Locally known as miyeokguk, seaweed soup is traditionally served on someone’s birthday or eaten after giving birth in Korea. Think of it as the equivalent of Filipinos having noodles on birthday celebrations. An article in Korea.net explained that serving seaweed soup is a custom that originated from the Goryeo dynasty when people observed that whales ate seaweed to recover from giving birth. The people then thought that seaweed is packed with invigorating nutrients beneficial to postnatal care and breastfeeding, so seaweed soup was then often served to women post-childbirth. Miyeokguk also pays tribute to Samsin Halmoni, the three goddesses of childbirth and destiny in Korean mythology who are believed to assist in childbirth and who bless newborns.  

We have seen how this simple soup has become a huge part of dramas such as in Hometown Cha Cha Cha, where Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a) attempts to cook for Chief Hong Du-Sik's (Kim Seon-ho) birthday despite having zero kitchen skills; and in Nevertheless, where second lead Yang Do-hyeok (Chae Jong-hyeop) cooks for his childhood friend and long-time love, Yoo Na-bi (Han So-hee).  

Read also: Song Kang: 5 Things You Need To Know About The ‘Nevertheless,’ Actor

It will be impossible not to crave those sweet, fresh crab claws once you’ve seen the Mido and Falasol band tear these crustaceans into bite-size pieces in Hospital Playlist 2, as well as in Choi Ung (Choi Woo-shik) and Kook Yeon-soo's (Kim Da-mi) first out of town date in One Beloved Summer. The same goes for when Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a) peels them for Chief Hong Du-Sik (Kim Seon-ho) in Hometown Cha Cha Cha, as she unconsciously proclaims her love for him saying, “Peeling crabs and shrimps are a true hassle. It takes a lot of love to do this for someone else.” Oooppsss. 

But did you know that snow crabs are traditionally served on New Year’s day in South Korea? In an article by Roger Dix in The Korea Times, he shares that Koreans partake of daegae (snow crabs) around the first of New Year because they believe that these giant crustaceans bring good health and good fortune throughout the year. So, if you happen to be in South Korea (especially around the first week of the year), you might want to check out Yeongdeok-gun (Yungduk County) in North Gyeongsang Province, the snow crab capital.  

Read also: 12 Heart-Fluttering K-Drama Couples We Love Then and Now

Created out of necessity, gamjatang (pork back-bone stew) is believed to have originated from Jeolla province in 1899 during the construction of the Gyung-ui railway. The province was known for agriculture and hog-raising, so there was an abundance of pork as opposed to beef—the latter having been tagged as more valuable then since cattle were found more useful in farming.  

The construction workers in the area needed something cheap for sustenance, so they thought of cooking pork back-bone with potatoes ('gamja' means potatoes and 'tang' means soup) and other ingredients. The result was a hearty soup that brought comfort to the laborers amid the chilly weather in Jeolla.  

The dish, now one of the iconic foods of Incheon, is an unspoken symbol of hard work and perseverance, very much like how it is depicted in the inspiring series, Dali and the Cocky Prince, where Jin Moo-hak (Kim Min-jae) came from a poor family who sold gamjatang in a public market, and years later, became the owner and director of the global foodservice company, Dondon F&B, which has more than 400 franchise stores. 

Read also: 10 K-Drama Second Leads We Still Root For

In the Netflix documentary Hanwoo Rhapsody, beef is described as “the ideal food that Koreans lived for” being the most valuable meat for them, so much so that serving beef to elders equates to giving them the best thing you have in life, as well as receiving beef as a gift means that you are incredibly special. The same documentary explained the role of cows in the celebration of the Mount Taebaek Cheonje festival, an annual ritual that involves offering a cow to the heavens as the Koreans’ most precious sacrifice.  

Fast forward to modern times, Korean beef, specifically Hanwoo, is regarded as the most premium for its flavour, quality, and marbling. The meat undergoes an efficient tracing process that includes a collection of hair samples from each cow upon birth for DNA testing at the Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation and assigning a record number to each cut of meat sold in the market. The record number is used to track where the cow is from, who raised it and what it was fed. Impressive! 

No wonder, King Lee Gon (Lee Min-ho) chose to prepare steak and rice in a hot pot for his “future queen” Jeong Tae-eul (Kim Go-eun) in the 2020 series, The King: Eternal Monarch. 

Read also: 10 of the Most Swoon-Worthy Moments in K-Drama Land

Like in many Asian countries, guksu (the Korean word for noodles), which symbolises longevity, is widely offered in Korea year-round. Among its many versions, two of the most highlighted in Korean dramas are kalguksu and bibim guksu. 

A warm, soothing noodle soup, kalguksu features flat handmade, hand-cut wheat flour noodles bathing in a flavourful broth with versions that differ from city to city. In Busan and Gyeongsangnam-do, anchovies are used to make it tangy while the beef bone broth is common in Seoul. A combination of anchovies and chicken broth characterises Gyeonggi-do's version, and clams and seafood are essential in Jeolla-do's.  

In an article in The Jeju Weekly, author Kimberly Comeau shares that the history of this kind of flat wheat noodles used in kalguksu dates back to the Joseon Dynasty but it was not until 1953 when commoners had wide access to wheat noodles when the US began supplying these as a relief. 

Kalguksu is traditionally part of the Yudu holiday table because wheat and barley are harvested around this time (the 15th day of the 6th month of the lunar calendar). Today, while kalguksu remains a Yudu staple, as well as a famous dish for birthdays and comfort food during the rainy season. 
 
On the other hand, bibim guksu is a cold spicy noodle dish that is popular during the hot summer months. Its strong, unique spicy flavour is derived from a blend of gochujang (red pepper powder) and minced garlic perfectly balanced with the acidity of the vinegar and the sweetness of sugar. A drizzle of aromatic sesame oil (another staple in Korean cooking) completes the flavour profiles.  

In the sensational romance series Start Up, Han Ji-pyeong (Kim Seon-ho) had bibim guksu on the day he attempted to confess his feelings for Seo Dal-mi (Bae Suzy). In another episode, Seo Dal-mi gave him his favourite pine mushroom kalguksu as a thanksgiving gift, which Han Ji-pyeong the “Good Boy” went head over heels with. Pine mushroom kalguksu is a speciality from Gangneung, a municipality located on South Korea’s east coast.  

Read also: 5 Kim Seon-ho Shows To Watch This 2021: Start-Up, 100 Days My Prince, And More
 

Like guksu, mandu (dumplings) is another mainstay in Korean culinary culture. Some accounts tell that it is one of the influences of the Yuan Mongolians on the Goryeo dynasty in the 14th century. The latter’s state religion discourages the consumption of meat but the arrival of the meat-eating Mongolians somehow relaxed this prohibition.  

There are many varieties of mandu—from steamed to pan-fried, ball-shaped to rectangular. Popular during summer, gyusang is a kind of mandu filled with cucumber and minced beef in the shape of a sea cucumber. Napjak-mandu, on the other hand, is a flat version filled with chopped glass noodles and vegetables—a famous speciality in Daegu.  

With its many forms, it is not surprising for Hotel del Luna’s Jang man-wol (IU) to generally describe everything on the table as mandu despite obvious differences in appearance when she had dinner with Ku Chan-Seong (Yeo Jin-goo) at a restaurant in the fantasy series’ pilot episode. 

Read also: Honest K-Drama Review: The Best and Worst Dramas of 2021
 

A vital part of today’s vibrant Korean nightlife, jjigae (stew) is a communal dish usually paired with alcoholic beverages like soju and beer.

Historical accounts say that during the Joseon Dynasty, the King would usually be served either a jjigae or guk (soup) as part of his royal meals.

Over the years, jjigae had evolved into different versions—from the pungent doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) and gochujang jjigae (red chilli paste stew) to sundubu jjigae which highlights soft tofu as the main ingredient. All of the versions are served piping hot alongside other delectable side dishes. 

In the blockbuster series Itaewon Class, sundubu jjigae symbolises success and later on, forgiveness for ex-convict Park Sae-ro-yi (Park Seo-joon), who worked hard to seek revenge towards Jangga Group in an attempt to obtain justice for his father's death. The appearance of this dish in this show enticed many people around the globe to try this hearty stew that looks as comforting as Park Seo-joon's alluring gaze. 

Read also: 7 Best Park Seo-Joon Shows to Watch: Itaewon Class, Fight For My Way and More