삼겹살
Pork belly BBQ
Thick-cut pork belly grilled at the table, wrapped in lettuce with ssamjang.
음식 28
The food encyclopedia
From 삼겹살 smoke to 호떡 syrup. Spice meters, honest descriptions, zero tourist traps.
갈비
Marinated short ribs
Soy-garlic-sesame marinated beef ribs. The celebration meat.
불고기
Bulgogi
Sweet-savory marinated beef, beginner-friendly and everywhere.
닭갈비
Spicy stir-fried chicken
Chicken, gochujang, cabbage, tteok — with fried rice at the end. Chuncheon style.
오리주물럭
Stir-fried duck
Duck with veggies on a hot plate — Sokcho's proud dish.
김치찌개
Kimchi stew
Aged kimchi, pork, tofu. The national comfort food.
된장찌개
Soybean paste stew
Earthy doenjang with tofu and clams. Grandma's favorite.
순두부찌개
Soft tofu stew
Bubbling stone pot with silky tofu and a cracked egg. Order it 덜 맵게 if scared.
부대찌개
Army-base stew
Spam, sausage, ramen, baked beans in spicy broth. Postwar history you can eat.
삼계탕
Ginseng chicken soup
Whole young chicken stuffed with rice, ginseng, jujube. Summer health food.
비빔밥
Bibimbap
Rice, seasoned veggies, gochujang, egg — mix violently.
냉면
Cold noodles
Buckwheat noodles in icy broth (물냉면) or spicy mixed (비빔냉면). BBQ's best friend.
칼국수
Knife-cut noodles
Hand-cut wheat noodles in anchovy broth. Market classic.
짜장면
Black-bean noodles
Korean-Chinese noodle with sweet blackbean sauce. Delivery icon.
잔치국수
Banquet noodles
Simple warm noodles, soy-chili oil, fried topping. 'Feast' noodles for guests.
떡볶이
Spicy rice cakes
Chewy rice cakes in sweet-hot gochujang sauce. Street-food royalty.
김밥
Seaweed rice rolls
Rice, egg, pickles rolled in seaweed. Picnic + road trip essential.
순대
Korean sausage
Glass-noodle sausage with liver and lungs. Braver than it sounds.
핫도그
Korean corn dog
Battered, sugar-dusted, potato-cubed. Street snack gone global.
튀김
Korean fritters
Battered-fried squid, sweet potato, pepper — dipped in tteokbokki sauce.
떡
Rice cakes
Hundreds of kinds — from 꿀떡 to 인절미. Holidays = tteok.
호떡
Sweet syrup pancake
Cinnamon-sugar-nut filled griddle cake. Winter street legend.
붕어빵
Fish-shaped pastry
Custard (or red bean) in a fish mold. 'Eating the fish head first?' is a personality test.
계란빵
Egg bread
Sweet batter with a whole egg. Winter subway-entrance smell.
빙수
Shaved ice
Milk snow ice + red bean + fruit + condensed milk. Summer's answer.
소주
Soju
The green bottle. 16-20% now. Cheers is 건배, sorrow-drowning is 청춘.
막걸리
Makgeolli
Cloudy rice wine, fizzy and milky. Pairs with 전 (pancakes) on rainy days.
전통차
Traditional teas
유자차, 대추차, 옥수수차 — caffeine-free comfort in teahouses.