While it’s easy to hit up a Korean restaurant when you’re craving authentic Korean food, there’s an undeniable satisfaction that comes from whipping up a meal on your own. Plus, you’d be able to indulge in your favourite dishes whenever you want, pandemic be damned. These 8 Korean cooking channels will help you pick up recipes that are not just tasty, but also aesthetically pleasing.
Image adapted from: Maangchi
Maangchi is basically the OG of Korean cooking channels on YouTube. Search for any Korean recipe and chances are, you’ll come across her channel. She started her channel back in 2007 and has since garnered close to an astounding 500 million views to date.
Unlike most popular Korean channels, Maangchi narrates her videos entirely in English, which is a plus point for people who don’t like to read subtitles.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): Maangchi, Maangchi, Maangchi, and Maangchi
A quintessential part of Korean cuisine is its plethora of side dishes that always come served with the mains. Whether it’s the ever-famous kimchi or some of the less known local favourites, such as seasoned acorn jelly (dotorimuk) and spicy bellflower root (dorajimuchim), you can always count on this channel to guide you through some of these authentic side dish recipes.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): Maangchi, Maangchi, Maangchi, and Maangchi
Korean cuisine isn’t limited to the usual army stew, kimchi pancake, fried chicken, and bulgogi.
Although these classic recipes are available on the channel, if you’re adventurous and willing to explore new flavours, you can try to cook some dishes that only the locals know about. Examples include soy milk noodle soup (kongguksu), knife-cut noodle soup with red beans (pat-kalguksu), oxtail soup (sokkoritang), and seasoned raw beef (yukhoe).
Image adapted from: Maangchi
Those with a sweet tooth are also in for a treat as Maangchi will introduce you to the world of Korean desserts. Expect to come across snacks such as twisted Korean doughnuts (kkwabaegi) and sweet red bean jelly (yanggaeng).
Check out our article here for more Korea-inspired desserts to make at home.
Maangchi has a playlist titled “How to shop at a Korean grocery store”, which introduces common Korean cooking products. This is especially helpful for people who aren’t familiar with Korean products or need to find suitable substitutes for ingredients they cannot procure in their own countries.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 4.66M
Aeri’s Kitchen takes pride in sharing authentic Korean home-cooked dishes through informative tutorials in English.
Image adapted from: Aeri’s Kitchen
The channel is famous for its side dish recipes that show the different variations you can make using the same main ingredient.
Plus, these side dishes are good for busy individuals as you can make a bigger batch over the weekends, store them in the fridge, and consume whenever you feel like it.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): Aeri’s Kitchen, Aeri’s Kitchen, Aeri’s Kitchen, and Aeri’s Kitchen
Aeri’s Kitchen is managed by a mother and serves as a good reference for those looking to cook for your kids at home. She has recipes where she makes food from scratch, with fewer additives and preservatives compared to store-bought items. It’s an ideal option for health-conscious parents who want to feed their kids only the best.
Image adapted from: Aeri’s Kitchen
Since most Korean side dishes are usually prepared with a generous amount of salt and garlic, it may be less palatable for children. But that doesn’t mean that they’re going to miss out as you can explore kid-friendly side dish options.
Image adapted from: Aeri’s Kitchen
Her adorable kids even have their own mukbang series on her channel.
You’ll also find some hidden recipes such as North Korean-styled tofu rice (dububap), which is said to be a famous street food in North Korea.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 181K
Image adapted from: SpoonB스푼비
Cooking is a therapeutic pastime and this channel brings it to the next level by including lots of ASMR in its cooking videos. Even if you aren’t a fan of stepping into the kitchen, these videos are satisfying to watch. And if you’re inspired to cook some of these dishes after, you’ll have no trouble doing so as the videos are subtitled in English, with clear instructions that are easy to keep up with.
Image adapted from: SpoonB스푼비
Koreans love to add their own touch to foreign dishes and on this channel, you can find a handful of Korean-Western fusion dishes, such as bulgogi beef pizza and carbonara cream tteokbokki. On days when you can’t decide between Korean and Western cuisine, just simply whip up one of these dishes and have the best of both worlds.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): SpoonB스푼비, SpoonB스푼비, SpoonB스푼비, and SpoonB스푼비
All these aside, SpoonB has gained many followers for its 100-second recipes. These speedy recipes are perfect for busy working adults and students who want to prepare a meal in less than 2 minutes.
With only 100 seconds for each recipe, you may be expecting simple stuff like spicy tteokbokki. But SpoonB subverts expectations by including complicated dishes. Some examples include spicy seafood noodles, glistening sweet and sour pork, and desserts such as brownies and chocolate cheesecake.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 33.9K
Image adapted from: 이제이레시피EJ recipe
EJ recipe videos are filmed like a vlog, with colour-grading filters and soothing background music. It’s a unique approach we seldom see on Youtube cooking channels. Watching these videos feels like you’re following the cook on her daily routine as she prepares her meals.
The channel’s vlog recipe videos tend to hover around the 20-minute mark, but there are shorter tutorials under 10 minutes.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): 이제이레시피EJ recipe, 이제이레시피EJ recipe, 이제이레시피EJ recipe, and 이제이레시피EJ recipe
Some of these short tutorials teach you how to cook instant ramen with flair. Besides the viral ramdon that dominated social media earlier this year, the channel also has videos on how to cook cold ramen, PC room-style ramen, as well as GOT7 Mark’s favourite convenience store snack.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 335K
Image adapted from: 엄마가 딸에게 from Mom to Daughter
Nothing beats coming home to a table filled with dishes your mum painstakingly prepared. But these days, when it’s getting more common for young adults to move out and live on their own, such meals are harder to come by.
Image adapted from: 엄마가 딸에게 from Mom to Daughter
For those who are missing home-cooked meals, tune in to from Mom to Daughter and try recreating some of the dishes. The mother-daughter duo created this channel so that these traditional dishes can be shared with others.
Image adapted from: 엄마가 딸에게 from Mom to Daughter
While you may not be a native Korean who grew up eating these dishes, it’s always comforting to have a home-cooked meal no matter what type of cuisine it is. From a piping hot bowl of soybean stew to a family feast that includes boiled pork slices, the channel has recipes fitting of any occasion.
Image adapted from: 엄마가 딸에게 from Mom to Daughter
The videos are mainly filmed in Korean. However, you can find the English version of the ingredient list in the description box. Also, the preparation of every dish is done at a comfortable pace with clear visuals, making it very easy to follow even if you don’t understand the language.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 49.7K
Image adapted from: 아내의 식탁 Wife’s Cuisine
They say that food is the way to a man’s heart, but honestly, it’s the way to anyone’s. Whether you’re looking for inspiration when hosting a dinner party or simply wanting to prepare a meal for your loved ones at home, Wife’s Cuisine’s recipes are going to impress every single one at the table without a doubt.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): 아내의 식탁 Wife’s Cuisine, 아내의 식탁 Wife’s Cuisine, 아내의 식탁 Wife’s Cuisine, and 아내의 식탁 Wife’s Cuisine
This channel specialises in traditional Korean dishes. But what sets it apart from other channels is that it goes the extra mile with the plating and ingredients used. Even simple home-cooked dishes look as though it came right out of a restaurant’s kitchen.
To complete your course, you can even serve some Korean shaved ice (bingsu) to your guests.
The videos do not contain any voice-over, but every step is clearly filmed and you won’t have a problem following through. Step-by-step instructions in both Korean and English can be found in the description box.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 822K
Image adapted from: 하루한끼 one meal a day
It is convenient to order takeaway from a fast food joint or reach for a cup of instant noodles whenever hunger pangs hit. That being said, we should really try to avoid doing so for obvious health reasons and start putting our underutilised kitchen to good use.
Image adapted from: 하루한끼 one meal a day
This channel offers a lot of simple recipes that can be made in less than 15 minutes, so you can’t cite being a bad cook and having a lack of time as excuses anymore. These recipes don’t skimp on taste despite the short preparation time. You’ll find tutorials for Korean-style curry rice, kkakdugi fried rice, and bibimbap – simple dishes that are packed full of flavours.
Image adapted from (clockwise from top-right): 하루한끼 one meal a day, 하루한끼 one meal a day, 하루한끼 one meal a day, and 하루한끼 one meal a day
And for those hankering for a quick bite, you can try making home-made Korean snacks such as churros rice cake, crispy rice crust, steamed egg, and tofu pancake.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 3.18M
Image adapted from: 꿀키honeykki
The filming style of this channel makes the dishes look as though it’s prepared for an advertisement. That probably explains why it has won over the hearts of its 2 million subscribers.
Image adapted from: 꿀키honeykki
The owner of the channel doesn’t appear frequently in the videos, but she makes it a point to show every step in detail and even include both Korean and English subtitles for easy referencing. More details are included in the description box.
Image adapted from: 꿀키honeykki
The channel also offers seemingly complicated and exotic Korean recipes, such as fried chicken gizzard, cheese dakgalbi, and acorn jelly noodles (dotorimuk), that are actually surprisingly easy to make at home.
YouTube channel
Subscription: 2.12M
Cooking at home is not as difficult as many imagine it to be. While it may require a little more effort to lift a wok and wash the dishes after a meal, it’s definitely a healthier option as you control what ingredients go into making your food. Furthermore, preparing a meal for your loved ones on special occasions beats dining out at a restaurant, hands down.
Also, check out these Korean food articles:
Cover image adapted from (clockwise from top-left): Maangchi, 하루한끼 one meal a day, 꿀키honeykki and Maangchi
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