''Buldak'' () is a South Korean spicy barbecued
chicken
The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...
dish.
History
''Buldak'' became popular in South Korea during 2004, primarily for its extreme pungency. Several sources theorize the
economic downturn at the time caused people to seek out spicy food as a stress reliever.
The rise in popularity of ''buldak'' set the trend for extremely hot dishes in South Korea, which led to the rise of ''buldak'' franchise restaurants.
However, the name ''buldak'' was registered at a patent office in April 2001 by Buwon Food, who claimed copyright to the name. This led to strong opposition from Hongcho Buldak and other leading ''buldak'' restaurants, who claimed that the term had been used as a common noun.
On 30 April 2008, the Patent Court of Korea agreed that term was generalized and ''buldak'' became free for public use.
Although the popularity of ''buldak'' has declined in recent years in South Korea, the dish has led to the development of other successful dishes inspired by it, such as
''buldak''-flavored instant noodles by
Samyang Food
Samyang Roundsquare Co., Ltd. () is an international South Korean food manufacturer and the first instant ramen company in South Korea. Samyang was founded on September 15, 1961, by Jeon Jung Yoon. In 1963, Samyang debuted the first Korean insta ...
.
The Buldak Ramen is what gave rise to the brand itself. All flavors of the ramen include Carbonara, Hot Chicken, Habanero Lime, Kimchi, Jjajang, Quattro Cheese, 2x Spicy, Cheese, Curry, Tomato Pasta, and Corn.
Preparation and serving
''Buldak'' refers to the concept of Korean spicy chicken, not a specific food or dish. It usually can be grilled or deep-fried using bite-sized chicken pieces, and is served with a spicy sauce usually including ''
gochugaru
Korean chili peppers or Korean hot peppers, also known as Korean red, Korean dark green, or Korean long green peppers according to color (ripening stages), are medium-sized chili peppers of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. The chili pepper is lon ...
'' (chili powder),
gochujang
''Gochujang'' or red chili paste
* is a savory, sweet, and spicy fermented condiment popular in Korean cooking. It is made from '' gochugaru'' (red chili powder), glutinous rice, '' meju'' (fermented soybean) powder, ''yeotgireum'' (barley m ...
(chili paste), soy sauce, ''
jocheong'' (starch syrup), garlic, and ginger. Chili powder made from
Cheongyang chili pepper
The Cheongyang chili pepper () is a medium-sized chili cultivar of the species ''Capsicum annuum'', with intensity of 10,000 Scoville heat units. Cheongyang chili peppers look similar to regular Korean chili peppers, but are many times spicier. ...
is preferred as it is spicier than regular chili powder used in Korean recipes. Sliced ''
garae-tteok'' (rice cakes) and melted
cheese
Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk (usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats or sheep). During prod ...
are common additions to the dish. Mild side dishes such as ''
gyeran-jjim'' (steamed eggs) or boiled ''
nurungji'' (scorched rice) are often served with ''buldak'' to help counteract the spiciness. The dish is usually accompanied with an alcoholic beverage such as beer.
See also
* ''
Jjimdak''
* ''
Padak''
* ''
Tongdak''
*
Korean fried chicken
*
Buldak Ramen
*
List of chicken dishes
References
{{Chicken dishes, state=collapsed
South Korean chicken dishes