Best Food Tips for Inexperienced travellers in South Korea
Travel is not just visiting touristic places, sightseeing, famous monuments, historical heritage, etc. Travel is exploring the culture, learning something new. And one of the best ways to feel the country’s culture is to try the traditional food.
When I travel, I always try the local food. It is MUST DO in my travel list.
Today, I want to share with you tips on what to eat in different regions in South Korea. of course, there are different dishes in any city, but some dishes are more delicious only in that particular region.
#1 Busan — Seafood
Busan is the 2nd famous city in South Korea, and mostly because it is located on the seaside. Therefore, most people go to Busan to chill on the beach, and to try seafood. There are many fish markets in Busan, where you can choose any type of seafood and it will be cooked right there.
The most touristic Fish Market is Jagalchi. But, besides it, there are many other small fish markets around Busan too.
Personally, I like seafood a lot, and I like a spicy soup, which is called hyemul-tang(해물탕). It is a soup with different seafoods like octopus, shrimp etc, and it is boiled right on your table.
#2 Jeju Island — Dark Pork
Another famous city and island in South Korea is Jeju Island or Korean Hawaii. This island is very beautiful, and always crowded with tourists. Especially, now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it is difficult to travel abroad, many people prefer to go to Jeju Island, and spend their vacation there.
So, when you talk about what to eat on Jeju Island, the first thing that comes to my mind is Dark Pork or 흑돼지. The pigs are grown in special conditions, I am not telling it to you now. Because if I share it with you, maybe you won’t want to eat it xD But if you go to Jeju Island you should try any dish with dark pork. Especially, people like a barbeque with dark pork.
#3 Jeonju — Bibimbap
I think there is no foreigner who didn’t try a bibimbap in South Korea. Why? Because it is one of the dishes which is not so spicy, and which is super healthy, and which is cooked without meat. Bibimbap is a mix of rice with different salads and vegetables. And a motherland of bibimbap in Jeonju city. When you will visit Jeonju, you should ask the locals, why bibimbap is so famous there.
#4 Andong — Jjimdalk
I briefly told you about jjimdalk in my last post. Jjimdalk is a boiled chicken in a soybean sauce. Jjimdalk can be spicy with a red pepper, or can be not spicy at all. So, if you don’t eat spicy food, remember the name of that dish.
Andong is one of the oldest cities in South Korea. There are many historical and cultural places, which can help you to dive into Korean culture.
#5 Gyeongju — Sundubu
Now it is turn of historical capital of South Korea — Gyeongju city. It is a small but very cosy and nice city. Actually, this city is famous for the small baked cakes as well. When you walk around Seoul you can see a small stores with a signboard “Gyeonju Pang (경주빵)”
But I want to introduce to you another famous dish — Sundubu (순두부). It is a soup where the main ingredient is tofu. And the tofu is not the same which you can find in Korean salads. It is a special type of tofu, which is used for Sundubu. There are a lot of different types of Sundubu. It can be spicy or not, with meat or not, white or red, etc…
Conclusion
I am not telling you a history of each dish. It should be share in a separate story. But I am sharing with you what to eat, when you travel to different cities in South Korea. Besides these 5 regions, 5 dishes, there are plenty of other yummies, which you should try in Korea, and feel the Korean culture by yourself, when you will travel to South Korea.
Find me on Instagram and ask me any questions. Or if you be somewhere around South Korea, DM and we can try Korean traditional food together!
