A guide to winter street food in Korea

The cold is here and there’s nothing better than food to make us feel warm.

Korea is known for its various street food every season. As you walk in the streets, you can see street vendors lined up with their fumes that arise and fill the streets making the passerby salivate. Just make sure to bring cash, preferably in 1,000 KRW cut and let me embark you in a gourmet journey.

• Hotteok (호떡)

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Starting with my all time favorite, Hoddeok, how can I put it in words? A sweet and savory pancake made of  flour, milk, yeast, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a little bit of nuts. I love to see them make it infront of it, so satisfying. But be careful or you’ll end up addicted to it like me, I am already craving it as im writing this.

• Bungeoppang (붕어빵)

Next, perhaps the most popular fish shaped bread in the world and no it doesn’t contain fish but red beans. They are crispy on the outside and very soft inside. You can find vendors that have big ones or small ones that you buy in a pack of 5 to 10 for around 2,000won.

• Gyeranppang (계란빵)

Gyeranppang or egg bread is a cutely round rectangular shaped snack filled with an egg. It has a sweet and salty taste, some stalls add nuts on top, be careful it can be very hot.

If you’re lucky you can catch the street vendor making it with a machine in which he pours the batter in little slots, cracks an egg and cooks it until golden brown. The process went viral on Instagram and it made people from all around the world want to try it.

Although they may seem small, Egg breads are affordable, varying from KRW 1,000 -2000 KRW.

• Gungoguma (‘군’ 고구마) | Baked Sweet Potatoes

If you’re looking for a healthy and filling snack with a few calories then sweet potatoes are here for you. In fact, every convenience store you has a stand dedicated to roasting it as soon as the cold hits. Hence, you can easily get a freshly roasted sweet potato everyday for around 1500 KRW.

• Ddeokbokki and fish cakes

The staple comfort food for any season: ddeokbokki , it is in my opinion, the best to get through a rough day. The mix of the spiciness of the red pepper and the chewiness of the rice cakes is the perfect combo to warm you up. Add to that the fish cake on a stick kept in its broth and you’re full.

• Walnut cake-snack

Perhaps, you may recognize this snack first by its smell then you see it. You can find it filling many subway stations with its wonderful smell that instantly makes you want it. This culprit’s name is Hodogwaja (호두과자),little walnut-shaped cakes filled with red bean paste and walnuts. This goes perfectly with any warm beverage.

• Roasted Chestnuts (군밤)

Any chestnut loving reader? This one is another popular street snack, sold by street vendors and in markets all over Korean cities.

• jeon

Finally, my favorite,. although it is a snack, I treat it as a whole meal. jeon stands for pancake and you can find different kinds , namely, seafood pajeon, kimchi or even potato jeon. It is made in front of you and you can eat it by dipping it in soy sauce, highly recommend you wont regret.

Locations:

Some of the most popular ones

And if you’re interested more about the behind the scenes, Netflix created a series about Street food in Asia and there’s a segment about Korea where Cho Yonsoon’s Korean Handmade Noodle Stall in Gwangjang Market is featured.