| When | What people eat |
|---|---|
| Lunar New Year (Seollal) | Rice cake soup (떡국) — eating a bowl means you are a year older. |
| First full moon (Jeongwol Daeboreum) | Five-grain rice (오곡밥) and cracking nuts (부럼) for good health. |
| Exam season | Sticky rice cakes and taffy (찹쌀떡, 엿) are given to students so the answers “stick”. |
| Black Day (April 14) | Singles eat jjajangmyeon together. |
| Boknal (the hottest days, July–August) | Ginseng chicken soup (삼계탕) — fight heat with heat. |
| Summer | Cold noodles, soy milk noodles, cold raw fish soup and patbingsu. |
| Chuseok (autumn harvest festival) | Songpyeon and pan-fried jeon. |
| Winter streets | Bungeoppang, hotteok, roasted sweet potatoes and fish cake skewers. |
| Winter solstice (Dongji) | Red bean porridge (팥죽) to keep bad luck away. |
| Birthdays | Seaweed soup (미역국). |
| Rainy days | Pajeon with makgeolli — the sizzle sounds like rain. |
| Moving day | Jjajangmyeon delivered to the new home; red bean rice cake shared with new neighbours. |
| The morning after | Hangover soups (해장국) such as bean sprout soup and dried pollock soup. |
Food for Korean Holidays and Special Days 때와 날의 음식
Many Korean dishes belong to a day or a season. Eat them at the right time and you will make Korean friends smile.