The most common animal-based ingredients in Korean

Below vocabulary list provides the names of common animal-based food ingredients in Korean language. 🗒🐮🇰🇷🇰🇵

Advertisement at a traditional Korean market in Seoul 2019. What’s on sale?

Hopefully it helps when checking the ingredient list on food labels 📝,
while generally studying Korean 📚,
with identifying unknown foods 🔍 or
in communicating what you want to (not) eat/consume/purchase. 🙅‍♂️🍽🙆‍♀️

There is an endless diversity of animals and animal-derived products, which appear in Korean food culture as well as traditional medicine. This list cannot contain all of them but aims to mention the most common ones as well as noteworthy cases. ❗️ If you find that there is an important item missing, please let me know! 🙏 Comment below or send me a message!

The following words are sorted by origin of ingredient – in other words, by type of animal. 🐂🐖🐑🐓🐟🦐🐛

If you’d rather learn words for non-animal foods, how about vegetables🥕, fruit🍌, mushrooms🍄, seaweed🌿 or spices🌶? [Btw, if you don’t know how to read Korean yet, here’s a free and easy guide to learning the alphabet!]

Names of animal-based ingredients in Korean

animal-based ingredients 동물성 재료 動物性材料 dongmulseong jaeryo

🐖🐄🐑 Mammals / so-called “Red Meat” 고기류 🍖🥩🥓

class of so-called “red meat” – 고기류 gogi-ryu
common “red meats”
- 🐄 beef – 소고기 sogogi / 쇠고기 soegogi
  - 🐂 Korean beef – 한우 韓牛 hanu
- 🐖 pork – 돼지고기 dwaeji-gogi / 돈육 豚肉 donyuk (Sino-Korean)
  - Korean pork – 한돈 韓豚 handon
  - black pig from Jeju Island – 제주흑돼지 濟州黑돼지 jeju heuk dwaeji
- 🐑 mutton – 양고기 羊 yang-gogi
- 🐐 goat meat – 염소고기 yeomso-gogi
- 🐕 dog meat – 개고기 gae-gogi
- 🐇 rabbit meat – 토끼고기 tokki-gogi
🥓 products derived from meat and other body parts
- 🐖 ham – 햄 haem 🥓
- 🐖 spam – 스팸 seupaem
- 🐄/🐖 sausage – 소시지 sosiji 🌭
- 🐖 Korean blood sausage – 순대 sundae
- 🐄/🐖 organs, guts, intestines – 내장 內臟 naejang
  - 🐄/🐖 lung – 허파 heopa / 폐 pye 🫁
  - 🐄/🐖 liver – 간 gan
  - 🐄/🐖 small intestine (normally cut in rings) – 곱창 gopchang
  - 🐄 rumen, paunch, first stomach of a cow – 혹위 hogwi
  - 🐄 fourth stomach of a cow – 막창 makchang / 홍창 hongchang / 주름위 jureumwi
  - 🐖 part below large intestine of a pig – 돼지막창 dwaeji makchang
  - 🐄 large intestine of a cow – 대창 daechang
  - heart – 염통 念桶 yeomtong / 심장 心臟 simjang 🫀
- 🐖 pork belly (three-layered) – 삼겹살 samyeopsal
  - 🐖 five-layered pork belly – 오겹살 ogyeopsal
- 🐖 pig’s feet – 족발 jokbal
- 🐖 slices of a meat block made from pig’s head – (돼지머리) 편육 (dwaejimeori) pyeonyuk
- 🐖 pork skin – 돼지껍데기 dwaeji kkeopdegi
- 🐖 lard – 라드 radeu
- 🐄/🐖 ribs – 갈비 galbi
- 🐄 steak – 스테이크 seute-ik 🥩
  - 🐄 T-bone steak – 티본스테이크 tibon seute-ik 🥩
  - 🐄 sirloin, sirloin steak – 등심 deungsim 🥩
  - 🐄 rib eye, rib-eye steak – 꽃등심 kkot deungsim 🥩
- 🐄 beef knee (with cartilage and tendons) – 도가니 dogani
- 🐄 beef tallow, suet – 우지 牛脂 uji
- 🐄 beef tongue – 우설 牛舌 useol
- 🐄 Korean-style beef jerky – 육포 yukpo 🥓
- 🐄 fine slices of raw beef – 육회 yukhoe
- 🐄 beef head soup – 소머리국 someori guk
- 🐄/🐖 Korean blood pudding – 선지 seonji 🩸
- 🐄/🐖 gelatin – 젤라틴 jellatin
- 🐄/🐖 stock, broth (often based on animal) – 육수 肉水 yuksu 🥣
  - 🐄 stock from cow bones – 사골육수 sagol-yuksu 🦴🥣
- 🐄/🐖 bone char, charred animal bones (used for e.g. filtering water or refining sugar) – 탄화골분 tanhwa golbun 🦴⚫
  - 🐄/🐖 bone powder, powdered bones – 골분 golbun 🦴
- 🐑 mutton skewers – 양꼬치 yang-kkochi
- 🐕 stew with dog meat – 보신탕 bosintang / 사철탕 sacheoltang / 개장국 gaejang-tang 🥣

🐓🦃🦆 Poultry and other fowl 가금류 🥪🍟🍗

class of poultry and other fowl – 가금류 gageumnyu
🐓 chicken (meat) – 닭(고기) dak(gogi)
- 🐓 fried chicken – 치킨 chikin 🍗
- 🐓 chicken feet – 닭발 dakbal
- 🐓 gizzard – 똥집 ttongjip
🦆 duck (meat) – 오리(고기) ori(gogi)
🦆 goose (meat) – 거위(고기) geowi(gogi)
🐥 quail – 메추리 mechuri
🐥 sparrow meat – 참새(고기) chamsae(gogi)
🦃 turkey – 칠면조 chilmyeonjo
🐓 pheasant – 꿩 kkwong

🐟🐠🐡 Fish 어류 🍣🍥🍢

class of fish – 어류 eo-ryu
🐠 fish – alive, not for consumption – 물고기 mulgogi
🐟 fish – for consumption – 생선 saengseon
🐟 common fish species which are consumed in Korea
- anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) – 멸치 myeolchi
- salmon – 연어 yeon-eotrout – 송어 song-eo
- tuna – 참치 chamchi / 다랑어 darang-eo / 가다랑어 gadarang-eo
- mackerel – 고등어 godeung-eo
- Japanese Spanish mackerel, Japanese seerfish (Scomberomorus niphonius) – 삼치 samchi
- Japanese amberjack (Seriola quinqueradiata) – 방어 bang-eosea
- bass – 농어 nong-eo
- brown croaker (Miichthys miiuy) – 민어 mineo
- redlip croaker, small yellow croaker (Larimichthys polyactis) – 조기 jogi
  - dried redlip croaker – 굴비 gulbi
- Okhotsk atka mackerel, Arabesque greenling (Pleurogrammus azonus) – 임연수(어) imyeonsu (eo)
- snapper – 돔 dom / 도미 domi
  - red snapper – 레드스내퍼 redeu seunaepeo
  - red seabream, Jap. madai (Pagrus major) – 참돔 chamdom
  - striped beakfish (Oplegnathus fasciatus) – 돌돔 doldom
  - horsehead tilefish (Branchiostegus japonicus) – 옥돔 okdom
  - white tilefish (Branchiostegus albus) – 옥두어 okdu-eo
- cod, pollock, pollack – 대구 daegu
  - Alaska pollock, walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) – 명태 myeongtae
  - frozen pollock – 동태 凍太 dongtae
  - dried pollock – 황태 hwangtae
- Korean rockfish (Sebastes schlegelii) – 조피볼락 jopibollak / 우럭 ureok [also the name for an edible clam]
- 🐡 pufferfish – 복어 bogeo
- anglerfish, monkfish – 아구 agu
- butterfish – 병어 byeong-eo
- 🐟 dotted gizzard shad (Konosirus punctatus) – 전어 jeoneo
- 🐟 sardine – 정어리 jeongeori
- 🐟 herring – 청어 cheongeo
- 🐟 Chinese herring, slender shad (Ilisha elongata) – 준치 junchi
- 🐟 sand lance (Ammodytes personatus) – 까나리 kkanari
- Pacific saury, mackerel pike (Cololabis saira) – 꽁치 kkongchi
- hairtail – 갈치 galchi
- flatfish – 가자미 gajami
  - flounder – 광어 gwang-eo
  - sole, tonguefish – 서대 seodae
- eel – 장어 jang-eo
  - white-spotted conger, marine eel Conger myriaster, Jap. ma-anago 真穴子 – 바다장어 bada jang-eo
  - freshwater eel (Anguilla) – 민물장어 minmul jangeo
  - hagfish (Myxini) – 꼼장어 kkom-jang-eo / 먹장어 meok-jang-eo
  - Chinese muddy loach (Misgurnus mizolepis) – 미꾸라지 mikkuraji / 추어 chu-eo
- catfish – 메기 megi
- carpfish
  - common carp, European carp (Cyprinus carpio) – 잉어 ingeo [old from: 이어 鯉魚 i-eo]
  - crucian carp (Cyprinus carassius) – 붕어 bungeo [old from: 부어 鮒魚 bu-eo]
  - grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) – 초어 草魚 cho-eo
- stingray – 가오리 ga-ori
- (thornback) ray, skate – 홍어 洪魚 hong-eo
- 🦈 shark – 상어 sang-eo
🍢 substances derived from fish
- 🍣 raw fish, sashimi style – (생선)회 (saengseon) hoe
- 🍣 Japanese-style sushi – 초밥 chobap
- 🍥 fish cake (sometimes on a stick) – 어묵 eomuk / 오뎅 odeng
- 🍢 fish cake on a stick – 핫바 hatba
- 🦀 crab meat imitation, surimi – 게맛살 gematsal
- 🦀 raw crab pickled in soy sauce – 간장게장
- 🦀 deep-fried sentinel crabs – 칠게튀김 chilge twigim
- 🍤 deep-fried shrimps – 새우튀김 sae-u twigim
- 🥚 fish roe – 어란 魚卵 eoran / 생선알 saengseon-al
  - flying fish roe – 날치알 nalchi-al
- dried seafood and dried fish – 건어물 乾魚物 geon-eomul
  - dried anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) – 건멸치 geon myeolchi
  - dried Japanese sardine (Sardinella zunasi) – 건밴댕이 geon baendaengi
  - Korean fish jerky made from thread-sail filefish (Stephanolepis cirrhifer) – 쥐포 jwipo
- fermented fish sauce – 젓 jeot / 젓갈 jeotgal
  - liquid fish sauce – 액젓 aekjeot
  - fermented fish sauce based on anchovy – 멸치 액젓 myeolchi aekjeot
  - fermented fish sauce based on sand lance (Ammodytes personatus) – 까나리 액젓 kkanari aekjeot
- seasoning stock made with anchovy – 멸치 다시물 myeolchi dasimul
  - dashi – 다시 dasi

🐚🦀🐙 Seafood 해산물 🦞🍤🦑

seafood – 해산물 haesanmul
🦀 crustaceans – 갑각류 gapgak-ryu
- 🦀 crab – 게 ge
  - Korean blue crab, gazami crab horse crab (Portunus trituberculatus) – 꽃개 kkotge
  - Asian paddle crab, lady crab (Charybdis japonica) – 돌게 dolge / 민꽃게 min-kkotge / 박하지 bakhaji
  - Chinese mitten crab, Shanghai hairy crab (Eriocheir sinensis) – 참게 chamge
  - king crab – 대게 daege / 킹크랩 king keuraep
  - sentinel crab (Macrophthalmus japonicus) – 칠게 chilge
- 🦐 shrimp – 새우 sae-u
- 🦞 lobster – 럽스터 reopseuteo / 랍스타 rapseuta / 바닷가재 badat gajae
- 🦞 spiny lobster – 닭새우 dak sae-u
- 🦞 crayfish, crawfish, crawdad – 가재 gajae
- 🦞 mantis shrimp (Oratosquilla oratoria) – 갯가재 gaet gajae
🐙 cephalopods / cuttlefish
- 🦑 squid, sepia – 오징어 ojing-eo
  - common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) – 갑오징어 gap ojing-eo
- 🦑 beka squid (Loligo beka) – 꼴뚜기 kkolttugi
- 🐙 octopus – 문어 mun-eo
- 🐙 small octopus, Korean common octopus (Octopus minor) – 낙지 nakji
- 🐙 webfoot octopus (Amphioctopus fangsiao) – 주꾸미 jukkumi
🦪 shellfish – 패류 貝類 paeryu
- 🦪 molluscs like clams and mussels – 조개류 jogae-ryu
  - 🦪 oyster – 굴 gul
  - blue mussel – 홍합 honghap
  - abalone (Haliotis) – 전복 jeonbok
  - scallop – 가리비 garibi
  - cockle – 꼬막 kkomak
    - true cockle (Anadara granosa / Tegillarca granosa) – 참꼬막 cham kkomak
    - “bird cockle” (Anadara sativa) – 새꼬막 sae kkomak
    - blood cockle, blood clam (Anadara broughtonii) – 피꼬막 pi kkomak / 피조개 pi jogae
  - manila clam, Japanese cockle, Japanese littleneck clam (Venerupis philippinarum) – 바지락 bajirak
  - egg cockle (Fulvia mutica) – 새조개 saejogae
  - pen shell (Atrina pectinata) – 키조개 kijogae
  - freshwater clams – 민물조개 minmul jogae / 담수패류 淡水貝類 damsu paeryu
    - marsh clam (Corbicula) – 재첩 jaecheop
- 🐌 gastropods
  - 🐚 water snails in general, marine sea snails as well as freshwater snails – 고둥 godung
    - 🐚 conch, whelk – 소라 小螺 sora
      - veined rapa whelk, Asian rapa whelk (Rapana venosa) – 참소라 cham sora / 피뿔소라 pippul sora
      - horned turban snail (Turbo cornutus) – 뿔소라 ppul sora
    - 🐚 moon snail, bladder moon snail (Neverita didyma) – 골뱅이 golbaengi
    - 🐚 marsh snail (Semisulcospira libertina) – 다슬기 daseulgi
    - 🐚 Lister’s river snail, mystery snail (Viviparus contectus) – 우렁이 ureongi
  - 🐌 land snail, terrestrial snail – 달팽이 dalpaengi
🦂 other marine creatures
- jelly fish – 해파리 haepari
- 🥒 sea cucumber – 해삼 haesam
- sea urchin – 성게 seong-ge
- 🍍 sea squirt, sea pineapple (Halocynthia roretzi) – 멍게 meong-ge
- 🍍 stalked sea squirt, Asian tunicate (Styela clava) – 미더덕 mideodeok
- 🪱 spoon worm, “penis fish” (Urechis unicinctus) – 개불 gaebul
🍤 Substances derived from seafood
- 🦑 dried seafood and dried fish – 건어물 乾魚物 geon-eomul
- 🦐 fermented shrimp sauce (for seasoning) – 새우젓 sae-u jeot / 추젓 chujeot
- 🦐 krill oil – 크릴오일 keuril o-il
- 🐚 shell powder – 조개껍질 jogae-kkeopjil / 패각(칼슘) 貝殼 paegak(kalsyum)

🐝🐛🦋 Insects 곤충 🍯💄🍹

class of insects – 곤충류 昆蟲類 gonchungnyu
insect – 곤충 昆蟲 gonchung
🐛 silk worm pupa (Bombyx mori) – (누에) 번데기 (nu-e) beondegi
- 🐛 silk worm (Bombyx mori) – 누에 nu-e / 잠 蠶 jam [👉medicinal use]
🦗 cricket – 귀뚜라미 gwitturami
🦗 grass hopper – 매뚜기 maettugi
🐛 meal worm – 밀웜 milwom
🐛 beetle larva (mostly Protaetia brevitarsis) – 굼벵이 gumbengi
🐝 honey bee – 꿀벌 kkul-beol
🍯 substances derived from insects
- 🐝 wax – 밀랍 millap
- 🐝 honey – 꿀 kkul
- 🐞 shellac, resin secreted by lac bugs – 쉘락 swellak
- 🐞 carmine, color made from dried cochineal bugs – 카민 kamin / 코치닐추출색소 kochinil chuchul saekso 💄
- 🐛 silk – 비단 bidan 🧵

🐢🦌🦂 Other animals 기타동물 🕷🕸🐍

🐢 soft-shell turtle – 자라 jara
🦌 deer horn, antler – 사슴뿔 saseum-ppul / 녹각 鹿角 nokgak / 녹용 鹿茸 nogyong [👉medicinal use]
🐛 centipede – 지네 jine [👉medicinal use]
🐍 snake liquor – 뱀술 baemsul
🐋 whale meat – 고래고기 gorae gogi
🐬 dolphin meat – 돌고래고기 dolgorae gogi

🐔🥚🍳 Eggs 난류 🍮🥞🍰

types of eggs – 난류 卵類 nallyu
🥚 chicken egg – 계란 鷄卵 gyeran / 달걀 dalgyal
🥚 duck egg – 오리알 ori-al
🥚 quail egg – 메추리알 mechuri-al
🍳 Substances derived from eggs
- egg yolk – 난황 卵黃 nanhwang
- egg shell powder – 난각분말 卵殼粉末 nan-gak bunmal
- mayonnaise – 마요네즈 mayonejeu

🐮🥛🧀 Dairy 유제품 🍨🧁🍦

dairy – 유제품 乳製品 yujepum
🥛 milk – 우유 牛乳 uyu
🧈 butter – 버터 beoteo
- pure butter (at least 99% based on milk) – 순수버터 sunsu beoteo
- processed butter (plant oils mixed with butter) – 가공버터 gagong beoteo
- “plant-based butter” [but in Korea not always dairyfree! Check the allergen list!] – 식물성버터 singmulseong beoteo
🥣 yogurt – 요구르트 yogureuteu
🍰 whipped cream – 생크림 saeng-keurim
🧀 cheese – 치즈 chijeu
🥛 condensed milk – 연유 煉乳 yeonyu
Substances derived from dairy
- whey – 유청 乳淸 yucheong
- whey powder – 유청분말 乳淸粉末 yucheong bunmal
- milk sugar, lactose – 유당 乳糖 yudang