South Korea is undoubtedly a food paradise. No matter what you want to eat, whether it’s a bowl of piping hot stewed tofu or ready-to-eat egg bread, you can buy it almost anywhere. Aside from the meals you can buy almost anywhere, traditional Korean snacks are also a hit to both locals and foreigners. Some of these good snacks have a rich and colorful history and are even served in the royal court, and some were invented and made popular because of their unique flavors. In this article we’ll be discussing the traditional snacks you should try when you visit South Korea.

Dalgona Candy

Also known as Ppopgi, is a crunchy, sweet, toffee-like old-school candy that many Koreans loved in their childhood. In the past, stalls selling dalgona on the streets of Seoul were very common, but the number has been slowly decreasing over the years.

Dalgona candy is made up of only two ingredients: sugar and baking soda, stirring as little as possible. The weekend is a good parent-child bonding event, especially for parents who have no way to let their children be. Before the sugar mixture cools and hardens, prepare cookie cutters of different shapes and make different patterns on the candy.

Hotteok

Hotteok or Korean pancakes are popular street food that’s essentially pancakes stuffed with brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts, and seeds. The pancake dough is made with a mixture of ordinary rice flour and glutinous rice flour. It is chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside when it is fried. Different stalls have different kinds of flavors and add-ons, but honey and brown sugar are classic flavors that can never go wrong.

Korean honey cookies

Korean honey cookies or also known as “Yakgwa” is a type of traditional honey biscuit that’s shaped like a flower. These cookies are usually eaten during special occasions like “Chuseok”, but nowadays you can find them at bakeries and cafes being served with coffee or tea which compliments the taste of these cookies. When “Yakgwa” is translated into English, “yak” means medicine and “gwa” means sweet pertaining to the health benefits and sweetness of honey. This type of cookie is fried, not baked, and is made with simple ingredients like sesame seeds, honey, rice wine, and ginger. Korean honey cookies are also good to give as gifts for family and friends.

Pine rice cakes(Songpyeon)

Rice cakes, also known as tteok, are a staple food in Korean cuisine. In addition to savory dishes such as tteokbokki (spicy rice cake) and tteokguk (rice cake soup), you can also find it in desserts. For example, songpyeon is a very popular dessert, usually eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival(Chuseok). Songpyeon is commonly filled with red bean paste and comes in a variety of colors and shapes. These colors are from natural ingredients such as cinnamon and dried fruit powders. It is said that it represents wealth and prosperity, and many families still gather to make this traditional Korean snack during the Mid-Autumn Festival.