Cultural Post #3
Korean Fried Chicken
David Kim
30262888
david.kim123@richmond.edu
When I first went to BBQ Chicken in Carytown, I was surprised to see a Korean Fried Chicken restaurant around campus. In fact, the name chicken in Korea is a term that means fried chicken itself. In Korea, fried chicken is overwhelmingly more popular than other fast foods such as pizza and hamburgers. It is also widely loved as a late-night snack. Eating fried chicken while watching TV or movies at night has become a common scene on weekends or holidays at home. After landing in Korea, fried chicken has spread widely in line with the delivery culture, and has been a popular localized Korean fusion dish through various attempts and changes in taste. Until the Korean War, chickens were mainly boiled, steamed, or grilled. With the creation of the United States Forces Korea, the southern-style fried chicken culture centered around each unit. The southern-style fried chicken became popular in the markets during the 1960s and 1970s. Korea's first fried chicken brand was created in the late 1970s, and now Korean fried chicken dishes have developed since the 1980s. In 1971, Haepyo's cooking oil was released for the first time in Korea, and conditions for mass production of chicken and oil were set. In 1977, Korea's first fried chicken restaurant, Rims Chicken, opened at Shinsegae Department Store. In 1979, Lotteria began selling sculpted chicken. Small-scale fried chicken restaurants began to emerge in the 1980s. In 1984, KFC entered Jongno-gu, Seoul through Doosan. At that time, KFC's fried chicken price was expensive, but it was known as a famous meeting place for young people. Its unique spicy taste gradually began to become popular in Korea. The beginning of the golden chicken era opened in 1985 when yangnyeom chicken was created and spread. Yangnyeom chicken is a type of Korean fried chicken seasoned with sweet and spicy sauce. Gyeseong Tongdak in Daegu and Ferricana in Daejeon introduced yangnyeom chicken, It was the opening of the era called "half-yangnyeom and half-fried." Since then, a large number of chicken brands have begun to appear, including Mexican Chicken, Cheogajip Seasoned Chicken, Iseobang Yangnyeom Chicken, Mexican Chicken, Kyochon Chicken, Nene Chicken, and much more. In the mid-2000s, Kyochon chicken's soy sauce chicken was the trend that brought changes to the chicken industry. In the late 2000s, green onion chicken and oven chicken spread like a trend, and other competitors responded by offering similar menus. In 2015, powdered chicken using seasoning became popular, such as Bburinkle Chicken and Snow Cheese Chicken. Due to the influence of honey butter chips, fried chicken with honey started to be released. Now Korean fried chicken is sold all over the world, including in America, Canada, and even North Korea. South Korean fried chicken entered North Korea in 2007 when Rockwon Chicken Restaurant opened in North Korea. Even though Korean fried chicken started by the influence of the southern method of cooking, it is now one of the representative fusion food of South Korea. It was such a great experience of having and seeing other people enjoying Korean fried chicken in America. I strongly recommend everyone to try Korean fried chicken because they are absolutely one of the best.
Korean Resource
https://www.sisunnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=127937
https://www.etoday.co.kr/news/view/1022166
English Resource
https://www.mashed.com/899880/the-untold-truth-of-korean-fried-chicken/
Comments
If there were 7 food wonders of the world, Korean fried chicken would have to be one. I'm not much of a chicken guy, but I find Korean fried chicken to be so good. Its interesting how its become its own genre of food, and how companies constantly experiment to create new flavors, although some of them are quite weird.
Love your post David! I personally think Korean fried chicken is the best chicken in the world. Out of all, Bburinkle chicken from BHC is my favorite. I remember when I studied abroad in Korea my friend and I would always order chicken as an 안주. I like how you gave the whole history and development of Korean fried chicken with all the crazy flavors they have now. I do think, however, that sometimes Koreans do go overboard with the flavors like the mint chocolate flavor.
I think fried chicken like you said is really built in the korean culture. Reading your post made me aware of when the chicken restaurants came in Korea and how it became such a popular aspect of our culture. I did not know chicken was brought in to the cuisine from United States.
Hi David,
I never had Korean fried chicken before, but I hear about how scrumptious they are all the time. As a foodie myself, that is definitely on my bucket this summer to try!
Fried chicken is one of those foods that can be customized and catered to different cultures. For example, in Taiwan, they have a snack/dish called 盐酥鸡 or popcorn chicken and is sold in many night markets all across Taiwan. The chicken is bite size and is covered in a peppery, salty mixture and is delicious!