Are you looking for delicious Korean bakery breads? Today, I’m going to introduce 10 must-try Korean breads you must try in Korea. Instead of trendy bread, I’m focusing on classic, traditional Korean breads so you can experience the real taste of Korean bakery culture.
Table of Contents
What Makes Korean Bread Unique?
Korean bread is quite different from what you might find in Europe or the US. These days, you can easily find pastries, baguettes, and sourdough in Korean bakeries. However, to understand the essence of Korean bread, it’s best to focus on the traditional varieties.
Texture
Most Korean breads are soft and moist. This texture is largely influenced by Japanese baking styles. Think of that chewy, fluffy feel you know from milk bread—that’s the standard for many Korean breads. Even bagels, which are traditionally firm and dense, are made soft and chewy in Korea. This is a big contrast to European preferences for crusty or dense breads.
Flavor
Many Europeans are surprised by how sweet Korean bread is when they first try it. Unlike Europe, where most breads are salty, nutty, or savory, almost every type of Korean bread—even baguettes—often comes with a sweet filling. That blend of sweetness and saltiness is one of the key traits of Korean bread.
A perfect sweet Korean bread example is the Korean garlic cream cheese bread, which combines sweet, savory, and creamy flavors all in one bite. Koreans love soft breads filled with sweet cream, which is why so many popular breads in Korea are cream-filled. One of the biggest hits of Korean breads at Korean convenience stores was the Yonsei Milk Cream Bun—a super soft bun with sweet milk cream inside. Even plain baguettes are often transformed into sweet treats, filled with condensed milk cream or raspberry cream, making them uniquely Korean favorites.
Korean Bakery Culture
The way people eat bread in Korea is a bit different from the way people eat bread in Europe or the US. While Koreans eat bread for breakfast or a quick lunch, it’s rarely considered a full meal, especially for dinner. This is because bread feels more like a snack or dessert than a proper, filling meal to most Koreans.
For instance, Europeans typically only eat croissants in the morning, but in Korea, they are eaten at any time of day—morning, afternoon, or late at night. Since bread in Korea is often treated as a dessert, it tends to be sweeter. You’ll often find croissants coated in chocolate or filled with sweet cream and fruit, which gives them a rich, dessert-like quality. Korea has a wide range of bakery options, from simple convenience store breads to large chains like Paris Baguette and high-end bakeries and bakery cafés.
Convenience Store Bread
Convenience store Korean breads are especially popular for quick breakfasts or light lunches. People often grab cream-filled buns or milk bread sandwiches for a quick bite to eat while on the go.
Paris Baguette: Korea’s Biggest Bakery Chain
Paris Baguette is the largest bakery chain in Korea, and you can find one almost anywhere. Its accessibility makes it a go-to spot when you’re simply craving some bread. Compared to convenience stores, Paris Baguette offers a much wider variety of breads. You’ll find everything from pastries and baguettes to soft Korean-style buns and milk bread. There’s also a large selection of sweet breads and ready-to-eat sandwiches.
Paris Baguette is also known for launching limited-edition items based on seasonal trends. For example, in the winter, they often release strawberry cream croissants, while right now, they’re offering soft melon cream buns as a limited-time item. Part of the fun is always discovering what’s new.
Bakery Cafés in Korea
Café culture in Korea is incredibly developed. Unlike in many countries where cafés are just for coffee, in Korea, they’re social spaces where people gather to enjoy delicious desserts and conversation. Bakery cafés aren’t typically places for full meals—they’re more for light snacks between meals or desserts after dinner.
Because many people visit Korean bakery cafés in the evening, most of them stay open until 10 p.m. Before COVID, it was common for cafés to stay open until midnight. Compared to where I live now in Belgium, this kind of late-night café culture feels almost unimaginable.
Most Korean cafés offer much more than just coffee. They usually have an impressive range of baked goods and cakes, and they’re quick to follow seasonal dessert trends. For example, the Dubai chocolate dessert trend that’s just now gaining popularity in parts of Europe actually peaked in Korea over a year ago. Korean cafés are so trend-sensitive that if they don’t keep up with the latest dessert crazes, they risk losing customers.
The Influence of Japanese Bakery
Korean bread has been heavily influenced by Japanese bakery’s baking techniques. This explains why soft, sweet breads are especially popular in Korea. In recent years, more Koreans have studied baking in Europe, especially in countries like France, leading to an increase in pastries, baguettes, and sourdough breads. However, the influence of Japanese baking is still evident in major bakery chains like Paris Baguette.
One of the most popular breads in Korea right now is shio pan, a Japanese bread that has been trending at local bakeries across the country. This is just one example of how Japanese trends continue to shape the Korean bread scene.
Japanese bakery style first entered Korea during the period of Japanese colonial rule. Even after Korea’s liberation, many aspiring Korean bakers traveled to Japan to learn baking techniques. One of the most classic Korean breads, the danpatppang (red bean bun), originated in Japan. Its soft, fluffy dough and sweet red bean paste filling were inspired by Japanese recipes. Beyond red bean buns, many other baked goods, such as manju and fried korokke (croquettes), also came from Japan. Over time, Koreans have adapted and reimagined these breads, creating local favorites like japchae croquettes and cream-filled red bean buns that blend Japanese roots with Korean flavors.
Korean Bakery Trend
One of the biggest trends in Korean bakeries today is incorporating traditional Korean and Asian ingredients into bread. Soft, sweet bread with creamy fillings is still incredibly popular. For example, there are buns filled with injeolmi cream, made using roasted soybean powder, or nutty black sesame cream buns. Matcha cream buns—riding the global matcha trend—are also widely loved.
Another bread that’s taken Korea by storm is the bagel. But don’t expect the dense, chewy bagels you may be used to. Korean-style bagels are soft, fluffy, and much lighter in texture. This is because most Koreans still prefer soft breads over hard or crusty ones, which has shaped how bagels are made locally. The cream cheese fillings in Korean bagels have also evolved in creative ways. You’ll find a wide variety like sweet and tangy lemon curd cream cheese, light fig and walnut cream cheese, and even a uniquely Korean green onion cream cheese (jjokpa cream cheese), which has a mildly spicy kick. This last one was a massive hit and continues to be a best-seller.
But without a doubt, the most popular bread in Korea right now is shio pan—also known as salt bread. Originally from a Japan Bakery, this bread may look like a croissant, but it tastes completely different. It’s made with a buttery dough that’s crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. During baking, the butter melts and creates a large hollow space inside the bread. A sprinkle of coarse salt on top gives it a perfect balance of rich, savory flavor. If you ever visit Korea or Japan, this is a must-try—just be prepared to wait in line for over two hours at the most popular bakeries!
Best 10 Korean Bakery Bread
I’ll show you which Korean breads you should try while you’re in Korea. Not the ones that come and go with trends—these are 10 classic Korean breads that truly represent what Korean bakeries are all about. If you want to experience real Korean bread, start with these.
Kkwabaegi (Twisted Doughnut) 꽈배기
Kkwabaegi are classic Korean doughnuts that you’ll often see in traditional markets across Korea. It’s made by twisting the dough into a rope-like shape and deep-frying it until it’s golden and crispy. The dough usually contains glutinous rice flour, which makes the inside chewy and stretchy while keeping the outside crisp and nutty.
After frying, the doughnut is generously coated in sugar for a deliciously sweet finish. You can find kwabaegi at traditional markets like Gwangjang Market or chain bakeries like Paris Baguette, but the market versions are highly recommended. They’re freshly fried on the spot, which makes them much crisper, whereas the bakery versions can be a bit soggy. If you get one from a Korean bakery, though, you can revive it by popping it in the air fryer for a few minutes.
Soboro Ppang 소보로빵
Soboro bread is a soft, round bun topped with a sweet, crumbly streusel made from flour, butter, and egg. The name “soboro” comes from the Korean pronunciation of the Japanese word for “crumble,” and it’s quite similar to the German streusel topping.
For many Koreans, soboro bread is a nostalgic childhood treat. It’s simple yet comforting, with a buttery topping and a fluffy interior. This humble bun even made a surprise appearance in the Netflix series Squid Game, where it was given to participants as a meal.
Pizza Ppang 피자빵
Western-style pizza has only been popular in Korea for a relatively short time. It began gaining attention in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s, when large chains such as Pizza Hut entered the market. This is why Korean pizza is more influenced by American-style pizza than traditional Italian pizza. Also, pizza in Korea tends to be quite expensive compared to Europe—ordering a large pizza for delivery can easily cost around 25 euros. In the ’80s and ’90s, this price seemed even more expensive.
This is why pizza bread became a more affordable and popular alternative. Unlike traditional pizza, Korean pizza bread is made with ketchup and mayonnaise instead of tomato sauce. Rather than using pizza dough, it’s often made with pastry or soft brioche buns topped with sausage and sweet corn. You can easily make it at home using ready-made pastry dough.
Koreans often call it pizza ppang or sausage ppang. One major difference from regular pizza is that it usually includes ketchup and a bit of sugar, giving it a slightly sweet flavor. This sweet-and-savory combination is a uniquely Korean take on pizza.
Choco Sora Ppang 초코소라빵
Choco sora bread is a soft, shell-shaped Korean bread filled with rich chocolate cream. The dough is chewy and fluffy—exactly the kind of Korean bread texture Koreans love—and the smooth, sweet chocolate filling makes every bite delicious from start to finish.
You can easily find this Korean bread at major Korean bakery chains like Paris Baguette or Tous Les Jours, and it’s one of the most beloved options among Korean customers. This bread is believed to have originated from the Austrian Schaumrolle, which was introduced to Japanese bakery and turned into the choco cornet, before eventually making its way to Korea in its current form.
Mammoth Ppang 맘모스빵
Mammoth bread is one of the most classic—and currently one of the trendiest Korean breads in Korea. It’s a large, flat bread with a streusel-like soboro topping, filled with layers of sweet cream, jam, red bean paste, and chestnuts.
The most traditional Mammoth Korean bread version includes a layer of whipped cream, strawberry jam, and chestnuts, all tucked inside the soft bun. But as mammoth bread has come back into fashion, bakers have gotten creative with the fillings—adding thick chocolate ganache, nuts, buttercream, pistachio paste, cream cheese, and more. If I head to Korea right now, this is definitely one of the breads I want the most.
Sweet Red Bean Bread(Danpatppang) 단팥빵
Many Koreans affectionately call this bread “Dad’s bread,” meaning it’s a favorite of fathers, which shows how classic this bread really is. Danpatppang originated from the Japanese bakery’s anpan. It’s a soft, sweet bread filled with red bean paste that’s been sweetened with plenty of sugar. This bread has a long history, dating back to 1800s Japan.
It came to Korea during the Japanese colonial period and became widely popular after Korea’s liberation. Have you watched Netflix’s Squid Game? There’s a scene where players receive exactly this bread while playing the card game “ddakji.” The best way to enjoy danpatbbang is with cold white milk—dipping the bread in milk makes it even softer and richer.
Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread 육쪽 마늘빵
This is one of the most well-known types of Korean bread. In Korea, it’s called yukjok maneul bbang, which means “six-clove garlic bread.” It’s a soft bun that is sliced into six pieces and generously filled with sweet garlic cream cheese.
Koreans love garlic, so it’s no surprise that it’s used in bread, too. Unlike European or American garlic baguettes, Korean garlic bread is sweet and soft to match the Korean preference. Even when Koreans enjoy garlic baguettes, they usually prefer a sweeter flavor.
Chapsal Donut 찹쌀 도너츠
If you visit a traditional Korean traditional market, you’ll often find these sold alongside kkwabaegi, which are twisted doughnuts. It’s a Korean-style doughnut called a chapsal donut. It’s made by mixing glutinous rice flour with regular wheat flour — the same dough used for kkwabaegi — which gives it a chewy texture.
Instead of being baked, they are deep-fried in oil, which makes the outside crispy while keeping the inside chewy and moist. Sometimes it’s filled with sweet red bean paste. The outside is coated with sugar for an added touch of sweetness.
Salad Ppang 샐러드빵
Salad bread is a classic Korean bakery favorite made with a soft dinner roll filled with sweet cabbage salad and topped with a drizzle of ketchup. The sweetness is a key characteristic, and every bite offers a delightful crunch from the fresh cabbage. This Korean bread is super easy to make at home, making it a perfect choice for breakfast or a snack.
Pea Paste Bread 완두 앙금빵
Pea paste bread (wandu anggeum ppang) is another beloved classic in Korean bakery culture. It uses the same soft bun as red bean bread, but instead of sweet red bean paste, it’s filled with a smooth, sweet pea paste made by boiling peas with sugar. The taste is milder and sweeter than red bean paste, and it remains one of the most cherished traditional Korean breads.
