hit show called Squid Game. The dalgona is made by melting sugar and mixing it with baking soda. The mixture should start to foam up and look similar to whipped coffee.
It is poured out onto a flat surface and flattened into a thin disk that's imprinted with a mold before it hardens and the texture becomes brittle. When enjoying dalgona, the trick is to eat around the pattern so that it doesn't break, and some street food vendors will give another dalgona to children if they successfully break off the exterior part of the candy while saving the shape.
Naengguk is a common name for a group of South Korean cold soups that are usually consumed during summer. It is believed that there is no better refreshment than a bowl of cold naengguk on a hot summer day. The soups are typically divided into two main categories: for the first one, cold water is combined with vinegar and ingredients such as cucumbers, spring onions, garlic, wakame, or nori seaweed.
The second category of naengguk is reserved for soups that benefit health, such as the ones made with sesame, soybeans, or chicken. Naengguk first appeared in the 12th century in a poem written by Yi Gyu-bo, where it was referred to as soup with sunchae and was praised for its refreshing, clear flavor.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Hwajeon is a unique South Korean rice pancake topped with edible flowers. It is traditionally prepared in spring with either Korean azaleas, pear blossoms, rose petals, or wild chrysanthemums. It is believed that hwajeon has origins in the Koryo Dynasty, when it was consumed at a traditional picnic called Hwajeon Nori.
The women used to make hwajeon and socialize, dance, or write poetry at the picnic. The name of this sweet dish means flower cake in Sino-Korean, and along with being a flavorful treat, hwajeon can also be considered a true work of art.
OTHER VARIATIONS OF Banchan
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Ojingeojeot is a traditional squid-based dish originating from South Korea. This preserved squid side dish is usually made with a combination of squid, salt, gochugaru pepper flakes, fish sauce, scallions, garlic, ginger, hot peppers, toasted sesame seeds, sesame oil, and corn syrup.
The squid is mixed with salt and left in an airtight container for a month in the fridge. The squid is then removed from the container, rinsed in water, drained, chopped into small pieces, and pounded to tenderize it. The rest of the ingredients are mixed and added to the chopped squid, and ojingeojeot is placed back into the airtight container and chilled.
Salty, sticky, and chewy, sannakji is a South Korean dish consisting of raw baby octopus that is chopped and traditionally served drizzled with sesame oil. Interestingly, as the dish is served instantly after chopping, some of the pieces are still in motion, twitching on the plate.
The dish can be commonly found at Korean street food stalls, and it is recommended to pair it with ssamjang and green tea. A popular Korean movie with a cult following called Oldboy (2003, dir. Park Chan-wook) depicted the dish in one of its most disturbing scenes.
MOST ICONIC Sannakji
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