Best South Korean food

Beyond its bounty of exhilarating modern cities, ancient temples, national parks, and coastal escapes, South Korea is the perfect place for foodies to take an unforgettable vacation. So, if you’re looking to try new things, and spice up your trip with bold flavors, read on to discover the best South Korean food you really need to have on your radar.

Why South Korean food is worth taking a trip for 

It’s fair to say, feeding your face is one of the best things to do in South Korea, period! A journey in its own right, and one that’s as rich in flavor as it is in culture.

From sizzling street food stalls, to sleek high-end restaurants, South Korea’s culinary culture is accessible and exciting across bold dishes like kimchi, tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) and bulgogi (marinated beef), through to warming stews, sizzling barbecues, and zingy seafood hotpots. 

At the same time, food is a glorious gateway to cultural immersion, with shared meals encouraging connection every time you join locals in night markets, sip makgeolli in village taverns, or take a cooking class. 

Editor's tip: to maximise your chance of enjoying the best regional dishes, read up on getting around South Korea.

Best South Korean dishes and food to try

From tasty rice-based staples you'll be desperate to try to recreate back home, and fresh takes on everyday ingredients (who knew cabbage could be so darn tasty?!), through to communal meat feasts, here's some of the very best South Korean food to try.

1. Bibimbap ­— the iconic rice bowl

One thing’s for sure, you won’t have to go out of way to try bibimbap — one of South Korea’s most iconic dishes. 

The word literally means “mixed rice”, and it’s a beautifully presented bowl of steamed rice topped with vegetables, sliced meat (most often beef), a fried or raw egg, and gochujang (spicy red pepper paste). 

Sweet, spicy, crunchy and savory, all at once, it amounts to a fiesta of flavors and textures.

Editor’s tip: though served everywhere, Jeonju is widely regarded as the birthplace of bibimbap, and its local version often includes over thirty ingredients.

2. Kimchi — a national symbol

A cornerstone of Korean cuisine and culture, kimchi is a fermented vegetable dish that’s most commonly made with napa cabbage or radish, and seasoned with chili pepper, garlic, ginger, fish sauce and salt. 

With a bold, tangy flavour, it’s served with almost every Korean meal. As such, kimchi is not just a delocious, ubiquitous side dish — it’s a symbol of national identity.

Gwangju (Jeolla Province) in particular is a great place to enjoy kimchi. Known for an especially bold, well-seasoned version of the dish, it also stages an annual kimchi festival.

Meanwhile, Seoul is home to the Museum Kimchikan, where visitors can uncover kimchi history and join a kimchi-making class.

Editor’s tip: for foodies, Itaewon is the best area to stay in Seoul.

3. Korean BBQ — grill it like locals

Fire, flavor and friendship — those three little words sum up Korean BBQ (Gogi-gui) — a sizzling culinary experience that sees diners grill their own meats at the table. 

A social style of dining that’s deeply rooted in South Korean culture, the meats are cooked over gas or charcoal grills and eaten with lettuce wraps, savory dipping sauces, and banchan (side dishes), including kimchi (of course), pickled vegetables and salads.

4. Tteokbokki — spicy rice cake street food

Bold, creative and comforting, tteokbokki epitomes everything that’s great about South Korean food.

A Korean street food dish made with chewy rice cakes (tteok) cooked in a rich, spicy-sweet gochujang (red chili paste) sauce, it’s usually accompanied by fish cakes (eomuk), boiled eggs, and scallions. 

With riffs on the dish ranging from classic spicy styles, to cheesy and creamy versions served in more modern eateries, tteokbokki is popular as a quick snack, and a street food favorite.

Seoul’s Sindang district lays claim to being its birthplace — in fact, it’s sometimes referred to as Tteokbokki Town.

5. Bulgogi – sweet and savory beef

A timeless favorite, bulgogi (“fire meat”) consists of thinly sliced beef (usually ribeye or sirloin) marinated in a savory-sweet blend of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sugar and pear juice before being grilled or pan-cooked. 

Tender and rich, bulgogi is often served with rice, wrapped in lettuce with garlic and gochujang, or stir-fried with vegetables.

6. Japchae – stir-fried glass noodles

A staple of home cooking, and widely available around the country, japchae is a chewy, filling classic South Korean dish that's served as a side or main.

Made from stir-fried glass noodles (dangmyeon), which are themselves made from sweet potato starch, the noodles are mixed with colorful sautéed vegetables, combined with beef or other proteins, and seasoned with a savory-sweet soy sauce and sesame oil dressing. 

7. Samgyetang – ginseng chicken soup

Samgyetang is a traditional Korean ginseng chicken soup, made by simmering a whole young chicken that’s been packed with rice, garlic, jujubes (Korean dates) and ginseng. 

The result is a rich, nourishing brew that’s deeply connected to Korean medicinal food culture. Traditionally eaten during the hottest days, it’s said to replenish energy and boost stamina. 

8. Pajeon — savory pancakes with seafood or scallions

Made with a batter of flour, eggs, and scallions, pajeon pancakes are often mixed with kimchi or vegetables, amounting to a tasty, filling comfort food that’s often paired with makgeolli (Korean rice wine).

Crispy on the outside, soft in the center, and typically served with a soy-based dipping sauce, pajeon is another street market favorite that’s also often enjoyed at home. 

Editor’s tip: love seafood? Note that the coastal city of Busan is known for haemul pajeon made with squid, mussels and shrimp.

9. Jjigae — soul-warning spicy stews 

Jigae is a term for rich and filling Korean stews, with the origins of budae jjigae (army stew) stemming back to the tough times after the Korean War, when the like of Spam, hot dogs, baked beans and sliced cheese were smuggled from US army bases and mixed with local ingredients. 

Head to Uijeongbu in Seoul to try budae jjigae — this is where the dish originated after the war.

Beyond its budae incarnation, jjigae comes in many forms. Typically including meat or seafood, tofu or vegetables, it’s warming, boldly-flavored broth often seasoned with gochujang (red chili paste) and eaten with rice.

10. Kalguksu — knife-cut noodle soup

Kalguksu is a traditional hearty Korean noodle soup fashioned from hand-cut wheat flour noodles and served in a light, flavorful broth made from anchovies, chicken, shellfish or beef.

While the capital is full of excellent kalguksu stalls, note that Chuncheong boasts its own special take on the dish. Here, it tends to be made with tender chicken and a milky, rich broth, amounting to the ideal winter warmer for a majestically mountainous region.

Korean street food you shouldn’t miss

In addition to the best South Korean food detailed above, read on for some special street food treats to look out for — there are plenty of reasons South Korea features in our guide to the best street food around the world.

Hotteok — sweet pancakes

Crisp, gooey and comforting, hotteok is the perfect grab-and-go street snack treat, especially during the colder months.

Made from chewy dough stuffed with a warm mixture of brown sugar, cinnamon and chopped peanuts, the pancake’s sugary stuffing melts into a caramel-like substance after being heated on a griddle, while the outside turns perfectly gold and crisp. 

Mouth-watering, already?!

Eomuk — fish cake skewers

Eomuk — also known as odeng — is a fish cake made from ground white fish, flour or starch, and seasonings, then shaped and either steamed or fried

Commonly served on skewers, you'll also see it served in a warm, umami-rich broth, or stir-fried. As such, it's nothing but versatile, with Busan the undisputed capital of South Korean eomuk.

Gyeran-ppang — egg bread

Sweet and steamy, hot and fluffy, gyeran-ppang is essentially a cute little loaf of bread packed with an egg.

Often sprinkled with parsley, cheese, or bits of ham or bacon, with modern versions sometimes also stuffing the loaf with bacon or sausage, it’s a substantial street food snack that makes a mighty fine — and filling — breakfast.

Soondae — Korean blood sausage

Vegans and vegetarians, look away! Soondae, sometimes spelled sundae, is a traditional Korean blood sausage made by stuffing pig's intestines (or sometimes synthetic casings) with a mixture of pig’s blood, glass noodles, barley and vegetables. 

Usually steamed and served in slices with salt or a dipping sauce, it has an earthy flavour and tastes milder than most Western blood sausages.

While traditional blood-based soodae are the classic style sold by most vendors, modern cheese and spicy soondae stir-fries (soondae-bokkeum) are proving popular.

As for where to try it, Seoul’s Sillim-dong Soondae Town is dedicated to serving various takes on soondae.

If that’s tantalized your taste buds and left you longing to take a trip to South Korea, dive into our guide to how to plan a trip to South Korea, and take inspiration from our expert-curated South Korea itineraries.