Incredibly Amazing and Good Korean Snacks To Try at Home

Dubu-gangjeong

Dubu-gangjeong is another good Korean snack to try at home. It’s basically sweet and crunchy tofu (dubu means tofu in Korean). 

Interestingly enough, according to Maangchi, dubu-gangjeong is originally a Korean temple food and a super popular dish served in Buddhist temples in Korea. 

Note this–there is NO GARLIC in this Korean cuisine because it is actually forbidden in temples. Interesting, right? 

You see, it’s similar to fried chicken, but no meat is used.

This is an especially good recipe if you’re vegetarian or trying to refrain from eating so much meat.

Also, it’s super delicious if you want to pair it with white rice.

Depending on the recipe, here are some typical ingredients that may be used for this dish:

• Firm or medium firm tofu
• Corn starch
• Potato starch
• Sugar
• Soy sauce
• Ketchup
• Gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste – SUPER popular in Korean cuisine)
• Mulyeot (Korean corn syrup)
• Korean rice syrup (good alternative for mulyeot)

Korean Rice Balls

From personal experience, I can tell you that Korean rice balls are SUPER CONVENIENT Korean snacks you need to try and they taste DELICIOUS, too! 

I made these for my husband the other day and he absolutely LOVED them! It’s seriously one of the best Korean snacks I’ve tried.

In case you’re unfamiliar with Korean rice balls, they are very similar to Japanese rice balls (called onigiri).

What I like about them, too, is that they are SO incredibly easy to make! 

For one of the most basic Korean rice balls, all you need are the following ingredients:

• Sushi rice (short grain or medium grain rice)
• Roasted sesame seeds
• Sesame seed oil
• Seaweed sheets

Although you can cook rice on the stovetop, I always have problems with this. (I really don’t know why, either). I used my Aroma rice cooker, which also works as a steamer and a slow cooker, to make the sushi rice, and it came out perfectly!

Also, although not vegetarian, I’ve also included tuna into these rice balls, and let me tell you… they taste FANTASTIC!

Check out my page on Korean rice balls for more recipe ideas!

Korean Corn Cheese

Korean corn cheese (or Korean cheese corn) is very easy to make and delicious, too. It’s actually a Korean-American invention that’s commonly served in many modern Korean restaurants.

More specifically, Korean corn cheese is made with sweet corn kernels, cheese, and butter or mayonnaise and you bake it like you would a casserole. That’s basically it!

This good Korean snack is so versatile, too. You can either eat it with a fork or spoon, you can spread it on a cracker, or you can even use it as a dip.

Another fun fact is that many Korean pizzas use corn as a topping on their pizzas! Interesting, right? It’s definitely not a common thing in American cuisine (maybe for some barbecue pizzas), but not a bad idea.

**On a side note, they say this snack or appetizer goes well with alcohol. I haven’t personally tried it like this, though.

If interested, you can find the recipe for this at NYTimes.com.

Gilgeori-toast

Gilgeori toast is another super popular street food in Korea! The literal translation of gilgeori toast in Korean is “street toast”.

It’s basically an egg sandwich, but there is SO much more to it!

And, an added bonus is that this is SUCH an easy recipe to make! And it’s quick, too! You can definitely say it’s probably one of the best Korean snacks to try at home!

These are some common ingredients for Gilgeori-toast from Korea:

• Eggs
• White bread
• Carrots
• Cabbage
• Onions or scallions
• Ketchup
• Mayonnaise
• Slice of ham (optional)

That’s basically it! However, you can totally dress it up as you wish. Why not add some kimchi to spice it up a bit? Or gochujang paste? It wouldn’t hurt, right?

Gamjajeon

Gamjajeon is another type of Korean pancake. However, it’s different from the mungbean pancake (and the kimchi pancake) because it’s made primarily from grated potatoes, oil, and salt.

Aside from using grated potatoes, many people like to add shredded potatoes, cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, and/or scallions.

In addition, many people like to dip these grated potato pancakes in a vinegar and soy sauce dip called choganjang.

Kimchi Rice

Kimchi rice, also known as kimchi-bokkeum-bap, is a type of fried rice dish and it’s SO good–trust me. It’s a very popular South Korean snack or side dish. 

(Whenever I would order it when I lived in Southern California, I used to order it as my main meal haha).

So, even though I can’t handle spicy food too well, I love kimchi rice so, so much! I usually have to eat it with boba milk tea to tame it down a little.

FYI, the following ingredients are often included in kimchi rice recipes:

• White rice
• Kimchi
• Diced vegetables like cabbage and carrots (similar to other fried rice dishes)
• Diced Meat (like pork or ham)
• Fried egg on top

I’m telling you… it’s really, really good!

(I know I keep saying this, but it’s the absolute truth! Maybe I just like food too much, haha).

In case you’re interested, here’s a kimchi fried rice recipe found on NYTimes.com. (Take a look at some helpful tips in the comments section of the page).

Final Thoughts on Korean Snacks to Try

Well, I hope I’ve inspired you to try at least some of these extremely good Korean snacks! You have to at least try one of them, lol. Really, though!

Is there anything mentioned here that stands out to you? Which recipe would you like to try? Is there a Korean snack you can buy online that you really like and recommend?

Let me know in the comments section below!