The Korea Herald

소아쌤

[Korea Quiz] (35) Koreans' favorite winter snack

By Korea Herald

Published : Dec. 28, 2022 - 14:08

    • Link copied

Test your knowledge of Korea with our weekly quiz on the language, culture, history or anything K-related. -- Ed.

Find the answer at the bottom of the page.

In Korea, some street snacks are strongly associated with a particular season.

The most iconic seasonal delicacy sold at street stalls around this time of year is bungeoppang, which literally translates to carp bread.

These fish-shaped waffles, stuffed with sweet red bean paste, ranked atop an online survey of favorite winter snacks, conducted with 44,090 Koreans from Oct. 21 to Nov.4.

Over 30 percent of respondents chose it as their favorite, which placed it well above roasted chestnuts at 16.5 percent, baked sweet potatoes at 12.4 percent, hotteok sugar pancakes at 11.7 percent and eomuk or oden (fish cake) at 10.8 percent.

The fish-shaped pastry is believed to have arrived in Korea in the 1930s, originating from the Japanese treat taiyaki, which takes its name from the red snapper. The Korean adaptation ditched red snapper for carp, as the latter was far more commonly found here.

The price of bungeoppang is typically 1,000 won ($0.77) to 2,000 won per pack, which normally has two or three buns. Some food stalls offer bungeoppang filled with more diverse fillings, including cream cheese, melted chocolate, mashed sweet potatoes or ice cream.

Answer: b