The Sweet That Refuses to Fall Apart — How Chuseok's Yakgwa Went Global on Social Media
The outside is crisp enough to crumble at a touch, but bite in and the inside gives way to a chewy, honey-soaked center. A faint waft of sesame oil and ginger rises first, followed by a deep wave of sweetness filling the mouth. This is yakgwa, the honey cookie that never misses a Chuseok ancestral table.
At a glance: Yakgwa (藥果) is wheat dough, deep-fried and then soaked in a syrup of honey, sesame oil and ginger juice · One of the signature hangwa (traditional Korean sweets) served during Chuseok · In Seoul, look for it at hangwa specialty shops in Gyeongdong Market, holiday gift counters in department stores, or on the dessert menu at some cafes.
Yakgwa's roots trace back to the Goryeo dynasty. Buddhism, the state religion at the time, forbade offering meat or fish at ancestral rites, and yumilgwa — sweets made from honey and grain instead — took their place, with yakgwa emerging from that tradition. By the Joseon dynasty, it had become so popular among ordinary households that at one point a ban was reportedly issued against serving it at banquets, out of concern over how much grain and honey it consumed. Because it keeps well soaked in honey, yakgwa naturally became a holiday staple.
In the past few years, short-form video and Korean food content have driven a surge of curiosity about yakgwa among social media users abroad. Cafes around Seoul have responded with fusion desserts — yakgwa crumbles and pastries topped with crushed pieces of the cookie. For the traditional version, look to a market or department store during the Chuseok holiday; for a lighter taste test, a cafe's yakgwa dessert will do.
A small cookie once tucked into the corner of an ancestral table has become a flavor recognized well beyond Korea's borders.