Korean Local Dishes In Foreign Markets; Jajangmyeon And Korean Fried Chicken Are Making Their Way To Global Tables

Korean food is known around the world because of its undeniably delicious flavors. Perhaps, most of us have tasted barbecue and kimchi, which are two of the most well-known Korean dishes in the world.

Some Korean dishes have proven to be competitive even in foreign markets, including two local dishes which are now making their way to global tables. These two are jajangmyeon and Korean fried chicken.

Jajangmyeon is known as Chinese cuisine in Korea, however, restaurants in China do not serve this dish, Korea Joongang Daily noted on Friday. The Chinese-Korean dish is also known as noodles in black bean sauce.

The dish was derived from a type of Chinese noodle dish with chunjang toppings [zhajiangmian]. However, "the Korean version evolved to be sweeter with an abundance of assorted vegetables and meat."

Jajangmyeon is being served by a restaurant in London called Kimchee. The restaurant listed the Chinese-Korean dish on its menu in 2011.

On the other hand, more and more people are loving Korean-style friend chicken. The varieties of flavors is said to be the reason why Korean-style friend chicken is popular worldwide.

"Korean-style fried chicken is becoming more popular in the U.S. Kyochon's garlicky, soy sauce chicken, which is different from the fried chicken they might have at KFC, for example, is getting an especially good response abroad," says Gil Yeong Hwa of Kyochon Chicken.

Gil adds, "We had customers standing in line for two hours for their chicken."

In addition, chimaek ("chi" for chicken and "maek" for maekju or Korean beer) became a hit in South Korea for years already, as noted by CNN on June 22. Some Koreans consider it as part of their culture.

"It's part of our national culture," says bar owner Park Vito. "Chimaek is both an industry and a part of our dining culture."

An employee from a legal firm in South Korea says chimaek gives her relief after a day of work.

"Chimaek is like a sigh of relief," says Kim Min Jeong. "Chimaek after work lets me know I've survived another day."