Korean Candy Names and Flavors: A Guide to Finding Them
If you have ever stood in front of a wall of colorful bags trying to pick a Korean candy, you know the problem: the packaging is full of Hangul and the pictures don't always tell you what's inside. I'll walk you through the main types, the names worth searching for, and the Korean words that tell you what you're buying.
This is a general guide, not a review. I'm describing what each type of candy is and how it usually tastes, so you can recognize it on a shelf in Seoul, in a Korean grocery store abroad, or in an online shop.
The three Korean candy words to know first
Most Korean sweets fall under a few words. Once you can read these, the aisle gets much easier.
- 사탕 (satang, "sah-tahng"): candy in general, especially hard candy and lollipops.
- 젤리 (jelli, "jel-lee"): jelly candy. This covers gummies and soft, bouncy, fruit-flavored sweets.
- 캐러멜 (kaereomel, "keh-ruh-mel"): caramel, usually soft and chewy and often milky.
You will also see 초콜릿 (chocolate) and 껌 (gum) in the same aisle. Koreans often call the whole category gwaja (과자, snacks and sweets), which is why a candy shelf and a biscuit shelf can sit side by side.
Popular Korean candy names and what they taste like
Many Korean sweets are not candy in the strict sense. They are biscuits, sticks or traditional confections that people buy in the same place. This table covers the names you will see most often.
| Name | Hangul | What it is | Taste and texture |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pepero | 빼빼로 | Thin biscuit stick dipped in chocolate (a Lotte product) | Crunchy and sweet, with a thin chocolate coating |
| Choco Pie | 초코파이 | Soft cake and marshmallow covered in chocolate (an Orion product) | Fluffy, sweet, a little chewy |
| Kancho | 칸쵸 | Small biscuits with chocolate cream inside (a Lotte product) | Crisp shell, creamy chocolate center |
| Dalgona / ppopgi | 달고나 / 뽑기 | Sugar candy cooked with baking soda | Crunchy, caramel-like, slightly toasted and bitter at the edges |
| Yeot | 엿 | Traditional sticky candy made from grain | Dense, chewy, mildly sweet, nutty |
| Somsatang | 솜사탕 | Cotton candy | Melts instantly, pure sugar |
| Insam satang | 인삼사탕 | Ginseng hard candy | Sweet first, then earthy and a little bitter |
Korean candy sticks: Pepero and its cousins
When people search for "Korean candy sticks," they usually mean Pepero. It is a biscuit stick with a chocolate coating, and there are versions with almonds, strawberry cream, white chocolate and more.
Pepero has its own gift day: November 11, because the date "11/11" looks like four sticks. Friends, couples and classmates swap boxes. Since that date is a few weeks away, shops in Korea fill with decorated Pepero boxes around now.
Korean candy fruit: jelly and tanghulu
Fruit flavors are everywhere in Korean candy. Strawberry (딸기), grape (포도), green grape (청포도), peach (복숭아), apple (사과) and orange (오렌지) are the safe, common ones. Citron, called yuja (유자), is a more Korean flavor: bright, floral and tart, like a cross between lemon and mandarin.
Korean jelly often has a firmer, chewier bounce than soft gummies. The sweet-and-sour description 새콤달콤 (saekom-dalkom) is a very common way to describe fruit candy, and you will see it on many bags.
If you mean real fruit coated in sugar, that's 탕후루 (tanghulu, "tahng-hoo-roo"): fruit skewers, often strawberries or grapes, covered in a hard sugar shell. It became a big street-food trend in Korea. The snack itself has Chinese roots, but Korean shops made it their own with many fruit choices.
The old-school candies
Yeot is the one Korean parents and grandparents talk about. It is traditionally given to students before big exams because it is sticky, and the Korean verb for "stick" (붙다, butda) is the same word used for "pass" an exam. It's a wish wrapped in candy.
Dalgona, also called ppopgi, became known worldwide through a hit Korean drama, but in Korea it is a childhood street treat. You carefully carve a shape out of the thin sugar disc, and the fun is trying not to break it.
A sweet street snack that isn't quite candy
Sugar shows up in Korean street food too. The Korean hot dog (핫도그, hatdogeu) is a sausage or cheese stick on a skewer, coated in batter and fried, and many shops roll it in sugar before adding ketchup or mustard. The result is a salty-sweet snack that sits somewhere between a meal and a treat.
This video shows a home cook making a Korean-style corn dog, which is a handy way to see how the sugar coating works.
▶ Making Korean Corn Dog #minivlog #ytshorts #shorts — Swara Singh (YouTube)
How to read Korean candy packaging
You don't need to read Korean fluently. A handful of words will cover most bags and boxes.
| Hangul | Romanization | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 맛 | mat | flavor (딸기맛 = strawberry flavor) |
| 새콤달콤 | saekom-dalkom | sweet and sour |
| 매운맛 | maeun-mat | spicy flavor |
| 무설탕 | museoltang | sugar-free |
| 대용량 | daeyongnyang | large pack |
| 개별포장 | gaebyeol pojang | individually wrapped |
| 소비기한 / 유통기한 | sobi-gihan / yutong-gihan | use-by or sell-by date |
Photo: 24 hours Ramyeon Ramen convenience store (South Korea) by lazy fri13th, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fruit pictures on the front are usually accurate for the flavor. Character art, especially cartoon animals and kids' show characters, usually means the candy is aimed at children. That tends to mean softer textures and very sweet flavors.
Check the ingredient list if you have dietary needs. Jelly often contains gelatin, and Korean labels list allergens in a separate box. A translation app that reads the camera image works well for this.
Korean candy individually wrapped, and Korean candy boxes
Many Korean candies come in a big bag of single wrapped pieces. Hard candy, caramel and chewy fruit candy are the usual ones. That is handy if you want to share them at work or tuck a few in a bag. Look for 개별포장 on the bag, or just see the small wrappers through the clear plastic.
For gifts, look at three types:
- Seasonal boxes, such as Pepero Day boxes in the weeks before November 11.
- Traditional sweet boxes with yeot, gangjeong (강정, grain and nut confections) or ginseng candy, often sold around holidays.
- Mixed snack boxes, which many online shops sell as a "Korean candy and snacks" sampler. These are an easy way to try many names at once.
Where to find Korean candy near you
In Korea, the easiest places are convenience stores such as CU, GS25, 7-Eleven and Emart24. They stock the popular names and rotate limited editions. Large discount marts usually sell bigger bags at a lower price per piece. Olive Young, known mainly for beauty products, also sells snacks and candy.
Outside Korea, try searching for "Korean grocery store" or "Asian supermarket" on your map app rather than a specific candy name. A large chain such as H Mart is a common starting point, and smaller Korean markets often have a surprising candy aisle. For online orders, check the shop's expiry dates and shipping rules, especially in summer when chocolate can melt.
Korean candy making and mukbang
Two things keep Korean candy popular online. The first is homemade candy. Dalgona is the easiest to try: it needs only sugar and a pinch of baking soda, and it burns fast, so low heat and a lot of care help. Kits for it are sold in Korea and online. Traditional yeot takes far longer and is mostly made in specialist shops.
The second is the mukbang (먹방, "muk-bahng"), the Korean word for an eating show. Candy and snack mukbangs usually focus on sounds, textures and tasting many flavors in one sitting. They're a good way to see how a food looks and sounds before you buy, though your own taste may differ from the host's.
Here is a short Korean food clip from the chef channel Chef Rush. It isn't about candy, but it shows the quick, bite-focused style that Korean food videos often use.
▶ One Bite Only! #korean #food #koreanfood #viral #chefrush #recipe — Chef Rush (YouTube)
A simple starter list
- Pepero, for something crunchy and easy to share.
- A bag of fruit 젤리, for a chewy, sweet-and-sour mix.
- Yuja candy, if you want a flavor that feels distinctly Korean.
- Ginseng candy, for something stronger and less sweet.
- A dalgona kit or a piece of yeot, for a traditional experience.
FAQ
What are the most popular Korean candies?
Pepero, Choco Pie and Kancho are among the best-known sweet snacks, and fruit jelly (젤리) is hugely popular. Traditional candies like yeot and dalgona are well known too, but people eat them less often day to day.
Where can I find a Korean candy store near me?
Search your map app for "Korean grocery store" or "Asian supermarket," since most Korean candy is sold there rather than in specialist candy shops. Online stores selling Korean snacks and sampler boxes are another option if nothing is nearby.
Is Korean candy sweeter than Western candy?
It depends on the type. Many fruit jellies lean sweet and sour, while ginseng candy and yeot are much less sweet. Taste varies a lot by product, so a sampler box is a good way to find what you like.
Part of our weekly series — see K-Culture This Week (Oct 18–24, 2026) for the rest of the week's Korean culture news.
Last updated: October 25, 2026
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