Korean Sides, Pancakes & Dumplings — The Supporting Cast

These are the dishes that fill out a Korean table. They're rarely the main event, but a meal without them feels incomplete. Whether you're drinking beer at a pub, celebrating a holiday, or just adding variety to dinner, these 17 dishes are the supporting characters that make Korean cuisine feel abundant.

How These Dishes Fit Into a Korean Meal

Korean dining is rarely one-dish-one-person. Even a simple home meal has a rice + soup + 3–5 sides pattern. At restaurants, you share multiple items family-style. The dishes in this category typically play one of these roles:

• Anju (술안주) — "Drinking food". Rich, savory dishes designed to pair with alcohol. Jokbal, bossam, pajeon, jeyuk bokkeum all fall here.
• Celebration food — Dishes served at weddings, birthdays, and holidays. Japchae and galbi jjim are classic.
• Filler / variety — Smaller portions that add texture and flavor to a shared table.

Dishes Worth Knowing

• Japchae — Stir-fried glass noodles with vegetables and beef. Sweet, chewy, beloved at weddings. Also covered in our noodles guide, but it's very often served as a side at restaurants.
• Jeyuk Bokkeum — Spicy stir-fried pork. One of the most popular Korean dishes — covered as a rice bowl, but also served as a shared main with lettuce for wrapping.
• Haemul Pajeon — Large savory pancake with scallions and seafood (squid, shrimp, oysters). Crispy outside, soft inside. Traditional to eat with makgeolli (rice wine) on rainy days.
• Kimchi Jeon — Pancake made with chopped kimchi and flour. Tangy, crispy, and often considered "comfort food" for days when there's not much else in the fridge.
• Mandu (Dumplings) — Korean dumplings come steamed, fried, or boiled. Fillings include pork, kimchi, or vegetable. Smaller and thinner-skinned than Chinese dumplings.
• Kimchi Mandu — Dumplings with kimchi in the filling. Spicy and tangy. Perfect with soy-vinegar dipping sauce.
• Wang Mandu — Giant steamed dumplings, the size of a tennis ball. Filled with pork and vegetables. One is a full snack.
• Galbi Jjim — Soy-braised beef short ribs, slow-cooked until the meat falls off the bone. Sweet, glossy, served at major celebrations and family dinners.
• Andong Jjimdak — Spicy-sweet braised chicken with potatoes and glass noodles, from Andong region. Shared family-style in a large shallow pot.
• Jokbal — Pig's trotters braised in soy sauce, herbs, and spices. Sliced and served cold with shrimp sauce and lettuce wraps. Classic drinking food.
• Bossam — Boiled pork belly, sliced thin, wrapped in kimchi or cabbage leaves. Gentler than jokbal and more beginner-friendly.
• Patbingsu — Korean shaved ice dessert topped with sweet red bean, condensed milk, fruit, and rice cake. The ultimate summer dessert.

When to Order What

• At a BBQ place: You probably don't need extra sides — banchan covers it. But japchae is often ordered as a shared extra.
• At a pub with beer: Pajeon, kimchi jeon, mandu, jokbal, bossam. These are all standard anju.
• At a Korean home meal: Galbi jjim or andong jjimdak as the main, japchae as a side.
• For dessert: Patbingsu in summer, nothing in winter (Korean meals traditionally don't end with sweets — that's a modern addition).

Dishes in This Category (17)

• Dak-galbi 닭갈비

  Spicy stir-fried chicken with vegetables and rice cakes

• Jeyuk-bokkeum 제육볶음

  Spicy stir-fried pork with vegetables

• Ojingeo-bokkeum 오징어볶음

  Spicy stir-fried squid

• Nakji-bokkeum 낙지볶음

  Spicy stir-fried octopus

• Haemul Pajeon 해물파전

  Seafood and scallion pancake

• Kimchi Jeon 김치전

  Kimchi pancake with flour batter

• Buchu Jeon 부추전

  Chive pancake

• Gamja Jeon 감자전

  Potato pancake

• Mandu 만두

  Steamed or fried meat dumplings

• Kimchi Mandu 김치만두

  Kimchi and pork dumplings

• Wang Mandu 왕만두

  Large steamed dumplings

• Mul Mandu 물만두

  Dumpling soup

• Galbi-jjim 갈비찜

  Braised beef short ribs with vegetables

• Andong Jjimdak 안동찜닭

  Braised chicken with vegetables and glass noodles

• Jokbal 족발

  Braised pig trotters served with lettuce wraps

• Bossam 보쌈

  Steamed pork belly wraps with fermented shrimp sauce

• Patbingsu 팥빙수

  Shaved ice dessert with sweet red beans and toppings