13 Korean Recipes for Lunar New Year

These easy authentic Korean Recipes are perfect for Korean Lunar New Year Dinner (Seollal Festival in South Korea)- including healthy vegetarian sides dishes (banchan), chicken and quick gochujang noodles that your friends and family will love!

Korean braised tofu and Pajeon Pancake with "Korean food" written in between.

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Appetizers
Carbs
Meat
Sides
💬 Comments

Appetizers

Korean Pancake

Close up of a pan-fried Korean savoury pancake with seafood.

Don't forget to serve the appetizers with these authentic Korean side dishes- mains totally optional!

Korean Green Onion Pancake (Pajeon)

Korean Green Onion Pancake, also known as Pajeon or Pa Jun 파전, is one of the most popular Korean side dishes (banchan.) Luckily, it's easy to make at home! Much simpler than the Chinese version, and on the table in 15 minutes!

Click here for the Spring Onion Pancake.

Homemade Korean scallion pancake next to a scissors.

Spicy Lettuce Wraps

Gochujang chicken in lettuce cups on a white plate.

Korean Chicken Lettuce Wrap (30 min)

Korean chicken lettuce wraps are an easy, healthy, quick, and delicious Asian Appetizer, side dish, or low carb main. I've tested these Asian lettuce cups with both Korean Gochujang chicken thighs (stir fry) and ground chicken- scroll down to see which one works better! (short marinade.) Leftovers can be mixed with greens to make Gochujang Chicken Salad or chicken fried rice/ noodles.

Click here for the chicken lettuce tacos.

6 Korean Chicken lettuce wraps on a white plate.

Carbs

Spicy Gochujang Ramyeon

A photo of Korean ramen and a photo of a fried egg with text in between.

8-min Gochujang Noodles (One Pan)

This Easy 8-min Gochujang Noodles is a terific Korean One Pan Recipe. Slightly spicy, savory, sweet and tangy, it's a flavorful dinner meal ready in under 10 minutes! (The recipe is for one person, but can be easily sized up. Just double or triple the quantities as needed.)

Click here for the quick and easy ramen recipe.

A pan of Korean gochujang noodles with spring onions and egg.

Spicy Pasta

Close-up of a pair of chopsticks grabbing some spicy, red gochujang pasta noodles.

Creamy Korean Pasta

A plate of savory and deliciously creamy gochujang pasta with a thick and umami sauce soooo good you'll want to slurp it up like a soup!

Click here for the spicy spaghetti recipe.

Korean Fried Rice

Kimchi Bokkeumbap (Fried Rice)

Kimchi Bokkeumbap, or Korean fried rice with kimchi, is so easy and delicious, it's often whipped up as a hangover meal in a Korean household and can be made perfectly the first time. Plus, it's done in 15 minutes if you have leftover rice around!

Click here for the kimchi fried rice recipe.

Close-up of a plate of Korean kimchi and gochujang fried rice

Meat

Spicy Korean Chicken Thighs

Close-up of gochujang chicken thighs stir fry,

Gochujang Chicken Thighs (30 min)

If you like Korean food, you'll love this Korean Gochujang chicken thighs stir fry recipe- juicy chicken thighs are coated in a fingerlicking spicy sauce. Needing only a short marinade, this easy recipe using gochujang isperfect for busy weeknights.

Click here for the spicy chicken recipe.

Gochujang chicken stir fry with spring onions and sesame seeds.

Roast Chicken

A roasted whole chicken with a spicy charred glaze on the skin.

Spicy Korean Chicken

Spice up your weekday dinner routine with this scrumptious Korean Gochujang Chicken recipe! An easy-to-make dish, the tender, juicy chicken is coated in a mouth-watering blend of Korean red chili paste, soy sauce, and more. Whether you're a fan of Korean food or just looking for new chicken recipes, this recipe is sure to impress!

Click here for the Korean stir fry chicken recipe.

Beef Noodles

Sweet potato noodles with beef and vegetables.

Beef Japchae

This sweet potato recipe is a popular Korean side dish.

Click here for the Japchae Recipe

Sides

Korean Potato Salad

This mashed potato with apple is 1 of my favorite Korean banchan recipes. Best of all, you can make it in advance, so it's a great meal prep side dish recipe for Thanksgiving dinner parties. (I actually uploaded the recipe because my guests kept asking how to make it!)

For more Asian recipes with potatoes, click here.

Korean Mashed Potato Salad with Egg

This easy Korean mashed potato salad with egg and apple is soft, savory with hints of sweetness, and so creamy and delicious, this homemade Korean side dish (banchan) is a staple in our weeknight dinner rotation. It's the perfect simple Asian side dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or a normal family dinner. (Corn and cucumber optional)

Click here for the easy potato side dish.

A scoop of fluffy Korean potato salad in a wooden spoon.

Rice Sandwich

A piece of roasted seaweed with rice, egg, kimchi and cheese.

This no roll Kimbap (Gimbap) is a fun and easy party dish- all your guests can prepare their own rice sandwich. You just need to cook the rice, and get the seaweed and filling ready!

Folded Kimbap Sandwich (Attorney Woo)

Folded Kimbap Sandwich is a fun, easy and delicious Korean street snack that shot to fame with the K-drama, Extraordinary Attorney Woo. It's simple to make and super versatile for lunchboxes: read on for some of the many possible fillings!

Click here for the kimbap sandwich recipe.

Folded kimbaps, stuffed with cheese, kimchi, tuna and egg, in a bowl.

Roasted Aubergine

2 Baked Gochujang Aubergine halves in a roasting pan.

Nothing says warm and cozy like a spicy roasted veg recipe! (Alcohol free)

Gochujang Aubergine (Baked)

This Easy Gochujang Aubergine is a tasty Asian aubergine recipe baked in the oven. A low carb Korean aubergine recipe that is full of flavor and super delicious as a side with rice!

Click here for the Spicy Korean eggplant recipe.

Radish Kimchi

Korean Radish Side Dish

Kkakdugi is for the people who love kimchi but don’t want to stare at a fermenting jar for two weeks. It’s all the spicy, tangy, umami-packed goodness of classic kimchi, but in bite-sized cubes that don’t make you wait an eternity.

Click here for the radish kimchi recipe.

Braised Tofu

For more Asian tofu recipes, such as Teriyaki Tofu, click here.

Korean Tofu Recipe

Crispy-edged tofu swimming in a deep, umami-packed, spicy-sweet braise? Yes, please. No marinating, no waiting—just straight to the good part. It’s fast, it’s foolproof, and it makes everything—rice, noodles, your life—better.

Click here for the spicy tofu recipe.

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Comments

Mary A Blankson says

May 08, 2026 at 6:10 am

I am just browsing and came across your page. I cook some korean dishes, but I need some new ideas. I am very excited to to try some of these. They look very tasty. My family find the culture food more refreshing and it helps us controll our weight. I will give updates for everything I try. Thank you and keep them coming.

- Zen says
  
  May 11, 2026 at 8:04 pm
  
  Thanks Mary, your comment really cheered me up 🙂 Blogging has been hard the last few years and I sometimes wonder if I should continue, but what keeps me going is knowing the recipes are helping people out there 🙂 I hope your family likes these recipes!