The Korean wave has successfully engulfed the Philippines with all things Korean including food. There’s already enough talk about K-BBQ or samgyupsal. It’s time to expand your palate and explore more of what Korean cuisine has to offer. Koreans also love street food as much as Filipinos. From sweet and savory to spicy snacks, meats and vegetables to sticky and chewy delicacies—there’s surely something to please anyone.
If you love binge-watching K-dramas, then you should know what Korean snacks are available as the perfect match to your fave shows. With that, here’s the best Korean street food you can find in Metro Manila!
Tteokbokki
Tteokbokki is one of the most popular snacks in South Korea. Tteok or rice cake is stir-fried and mixed with a spicy red sauce made with gochujang. So tteokbokki is either spicy—or fiery spicy. You can also add boiled egg, fish cakes, cheese, or even ramen noodles (as in rabokki). Mixing in these ingredients can also help if it’s too spicy for your taste.
Where you can order:
Maria’s Tteokbokki: Facebook | Instagram
School Tteokbokki: Facebook | Instagram
Snow Panda: Facebook
Kimbap
Kimbap is like the Korean version of Japanese maki but cheaper and easier to make. If you’re hungry and on a budget, it can even pass as a meal. With kim or dried seaweed and bap or rice as the key ingredients, kimbap is filled with chopped cucumber, pickled radish, omelet, crabsticks, and ham. However, you can also find different versions such as tuna gimbap and bulgogi kimbap.
Where you can order:
Kimbap.atbp: Facebook | Instagram
Maria’s Tteokbokki: Facebook | Instagram
Kimbapchu: Facebook | Instagram
Mandu
Some of the best things are wrapped in dough. Just like the well-loved Japanese gyoza or Chinese jiaozi, mandu is also a famous Korean dumpling snack. Mandu is wrapped and folded into a round or half-moon shape. It can have different fillings, but the version that makes it uniquely Korean is kimchi mandu.
Where you can order:
Gaja Korean Kitchen: Facebook | Instagram
School Tteokbokki: Facebook | Instagram
Korean Mama: Facebook | Instagram
Fried Chicken
Sure, fried chicken is already very common, but the Korean version is still a unique must-try because of the sauce and coating used for it. Korean fried chicken has a thick coating of a spicy and sweet sauce, sprinkled with sesame seeds. It is often paired by Koreans with beer, a combination popularly known as chimaek.
Where you can order:
Chicken Chingu: Facebook | Instagram
24 Chicken: Facebook | Instagram
Mambo Chicken: Facebook | Instagram
Pajeon
There are different kinds of jeon or Korean pancakes—many of which are made with vegetables—but the most popular is pajeon. This jeon is made with pa or scallions which give it a sharp and sweet flavor. Other popular kinds of Korean pancakes are kimchi-jeon and haemul-pajeon (seafood).
Where you can order:
Gaja Korean Kitchen: Facebook | Instagram
Soban K-Town Grill: Facebook | Instagram
Korean Mama: Facebook | Instagram
Corn Dog
Once you try Korean corn dog, a hotdog on a stick will seem too boring. Despite the name in English, it is better known as kamja-hatdogeu or potato hotdog in Korean as the popular variety is made with French fries—which is what those little blocks sticking out of the corn dog are.
Where you can order:
Corndog 28: Facebook | Instagram
Gorae Hotdog: Facebook | Instagram
K-runch Crest: Facebook | Instagram
Complete your Korean street food party with milk and fruit tea drinks and more from Moonleaf on KKday!
*Featured image via Chicken Chingu, Corndog 28, Gaja Korean Kitchen, Kimbap.atbp
