If you’re traveling to South Korea and are overwhelmed by the amount of food choices, you’re not alone. It can be a bit overwhelming to choose what to eat in South Korea because there is so much variety. Today, I want to point out a list of vocabulary related Korean foods that you can order from the menu, or have a waiter explain it to you.
Everybody loves tasty Korean food. But one problem that can plague novice learners of Korean is knowing what to order on the menu! Here’s a complete list of vocabulary related to ordering food.
Korea food table will always have a combination of rice, soup and side dishes.
(밥 국 반찬) which is called 백반 (Barkban)
And when you find yourself surrounded with lot many side dishes including fishes and meat then it's called 한정식.
Korean food names are a combination of ingredients and method of preparing like
- 불고기 Bulgogi Grill meat ( combination of 불 + 고기 , fire and meat )
- 김치찌개 Kimchi stew ( combination of 김치 + 찌개, kimchi and stew )
- 비빔밥 Bibimbap ( combination of 비빔 + 밥, to mix and rice )
Korean food can be divided into
- Meat dishes
- Noodles
- Soup/stew
- Stir fry
밥 Rice , 반찬 Side dishes which includes varieties of 김치 Kimchi. Some of them are :
No. | Korean names | Meaning in English |
|---|---|---|
1 | 배추김치 | Nappa cabbage |
2 | 배추겉절이 | Un-fermented nappa cabbage |
3 | 보쌈김치 | Wrapped kimchi |
4 | 백김치 | White kimchi |
5 | 동치미 | Non spicy watery kimchi |
6 | 나박김치 | Mild spice watery kimchi |
7 | 총각김치 | Ponytail Radish kimchi |
8 | 깍두기 | Cubed radish kimchi |
9 | 오이소박이 | Cucumber kimchi |
10 | 파김치 | Green onion kimchi |
11 | 열무김치 | Yeolmu radish |
12 | 갓김치 | Indian mustard |
13 | 양배추 김치 | Cabbage leaves kimchi |
Let's take a look at the other dishes :
No. | Korean names | Meaning in English |
|---|---|---|
14 | 라면 | Ramyeon |
15 | 된장찌개 | Soybean paste stew |
16 | 감자 튀김 | French fries |
17 | 삼계탕 | chicken Ginseng soup |
18 | 찜닭 | steamed Chicken dish |
19 | 군고구마 | Roasted sweet potato |
20 | 군밤 | Roasted chestnut |
21 | 삼겹살 | Samgyeopsal |
22 | 돼지갈비 | Pig rib |
23 | 한우 | Korean beef |
24 | 갈비 | Rib |
25 | 잡채 | Japchae |
26 | 냉면 | Cold noodle |
27 | 물냉면 | Watery cold noodle |
28 | 비빔냉면 | Dry cold noodle |
29 | 누룽지 | Scorched rice soup |
30 | 닭갈비 | Chicken rib |
31 | 볶음밥 | Remaining sauce and rice |
32 | 막국수 | Buckwheat noodle |
33 | 찜닭 | Steamed Chicken with soyabean sauce |
34 | 양념치킨 | Seasoned chicken |
35 | 양꼬치 | Skewers lamb meat |
36 | 생선회 | Sashimi |
37 | 생선구이 | Grilled fish |
38 | 막국수 | Buckwheat noodle |
39 | 물국수 | Watery noodle |
40 | 비빔국수 | Dry cold noodle |
41 | 짜장면 | Jajangmyeon |
42 | 짬뽕 | Janpong |
43 | 탕수육 | Fried pork/beef |
44 | 부먹 | Pieces of meat with sauce |
45 | 찍먹 | Piece of meat that has to be dipped in sauce |
46 | 칼국수 | Knife cut noodles |
47 | 잔치 국수 | Banquet noodles |
The name differs depending on the quantity of water in each of the dishes. So it can be called 탕 (Soup), 찌개 (Stew) or 전골 (Hot pot).
List of dishes prepared with Cow meat - 소고기 :
No. | Korean names | Meaning in English |
|---|---|---|
48 | 갈비탕 | Short rib stew |
49 | 설렁탕 | Beef bone soup |
50 | 곱창전골 | Beef tripe hot pot |
51 | 육개장 | Hot spicy meat stew |
List of dishes prepared with pig meat - 돼지고기 :
No. | Korean names | Meaning in English |
|---|---|---|
52 | 순대국 | Korean sausage soup |
53 | 감자탕 | Pork back bone stew |
54 | 부대찌개 | Beef tripe hot pot |
List of dishes prepared with chicken meat - 닭고기:
No. | Korean names | Meaning in English |
|---|---|---|
55 | 삼계탕 | Chicken soup with ginseng |
56 | 닭도리탕 | Chicken stew |
List of dishes prepared with fishes - 물고기:
No. | Korean names | Meaning in English |
|---|---|---|
57 | 북어국 | Dried Pollack soup |
58 | 추어탕 | Loach soup |
59 | 대구탕 | Codfish soup |
60 | 동태탕 | Frozen Pollack soup |
61 | 해물탕 | Seafood stew |
62 | 콩나물국 | Bean sprout soup |
63 | 된장찌개 | Soybean paste soup |
64 | 순두부찌개 | Soft tofu stew |
65 | 두부전골 | Tofu hot pot |
66 | 떡국 | Sliced rice cake soup |
67 | 만두국 | Dumpling soup |
68 | 만두전골 | Dumpling hot pot |
69 | 김치찌개 | Kimchi stew |
70 | 미역국 | Seafood soup |
71 | 떡볶이 | Tteokbokki |
72 | 오뎅 | Rice cake soup |
73 | 순대 | Blood sausage |
74 | 튀김 | Fried food |
75 | 김밥 | Kimbap |
76 | 호떡 | Pancakes |
77 | 붕어빵 | Fish shaped buns |
78 | 닭꼬치 | Chicken skewers |
I hope you have enjoyed the list of these unique and delicious Korean food name.
See also : 85+ Handy words and phrases to use at a Korean restaurant or cafe!!
80 Korean Travel words and Phrases to brush up on your language skills
To understand TOPIK Test structure, application process, Levels and Passing scores etc. check these pages:
- TOPIK – The Complete Guide & 2. TOPIK Levels and Passing Marks. You can also Practice Online with TOPIK GUIDE Mock Tests.
If you are going to take the TOPIK Test for the first time, or if you want to give your score a boost so that you can pass a higher level, we would strongly advise you to get the Complete Guide to TOPIK – Self-Study Package. It is a digital study package that has everything you need to get a great score in the TOPIK test – all the past TOPIK papers with answer sheets, grammar and vocabulary study material, video tutorials explaining the test structure, strategies to solve them and much more. You can check out more details about this study package HERE.
Thank you.
If you have any suggestions or questions. Comment down below.
