1. Kimbap
In order to make gimbap, dried seaweed is rolled up with white rice and a variety of vegetables, including spinach, pickled radish, carrot, egg, burdock, and others. When traveling or having a picnic, it is quite practical.
The major filling determines the name of the gimbap. There are other variations, including cheese, kimchi, and beef gimbap. For instance, tuna gimbap is made using canned tuna, mayonnaise, sesame leaves, and other vegetables.
2. Bibimbap
A full and healthy dish that is often offered in restaurants, food courts, and street markets is called bibimbap, which is another item you really must eat while in Seoul. Bibimbap can be served as either a meat-based dish or as a vegetarian dish, depending on the area and ingredients utilized.
Warm rice, beef or chicken, raw egg, mixed veggies, soy sauce, and a dab of chili pepper paste are the main ingredients of the most popular type of bibimbap. Hoedeopbap, a variant of classic Korean mixed rice meal that is perfect for seafood enthusiasts, swaps the meat for raw seafood like salmon, tuna, or octopus.
3. Kimchi
This traditional Korean cuisine has a history extending back more than 2,000 years to the Shilla Dynasty. Korean cabbage, radish, pumpkin, onion, ginger, scallion, chili powder, crushed garlic, and salty fish are combined to make kimchi, which is then allowed to ferment.
This regional dish, with more than 200 versions accessible in Seoul, is consumed on its own, with white rice, and as an ingredient in porridges, soups, and rice cakes. Additionally, kimchi serves as the foundation for numerous foods that are derived from it, including kimchi fried rice, kimchi pancakes, and kimchi stew (kimchi jjigae).
4. Tteokbokki
Thick slices of garaetteok (boiled rice cake), fish cake, onions, sliced garlic, salt, sugar, and other veggies are stir-fried in sweet red chili sauce to make tteokbokki, a classic Korean street meal. This well-liked delicacy is often offered by independent snack shops and street sellers and is distinguished by its vivid red-orange ensemble.
5. Jajangmyeon
6. Korean fried chicken
Korean fried chicken reinvents the classic American fast food in its own special way. Unlike its American equivalents, the chicken is double-fried in vegetable oil before being covered in a sweet-spicy sauce (some places include green pepper within the batter for a stronger kick).
As a consequence, the interior of the meat is extremely moist, and the lightly battered exterior is crispy and low in fat. It is a well-liked late-night treat that is frequently paired with beer.
7. Spicy cold noodle (bibim nengmyun)
In a stainless steel bowl, Bibim Nengmyun is served with cold broth, julienned cucumbers, Korean pear slices, boiled eggs, and cold-boiled beef slices. Although seaweed and green tea are sometimes used in other varieties, the long, thin noodles are created from flour and buckwheat or sweet potatoes.
The noodles are often offered uncut since they stand for longevity and good health, although customers can ask servers to cut the noodles in any way they choose.
8. Ginseng chicken soup
Samgyetang (chicken ginseng soup) is frequently consumed by the locals between the months of June and early September because they think that the body needs to renew its vitality throughout the summer.
A little spring chicken filled with chestnuts, garlic, dried jujubes, ginseng, sticky rice, and gingko nuts forms the base of this healthy soup. The mixture is then slowly simmered until the beef is quite soft and the rich liquid has a faintly bitter yet pleasing flavor.
9. Korean BBQ – Samgyeopsal
Another typical Korean meal, samgyeopsal, cooks chunky slices of pig belly on a grill right at the table and requires just rudimentary cooking abilities. Following that, it is wrapped in lettuce or sesame leaf and served with dipping sauces and toppings including kimchi, button mushrooms, green onions, raw garlic, and green chili peppers.
Samgyeopsal, a meal beloved among Seoul’s young professionals, is frequently enjoyed with one or two shots of soju alcoholic beverage.
10. Bulgogi: Korean Barbeque Beef
Traditional Korean meat dish called “bulgogi” is typically consisting of grilled beef simmered in sauce. For bulgogi, tender cuts like sirloin are utilized. Bul and gogi, which both refer to meat and represent roasted meat on fire, later came to denote the spice employed.
