Best Korean Snacks You Should Try

We’re all familiar with the normal 3 meals a day, right? Well, there’s also snacking and Korean snacks are well-loved in and out of Korea. Now, everybody loves snacks, including those in Korea! There are many different kinds of snacks in Korea, fit for anyone and everyone!

Here are the best Korean snacks you should try!

For easier reading, this list will be divided into different types of snacks: chocolate snacks, potato chip snacks, sweet potato snacks, ramen, seaweed snacks, and others.

Before you dive into the Korean snacks, here is a list of the Top 10 Korean Subscription Boxes you will love. It will be a great present for you and your friends.

Chocolate Snacks

Orion’s Choco Pie (초코파이)

Ah, Choco Pie! The origin of Choco Pie goes back to the early 1900s in the southern US, but today it’s widespread all over the world, including Korea. In fact, when I first learned about them at a very young, I thought they were Korean. That’s how good Korean marketing was and still is!

Probably because of its connection to South Korea and the United States of America, Choco Pies were momentarily banned from North Korea. Nowadays, Choco Pies are still forbidden in the closed-off country.

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Pepero (빼빼로)

Another staple in Korean snacks, Pepero is long cookie sticks that are dipped in chocolate. You can see Pepero in every Korean home and every Korean convenience store, and the compact and thin sticks make it so easy to consume. While the original Pepero is covered in plain milk chocolate, the Lotte Company has created some innovative and new flavors.

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Ghana Milk Chocolate Bars (가나 밀크 초콜릿)

Another chocolate snack that Koreans love is Lotte’s Ghana Milk Chocolate bars. You can say they are the first chocolate bars made in Korea. The name of the bar “Ghana” gives tribute to Ghana the country where most cacao beans are from. Ghana chocolate bars are mostly in red and dark brown wrapping, as pictured above. The chocolate bar is thin, creamy, and sweet. The perfect way to add a kick to your mood!

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Lotte Kancho Chocolate Biscuits (칸쵸 초코 쿠키)

These fun little round biscuits are filled with chocolate, and they’re just small enough that you can pop into your mouth and eat it in one try.

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Sunflower Seeds Chocolate Ball (헤바라기 초코볼)

This is the first Korean snack that I was ever introduced to. As the name suggests, this snack consists of sunflower seeds coated in a layer of chocolate–usually milk chocolate. Although not as popular as the other snacks on this list, people who enjoy this snack cite it as fun and easy to eat. It’s also relatively healthy compared to the other snacks on this list.

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Market-O Real Brownies

My favorite chocolate snack on this list is Market-O’s Real Brownie snacks. The individual, colorfully-wrapped brownies are very chewy and chocolatey. The small size of the brownies makes it easy to eat multiple brownies in one sitting, and you won’t make a mess in your seat either!

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Corn and Potato Snacks

Onion Rings (양파링)

After eating all of those chocolate snack options, you might want to try something with a slightly sour cast. Look no further than Onion Rings. As the name states, this snack is made up of ring-shaped corn snack that has an onion flavor. It has a crispy texture and as soon as you bite into it, your mouth will be overwhelmed with the flavor.

It is comparable to Lay’s Funyuns or the tortilla snack Takis, so if you love either of those, you’re sure to love Korea’s Onion Rings.

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Honey Butter Chip (허니버터칩)

There are several types of potato chips in every country, it seems. However, the best Korean snacks often come in the potato chip form. This snack is quite straight-forward. It’s potato in chip form! Korea has different brands and kinds of potato chips. For example, pictured below is a variant of the potato chip snack, Honey Butter Potato Chip.

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Purple Sweet Potato Chip (자색고구마칩)

Speaking of chips, another snack that is popular in Korea is Purple Sweet Potato Chip. The can in the picture above has no brand, but don’t be mistaken. In Korea, there are many snack companies who can flaunt their own version of sweet potato chips.

Similar to pringles, these purple chips are just some examples of the massive food trend in Korea right now. Sweet potatoes are being used to make not only chips but drinks, dessert, and ice cream, among many other things.

Goguma Kkang (고구마깡)

Sweet potato chips don’t come in pringle form only, though. As pictured above, sweet potato chips can take on many shapes and sizes, but one thing is for sure, Koreans love the flavor of sweet potato.

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Kkokkalcorn (꼬깔콘)

Another type of snack that is popular in Korea is corn snacks. Kkokkalcom is one such snack. Each piece of Kkokkalcorn invites a strong taste of corn, true to its name. A fun thing about Kkakkolcorn is that each piece is shaped like a cone, so children love to put one on each of their fingers as though their fingers need to be wearing hats. Or that their fingers are witches. Indeed, this is a fun and popular way to eat Kkokkalcorn, not only for children, but for teenagers, young adults, and adults.

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Sun Chips

The best Korean snack, in my opinion, is Sun Chips. More precisely, the original flavor of Sun Chips. Made with corn, these chips are a healthier options to the potato chips. But it’s not just corn. Each of the chips is tastefully adorned with salty seasoning that makes your mouth water witch each bite you take.

Korean Cookies

Crown Butter Waffle (버터와플)

For a crispy, sweet, and savory flavor, turn to Korea’s butter waffle snacks. As you can tell, these kinds of snacks are meant to resemble the much-loved European waffles, both in taste and in shape. But unlike the actual breakfast food, these waffle snacks are easy to eat and you don’t need to clean up any plates after! To retain the buttery taste, the expiration date for these cookies is limited to 6 months. The delicious taste beloved by all ages comes from the Netherland butter used. You will surely love the Crown Butter waffles with a cup of coffee.

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Crown Sando (크라운 산도)

Crown Sando is Korea’s first biscuit type cookie that comes in three different types of flavors: strawberry, milk mascarpone cheese, and chocolate. The crunchy cookie and sweet cream in the middle make it the perfect combination for all ages.

Margaret (마가렛트)

Lotte Margaret cookies are hard on the outside but soft and savory in the inside. The cookies resemble homemade soft peanut butter cookies. They come in three flavors: peanut, chocolate, and nuts. My favorite is the original peanut butter flavor. You just can’t stop with one!

Other Favorite Korean Snacks

Tom’s Farm Flavored Nuts

A recent discovery in Korea, these flavored almonds and different kinds of nuts are all the rage right now. These small bites are fun to eat and they come in many different flavors, including wasabi, basil and pesto, and Korea’s favorite honey butter, among others.

Korean Ramen

Of course, you can’t go to Korea and not encounter Korean ramen, which is a go-to snack for every occasion. Whether you are at home and want a small snack, or hiking or camping with your family and friends, a pack of ramen is your best friend! Very easy and fast to make, ramen comes in different flavors and from different Korean companies. They also have differing levels of spiciness, so there definitely is something for you! In addition to all that, you are free to add anything you want to your ramen! Meat, vegetables, eggs, dumplings, and more! Check out this post on the Best Korean Ramen You Must Try.

Korean ramen is so famous that other countries even have them in stock in their convenience store. Here is a honey and cheese flavored ramen bowl I found while in Hong Kong.

Seaweed & Seaweed Snacks

The most basic of Korean meals can consist of rice and seaweed. In other words, seaweed is as a staple in most Korean homes as kimchi or other kinds of banchan (side dishes). With this in mind, it’s no wonder that Koreans have been coming up with various Korean snacks that include seaweed in one way or another.

Below are different forms of seaweed and seaweed snack. Note that many Koreans also eat seaweed on their own, without any rice or vegetables.

Dried Squid (해오징어)

Something not many people think about when thinking about Korean snacks is dried squid, and it absolutely isn’t something a lot of people might choose as their favorite snack, but regardless, dried squid is a very delicious and popular Korean snack. Of course, there are many other dried meat and fruit that can be healthier replacements for chips.

Good news! You can get these many of these snacks in convenience stores all over Korea! If you want to read about convenience stores in Korea, you can read about them here.

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