Love Korean Food? Check Out These 5 K-Food Reality Shows

The hallyu wave refers to the global popularity of South Korean popular culture. Whether it be K-dramas, K-pop, manhwa comics, films or skincare, the country influences what people watch, listen to, apply on their skin, and read. The global success of BTS and Blackpink, the Netflix show “Squid Game,” and the 2020 Oscar-winning film “Parasite” have paved the way for South Korean culture to permeate deep into our pop cultural psyche. Now, avid Koreaphiles are turning their attention to food-themed reality shows thanks to their unique format and sense of humour.

Here are five South Korean food reality shows for you to stream.

‘Culinary Class Wars’

This reality competition is filmed in the dramatic style of “Physical: 100,” where individuals go head-to-head in various individual and team challenges. “Culinary Class Wars” features 100 elite chefs divided into two classes: white spoons (celebrity chefs) and black spoons (non-celebrity chefs), all competing for the prize of KRW 300 million (USD 230,000). The show’s two judges are veteran restaurateur and celebrity chef Baek Jong-won and the only Michelin three-star chef in South Korea, Anh Sung-jae. The contestants’ talents and sportsmanship won over people from all over the world when its first season was released on Netflix this year. A second season has since been confirmed.

‘Please Take Care Of My Refrigerator’

Also known as “Chef & My Fridge,” this show brings in two celebrity guests and their fridges, which are literally pulled out of their homes and displayed in the studio. The guests run the gamut from K-pop legends like Big Bang and BTS to actors and comedians who are big stars in South Korea. The chefs, most of whom run one or more trendy restaurants around Seoul, are tasked with making dishes for the guests out of the contents of their fridges, using their professional skills to spin leftovers and nearly-experied items into culinary gold. The catch? They only get 15 minutes to cook. The results are frequently impressive, and even Gordon Ramsay made a guest appearance as a competing chef in one of the episodes. The show ran from 2014 to 2019 on the JTBC network in South Korea, and there are some episodes that are available to watch on YouTube and the official JTBC website. It was announced this month that “Please Take Care Of My Refrigerator” will come back for a new season in 2025.

‘Jinny’s Kitchen’

The second spin-off from “Youn's Kitchen” (2017), “Jinny’s Kitchen” sets itself apart from the usual drama and competition-heavy food reality shows that dominate the genre. Debuting in 2023, it features renowned South Korean celebrities preparing Korean street food for international patrons, merging flavours with entertainment. In its first season, stars like Lee Seo-jin, Jung Yu-mi, Park Seo-jun, Choi Woo-shik and BTS’ V operated a restaurant in Bacalar, Mexico. In its second season, the location shifted to Iceland, where the team continued to serve Korean dishes such as oxtail gomtang and bibimbap to residents. The show emphasises the cast’s warm camaraderie and introduces viewers to the richness of South Korean cuisine. You can watch the show on Amazon Prime.

‘Delicious Rendezvous’

This show stars chef Baek Jong-won (from “Culinary Class Wars”) and was initially aimed at boosting the sales of underused ingredients by demonstrating their delicious potential through creative recipes. The show’s cast developed new menus using local specialities and sold food at meeting places that received many transient visitors, such as rest areas, airports and railway stations. The goal of the reality show was not just to sell food but to improve the perception of local specialities and to support farmers. Viewers got a glimpse into the regional food scene of South Korea while being made aware of supply and demand issues. The cast later transitioned to selling the products on live home shopping channels, achieving such success that the items frequently sold out. “Delicious Rendezvous” ran from 2019 to 2021 on SBS TV and won numerous television awards. It can be accessed on Trakt.

‘The Backpacker Chef’

“The Backpacker Chef” is another beloved South Korean reality show that takes culinary adventure to a whole new level. Once again featuring Baek Jong-won and a rotating cast of celebrities, the show whisks them away to diverse locales where they face the challenge of preparing mouthwatering dishes for the locals. The catch? They must rely on a limited arsenal of kitchen tools. This makeshift cooking journey not only tests their culinary skills, but also brings out their ingenuity and teamwork, promising a feast of creativity and flavours in every episode. In the first season, the cast went on 18 different business trips and cooked for 3,078 people, preparing more than 100 different dishes. The second season is ongoing and can be viewed on Trakt.