Spread of Korean autumn seasonal foods including persimmons, chestnuts, jujubes, and traditional rice cakes during the fall harvest

Korean Autumn Foods That'll Make You Drool: Crab, Persimmons, Jeoneo & More

22 июнь 2026 г. Hyunwoo Cho

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In Korea, autumn is poetically called cheongoma-bi (천고마비), the season of high skies and stout horses. The blistering summer fades, mountain ridges turn red and gold, and the grains, fruits, and fish that ripened all year arrive at their peak. Cooler air sharpens appetites, and home kitchens, traditional markets, and seaside ports all shift into a uniquely autumnal rhythm. Here are some of the most beloved Korean autumn foods you can savor when the leaves begin to fall.

Ganjang Gejang: Soy Sauce Marinated Crab

When the calendar slides toward autumn, Korea's blue crabs (kkotge, 꽃게) and male crabs become plump and meaty, making them perfect for the famous "rice thief," ganjang gejang. Fresh raw crabs are submerged in a mild, aromatic soy sauce brine flavored with apple, garlic, ginger, kelp, and dried chili peppers, then chilled until the meat soaks up the umami liquor. Eaten with steamed rice and a few spoonfuls of the marinade mixed into the shell, gejang earns its nickname (bap-doduk, 밥도둑) because a bowl of rice disappears in seconds. There is also yangnyeom gejang, the fiery red-chili version, but the soy-marinated original is the autumn classic Korean families wait all year to enjoy.

Ganjang gejang Korean soy sauce marinated raw blue crab served with garnishes ready to eat with rice — Soy-marinated raw blue crab, ganjang gejang, is the autumn rice thief that earns its name. | Source: Ganjang Gejang on Korean Bapsang

Sujeonggwa: Cinnamon and Persimmon Punch

If you want a drink that can put pumpkin spice in its place, look no further than sujeonggwa (수정과). This Korean dessert punch is simmered slowly from cinnamon sticks, sliced ginger, and a touch of sugar, then chilled with whole dried persimmons (gotgam) bobbing inside. The flavor is warming and fruity with a sharp ginger snap, the color a deep reddish brown, and each bowl is garnished with floating pine nuts. Served especially around Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) and other holidays, sujeonggwa is the kind of after-meal drink that makes everyone slow down and savor the change of season.

Sujeonggwa Korean cinnamon ginger persimmon punch served in a glass bowl with pine nuts floating on top — Sujeonggwa, a chilled cinnamon and ginger punch with dried persimmons. | Source: Sujeonggwa recipe by Maangchi

Jeoneo: Autumn Gizzard Shad

There is a Korean saying that jeoneo (전어), the dotted gizzard shad, smells so good in autumn it can bring back a daughter-in-law who has run away from home. Between September and mid-November the fish return to coastal waters fat with omega-3 oil, their flesh nutty, tender, and rich. Fishermen along the southern and western coasts choose specimens longer than 15 centimeters for the best flavor. The classic preparation is jeoneo-gui, the whole fish scored, salted generously, and grilled over hot coals so the silvery skin crisps and the bones soften enough to chew. If you do not feel like firing up the grill, sliced raw jeoneo (jeoneo-hoe) wrapped in lettuce or perilla leaf with garlic and chili paste is equally celebrated.

Jeoneo gui Korean grilled gizzard shad scored and salted on a plate, an autumn seafood delicacy — Grilled gizzard shad (jeoneo-gui) is one of Korea's most prized autumn seafoods. | Source: Grilled Gizzard Shad on VisitKorea (KTO)

Gun Goguma: Roasted Sweet Potato

As the temperature drops, street vendors across Korea wheel out their drum-can ovens and the smoky perfume of gun goguma (군고구마), roasted sweet potatoes, fills the alleyways. Korean sweet potatoes have purplish skins and dense, honey-orange flesh that caramelizes into sticky sugar threads when slow-roasted. At home, cooks line a heavy cast-iron pan with parchment, nestle the unpeeled goguma inside, and roast on low heat for 40 to 60 minutes until the skins blister and the insides turn almost custard-like. Koreans love to eat roasted sweet potatoes with crisp dongchimi (radish water kimchi) or a square of napa cabbage kimchi, balancing the gentle sweetness with cool, tangy crunch.

Gun goguma roasted Korean sweet potato peeled open showing caramelized golden orange flesh inside — Roasted sweet potato (gun goguma) is the smell of autumn on every Korean street corner. | Source: Pan Roasted Korean Sweet Potato on Beyond Kimchee

Autumn Fruits: Apples, Pears, Persimmons, and Jujubes

Walk through any Korean market in October and the produce stalls glow with the colors of the harvest. Korean apples (sagwa) and Korean pears (bae) hit their peak crispness and juiciness in the fall, and both are essential offerings on the Chuseok ancestral table as well as the most common gifts exchanged between families during the holiday. Persimmons (gam) arrive in three forms enjoyed all over the country: danggam (firm and crunchy), hongsi (ripened to a jammy softness), and gotgam (peeled, hung, and dried into chewy candy-like discs). Jujubes (daechu), tiny red dates, are scattered into stews, teas, and rice cakes for their warm, almost cinnamon-like sweetness. Together they sum up everything autumn means in Korea: gratitude, abundance, and family gathered around a generous table.