Vegan Korean Treats You Ought to Try
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I believe we can all agree that getting a vegan in a international state can in some cases be a small tough. It’s complicated ample getting to examine the ingredients of your native grocery store snacks, enable alone understanding how they translate into a further language.
Now picture staying in a place so distinct from your possess that it utilizes a entirely special character program instead of the common ABC. Google translate will not assist you here…
Audio common? Well, this is specifically what I knowledgeable when I lived in South Korea for two many years. It was a true obstacle discovering vegan foods at all, enable by itself vegan Korean treats!
My Lookup for Treats as The Hungriest Vegan in Korea
I will not go so considerably as to say that I’m a greedy vegan. But then once again, I form of am. I commit most of my everyday living wondering about meals and typically base my travels close to the snacks or nearby cuisine that I want to try out.
Even so, this was easier mentioned than done in a region wherever veganism is practically unheard of. In the identical way that it is hard getting a vegan in Japan, modern Korean foodstuff usually uses seafood and meat as portion of the core ingredients…yes, even in their snacks!
Korean sector
The issue of finding vegan Korean snacks received less complicated about time, as I created my Korean language expertise and networked with other vegans living in Korea. But I definitely expended my truthful share of time hungry and stuck with practically nothing to eat even though my pals gorged by themselves on chicken wings, tteokbokki, fish cakes, Peperos, and Choco Pies.
Nevertheless, I shortly discovered a plethora of vegan Korean snacks (many thanks to my extraordinary indigenous friends and the guidance of the Vegan Korea Facebook group) and finished up leaving the place a little bit heavier than when I arrived!
Korean Vegan Treats 101
In an endeavor to make your life a very little bit easier when you are upcoming in Korea, I’ve attempted my greatest to list as several vegan snacks as doable to hold you fuelled in unique eventualities.
For illustration, you could come across these snacks when you are travelling by using automobile or bus and cease off at a relaxation quit, watching a motion picture at the cinema, popping into a comfort store although on your buying journey in Busan, or checking out the quite a few foodstuff marketplaces of Seoul.
Right here are the Ideal Korean Vegan Treats
Rice cakes/tteok – greatest snack from Korean food items marketsSweet popcorn – ideal snack at CGV cinemasNo Meat Burger – finest snack from advantage storesRoast chestnuts – very best snack at petrol/gasoline stations (relaxation stops)
These are just a several of my favourite plant-dependent treats you can obtain in typical predicaments and areas you might locate by yourself in throughout South Korea. I have tried them all (quite a few situations) and vetted their elements to ensure that they are harmless to eat as a vegan, but be sure to make sure you adhere to the guidance I give beneath to prevent any uncomfortable scenarios.
But there are many a lot more tasty treats than the four I have stated previously mentioned, so maintain scrolling to feast your eyes on even additional tasty Korean vegan snacks!
Vegan Korean Road Food & Marketplace Treats
A person of the greatest means to knowledge area lifestyle is to go to neighborhood marketplaces and Korea has a lot of vibrant food stalls and street food stuff suppliers to decide on from. If you’re a vegan, I would advise preventing the seafood sections. But really do not worry, these are ordinarily retained separate from the other varieties of foods.
Fortunately, there are plenty of amazingly tasty Korean vegan snacks lurking amongst the bustling stalls. Below are some of my faves:
Twister Potato Sticks
Twister potato sticks
Deep-fried spiralised potatoes seasoned with onion powder. Tornado potatoes are not the healthiest snack in the globe, but they guaranteed do get your mouth drooling! Just make confident you choose the onion powder relatively than the cheese, or just go without.
Ddeok (Rice Cakes)
Ddeok (떡) rice cakes
These are truthfully some of the tastiest treats I’ve ever eaten, and they are so adorable! Manufactured from rice flour, ddeok (떡) are smooth and chewy and typically occur with a sweet filling inside, usually pink bean or chestnut paste, which are each vegan. Having said that, some have honeyed sesame seeds, so look at out for people.
To be protected, inquire for danpat (단팥), which signifies sweet azuki bean. Ddeok are terrific for sharing, by the way, and they make a great gift. I acquired and received these all the time when I was training English in Korea).
Kongguk (Bean Soup)
Kongguk (콩국) bean soup
Throughout the summer months months, you may come throughout meals stalls advertising kongguk (콩국), kong meaning bean or soybean and guk indicating soup. Eating places sell this as a food with noodles (kongguksu – 콩국수), but you can purchase just the soup from street food distributors and drink it to continue to keep interesting while exploring the rest of the food marketplace.
It is absolutely vegan (even though dining places will serve a boiled egg on top rated) and so refreshingly tasty!
Hotteok (Sweet Pancakes)
Hotteok (sweet pancakes)
I just cannot get ample of hotteok, but they’re commonly only offered in the course of the colder months. Even though the dough is usually accidentally vegan, some street meals distributors will use eggs, milk, or even honey. This is wherever learning some easy Korean vegan phrases would arrive in helpful, due to the fact these extraordinary street meals snacks are not to be skipped!
Kimbap/Gimbap (Seaweed Rice)
Kimbap/gimbap (seaweed rice)
The Korean edition of sushi, kimbap is a blend of elements wrapped in rice and seaweed. Most street distributors and takeaways make these clean, so you can ask for the fillings you want. Beware of spam, eggs, and crab sticks, and just ask for vegetables (야채), which ordinarily include things like pickled radish, carrots, steamed greens, and braised burdock root.
Plant-Based Treats from Benefit Suppliers and Supermarkets
Obtaining vegan treats in Korean convenience stores and supermarkets is having simpler today, particularly if you are primarily based in some of the key towns these kinds of as Seoul or Busan. Personally, I spent most of my time in Geoje, a small and rural island off the south coast, which produced factors a tiny extra difficult.
Nonetheless, you may be surprised by what you will find, even in the most remote areas. I’ve completed my finest to record some of the most generally discovered plant-primarily based snacks:
No Meat Burger
No Meat Burger in Korean ease stores
Yep, you browse that correct. No Meat Burgers, or microwaveable vegan burgers, have not long ago produced an physical appearance in Korean advantage outlets nationwide.
1 factor you’ll detect when you stroll into a 7 Eleven, GS25, or CU is that they generally have microwaves, hot h2o dispensers, tables, and chairs so you can cook dinner and eat your advantage food stuff ideal there in the store!
These plant-based mostly patties have saved me on lots of situations right after a night out in the noraebang (karaoke) with my mates, and they’re basically rather tasty. You could not generally obtain them in rural places, but they’re turning into more and far more common.
Roast Sweet Potato
Occasionally, Korean usefulness suppliers have a minimal oven on display with deliciously smooth roast sweet potatoes that soften in your mouth. They are 100% vegan and very inexpensive!
Frozen Vegan Galbi & Kimchi Mandu
Frozen vegan galbi & kimchi mandu
Unlimeat brought out a range of frozen vegan mandu in 2 different flavours: galbi (a soy mince edition of grilled ribs) and kimchi (fermented cabbage). You can buy these from the supermarket or advantage retail store, where by you can heat them up in the microwave to consume straight away!
Jaws Ice Cream
Jaws Ice Product
Shark ice cream! This uncomplicated fruit-flavoured ice handle is really refreshing on a incredibly hot Korean day.
Tteokbokki Crisps
Tteokbokki crisps
Spicy sweet tteokbokki-shaped crisps! As opposed to most crisps you are going to get in the United kingdom, Korean crisps are generally sweet and sugary, and this tteokbokki snack is no diverse. If you are seeking for savoury vegan crisps, you’re better off getting the salted Pringles that are sold in most Korean comfort shops.
Korean Vegan Snacks from Petrol Stations/Relaxation Stops
I have been on some pretty very long bus and car or truck journeys throughout Korea and learnt the hard way how tricky it is to discover vegan food items together the way. Buses ordinarily cease off at rest stops, where by you’ll get 15 minutes to use the bathroom and get some treats.
If you are fortunate and cease off throughout the day, the food stalls will be open up. If not, then there is usually a 24-hour usefulness retail store exactly where you can locate a couple of the treats I’ve pointed out in the higher than section. There are often dining establishments as perfectly, which are a wonderful put to buy bibimbap if you’ve acquired extended than 15 minutes!
Below are some of my favorite Korean relaxation quit treats, usually obtainable fresh new to obtain from the outdoor food items stalls:
Roast Bam (Chestnuts)
New off the coals, these babies are pure creamy, nutty bliss! And of course they’re 100% vegan, since they are just chestnuts (밤).
Boiled Gamja (Potato) and Sugar
Absolutely a person of the weirdest snacks I have at any time purchased, Koreans steam or boil their potatoes (감자) and provide them coated in sugar or with a pot of sugar to dip them in.
Plant-Dependent Snacks from Korean Cinemas
I’m not usually an avid cinema goer, but I went dozens of instances although dwelling in Korea, and just one of the finest discoveries was when I found out I could consume the sweet popcorn! Of study course, you can opt for from a wide variety of delicate drinks to clean down your snacks as perfectly.
Sweet (and Salted) Popcorn
No butter is utilized to make the sweet or salted popcorn in CGV cinemas in Korea, which is wonderful information for vegans! Make sure you stay away from any other flavourings.
Nachos
Most cinemas will give you a tray of nachos and sachets of sauce to increase to the other compartments. Only check with for no cheese sauce and you can delight in your salted nachos with tomato salsa.
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