Hey Fanworkers!👋
When the weather turns chilly, warm snacks start to come to mind~~ ! You can find winter treats like bungeoppang, hotteok, and hoppang in the streets these days. Eating sweet snacks while warming your hands against the chilly breeze feels extra special somehow! This newsletter will introduce you to the charm of these winter snacks, their stories, and how to enjoy them.😋
🐟Bungeoppang
Bungeoppang is one of Korea’s classic autumn and winter snacks! Originally, it’s a fish-shaped pastry made by pouring a thin batter and red bean filling into a mold. But it has evolved to include a variety of fillings over time!I’ve seen some people have preferences for different flavors, but I’ve never met anyone who actually dislikes bungeoppang! 😂
Bungeoppang is mostly sold from trucks or mobile stalls during the winter, so it can be hard to find. Since the sales locations aren’t fixed and often aren’t marked on maps, you have to remember where your favorite spots are or wait for the bungeoppang truck to show up.🥲 Also, they often operate irregularly depending on the weather and the vendor’s schedule, so there’s no guarantee you’ll always be able to get some, which is a bit of a bummer. Even if you want to enjoy bungeoppang often, this inconvenience can make it feel like a kind of ‘treasure hunt🎁‘ for many people, adding to the idea that it’s a special treat you can only enjoy in winter. Anyway, let me introduce you to some well-known bungeoppang spots that are relatively easy to find due to their great taste and generous fillings! 🎉
@kingapang IG
Namyeong Station Sweet Rice Bungeoppang
🏷️ 3 for 2,000 KRW / Red Bean
Famous for its generous fillings, Namyeong Station Sweet Rice Bungeoppang is a must-try! They’re known for packing in so much red bean paste that the batter becomes almost transparent! 😍 Because of the hearty portions, there’s often a line of people waiting in front of the shop, so they’ve set a limit on how many you can buy—up to 6!
A big plus is that this shop operates from a storefront, not a truck, so you don’t have to hunt down a food truck for your bungeoppang fix! They’re closed on Sundays and open daily at 7:15 AM, closing around 7 PM, so make sure to visit during those hours. They say the best time to go when it’s less crowded is around 9:30 AM.
💡Oh, and just a heads-up! While there’s a slight difference in the flour batter between bungeoppang and sweet rice bungeoppang, for most people, it doesn’t really make much of a difference! 😂 Can we just call them all bungeoppang to keep it simple? Hehe!
Mangwon Market Sweet Potato Bungeoppang
When the weather gets cold, one of the iconic snacks that comes to mind in Korea is roasted sweet potatoes! 🍠 And guess what? They’ve turned that beloved sweet potato into bungeoppang! Hehe!
It seems like most Koreans really love anything related to sweet potatoes. The sweet potato bungeoppang from Mangwon Market isn’t overloaded with fillings, but the sweet potato mousse is so sweet that it’s just the right amount! Plus, the purple batter reminds you of purple sweet potatoes, making the experience of eating bungeoppang even more enjoyable. It really feels like you’re eating sweet potatoes! If you’re looking for a sweet and soft bungeoppang, I highly recommend the sweet potato version! 😋
@할명수 youtube
Hyochang Park HyoGong Bungeoppang
🏷️ 3 for 2,000 KRW / Red Bean, Cream, Choco Cream, Maekomi
Known as the classic bungeoppang, HyoGong Bungeoppang features a perfectly balanced sweet red bean filling in a delicious dough. 😋 But the real star here is their signature flavor—Maekomi! This special menu item includes spicy fried kimchi as the filling, giving it a delightful sweet and spicy twist.🌶️✨
People who are curious about the taste often order just one, only to regret not getting more, saying, “Ah! I should have bought more😂!” It’s that tempting! When you start to feel a bit tired of sweet bungeoppang, just one bite of the Maekomi version will make you feel like you’re starting fresh again. The kick of the Maekomi flavor is something you definitely don’t want to miss, so all you fanworkers heading there should be sure to order the Maekomi flavor!
😯Hoppang
Hoppang is a steamed bun made by putting red bean paste or vegetables inside a flour dough and cooking it in a steamer. You can find it on the streets, but when the weather gets cold, many convenience stores in Korea have hoppang machines that steam them right there for sale. So, I highly recommend stopping by a nearby convenience store! 🌟
@Samlip
The most standard fillings for hoppang are red bean and vegetables, but these days, pizza hoppang has become quite popular too! 🍕 Would you like to check out some other varieties of hoppang with different flavors? 🕶️
@Samlip
▫️Spicy Pork Belly Hoppang
Filled with spicy pork belly based on gochujang (red chili paste) and packed with spicy Cheongyang peppers, this hoppang has a delightful smoky aroma! 🌶️🔥
▫️Spicy Kimchi Hoppang
Experience the full flavor of well-fermented kimchi in this spicy hoppang. With the addition of radish, it offers a chewy texture that true Koreans will love! 🥬❤️
▫️Honey Sweet Potato Hoppang
A must-try for sweet potato lovers! This hoppang uses domestic honey to create a deep sweetness, giving you the feeling of enjoying a luxurious dessert. 🍠🍯
🫓 Hotteok
Hotteok is a sweet, filled Korean pancake that’s especially popular in the winter! 🍯 It’s usually stuffed with a delicious mixture of brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped nuts, then pan-fried until golden brown and crispy on the outside while remaining soft and gooey on the inside. When you take a bite of the chewy dough, the warm syrup flows out and instantly makes you happy! 😍
It’s not just a light syrup; it has a slightly thick consistency with sugar granules and nuts that give it a delightful crunch, so you can enjoy every bite without getting tired of it. Hotteok, like bungeoppang, is sold at street stalls and trucks, but you can also find many shops that sell it. It’s definitely easier to come across than bungeoppang!
@seoul_hotteok
Seoul Hotteok
This is one of Korea’s representative hotteok chain stores! They offer everything from the classic chewy Seoul hotteok to the adorable heart-shaped love hotteok.🩷
But it’s not just the basic hotteok; they also have unique flavors like mugwort hotteok, cream cheese hotteok, red bean hotteok, and japchae hotteok, all made with ingredients that Koreans love! With so many locations, if you’re craving hotteok, be sure to visit Seoul Hotteok! 😊🍯
@hoonhoon_hotteok
Hoonhoon Hotteok
Located in Mangwon Market, Hoonhoon Hotteok is famous for offering unique hotteok flavors that go beyond the original taste. Especially when they launched their cheese seasoning hotteok, it garnered a ton of attention on social media! 🧀✨
The sweet and savory cheese seasoning pairs perfectly with the chewy texture of the hotteok, making it a beloved choice. Not only that, but they also have unique options like Oreo hotteok and injeolmi hotteok, which are popular among the younger generation thanks to their distinctive visuals. Being located in the market, it’s a favorite spot for tourists as well! 🥰
@ayheyaseoul IG
Ayheya Seoul is a café that specializes in hotteok baked in an oven instead of deep-fried! Thanks to this method, their hotteok has a lighter taste compared to others. Here, you can find not only the original hotteok but also unique flavors that you can only taste at this café.
The Mammoth Hotteok, made with buttery crumble and chewy bread dough, has a much chewier appeal compared to other mammoth breads. ✨ The Mungyeong Apple Crumble Hotteok features stewed Mungyeong apples topped generously with a crumble made from natural butter, creating an apple crumble hotteok version.🍎
You can also enjoy the Corn Cheese Potato Hotteok, packed with corn cheese and potatoes, and the Pizza Hotteok, which blends traditional Margherita style with hotteok. Plus, there’s the universally loved Ice Cream Hotteok! 🍦 If you want to enjoy hotteok in a more special way, be sure to visit Ayheya Seoul!
What do you think? When you read about bungeoppang, don’t you feel like eating it? And when you read about hoppang, you want that too, and the same goes for hotteok! 😋
Author Jiyoon South Korea
