Now a Popular Snack Among MZ Generation... Tear-Soaked Bungeoppang Once Fed Refugees, While Japan Has Taiyaki [Delicious Stories]

Filled Pastries Once Sustained Workers During Korea's Rapid Growth
Now Evolving Into Premium Desserts

Editor's NoteThe earliest confections are believed to have been discovered in ancient Mesopotamian civilization. Sweets have accompanied every moment in human history. From biscuits and chocolate to ice cream, we bring you delicious stories behind the treats we love.

Bungeoppang, a popular winter snack in Korea, is a type of pastry made by baking flour batter and has become a representative street food in the country. In Japan, there is a similar street snack called Taiyaki, which is shaped like a sea bream. How did these two similar yet distinct pastries each succeed in becoming iconic street foods?

Japan Turned to Flour Bread for Survival... The Rise of Taiyaki

Japanese Taiyaki. A fish-shaped pastry resembling a sea bream. Official website of Taiyaki Wakaba, a specialty Japanese Taiyaki shop.

In Japan, pastries made from flour have existed since the Meiji era in the 19th century. According to the 2013 Japanese food culture history book "The Origin Dictionary of Food," a chef named Kobe Seijiro, who ran a shop in Tokyo at the time, first made Taiyaki by putting flour dough and sweet red bean paste into a sea bream-shaped mold and baking it. Taiyaki gained popularity by word of mouth in 1909 and soon established itself as a unique Tokyo snack.

The period when Taiyaki truly became popular was the 1950s, after World War II. This was closely related to Japan's food situation at the time. After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan was left in ruins and faced an acute grain shortage. In response, the United States launched an emergency aid program called "GARIOA," supplying flour to Japan.

At that time, rice was still the staple food for the Japanese people, so they had to completely change their eating habits. According to "The Untold History of Ramen" by American historian George Solt, the Japanese government began to promote flour-based foods through all available media, including TV, radio, and newspapers. Bread and milk were served in elementary schools, and flour-based foods such as ramen, Japanese noodles (soba), and Taiyaki became common meals. While Taiyaki is now a representative Japanese street snack, its origins lie in the relief foods consumed for survival after the war.

'Tear-Soaked Pastry' for Workers During Korea's Rapid Growth

A domestic fish-shaped pastry street stall. Korea Price Information

According to the Encyclopedia of Korean Folk Culture, pastries began to be sold in Korea in the 1930s during the Japanese colonial period. The molds used for baking were changed to suit Korean tastes, taking the shape of a carp or chrysanthemum, giving rise to the names Bungeoppang and Gukhwappang.

In the 1950s, after the Korean War, ordinary people could easily find Bungeoppang. Once again, American food aid programs played a crucial role. With American flour and cornmeal arriving at Busan Port as relief supplies and spreading through the markets, opportunities to try flour-based bread increased. Refugees in Busan made noodles from wheat dough and boiled them to eat, while street stalls selling Bungeoppang multiplied.

Bungeoppang is also a familiar snack in Korea's labor community. This is because Bungeoppang was the representative snack for workers during the rapid industrial growth of the 1960s and 1970s. There is a story that the late labor activist Jeon Taeil saved his transportation money to buy Bungeoppang for young female workers in garment factories. In honor of him, the Jeon Taeil Foundation runs the "Pastry Sharing Project," a support program for labor activists.

From Humble Food to Premium Dessert

The premium Japanese Taiyaki mold called "Natural Taiyaki" (above) and the actual product. Natural Taiyaki is characterized by artisans baking the dough one by one in handcrafted molds and offering them at a high price. Photo by Rakuten Capture

Both Taiyaki and Bungeoppang, which started as humble foods, have now become proud desserts in their respective countries. In Japan, the premiumization of Taiyaki began early, and various types filled with custard cream, chocolate, cheese, and more have appeared alongside the traditional red bean paste. There are specialty Taiyaki shops with over 100 years of history, and some sell Taiyaki baked in handcrafted molds at a high price of around 300 yen (about 2,800 won) each.

Bungeoppang has also evolved beyond its image as a simple street snack and is now available in various dessert forms. Unique variations such as pizza Bungeoppang and mint chocolate Bungeoppang are increasing, and Bungeoppang cafes have opened where you can enjoy the treat with coffee in a clean indoor setting rather than at a street stall. In the past, you could buy three to five pieces for just 1,000 won, but now there are plenty of premium Bungeoppang varieties that cost over 1,000 won each.