Dish guide · Pancakes and market food
Sundae
순대
Korean blood sausage
A sausage of pig intestine stuffed with pork blood, glass noodles or sticky rice and vegetables. It has nothing to do with ice cream, and it's pronounced soon-deh.
What it is
- Fillings vary by region. The common street version uses glass noodles and pork blood, while older styles use sticky rice, minced meat and vegetables.
- It's sold steamed and sliced at markets and snack stalls, often with boiled offal such as liver and lung on the same plate.
- Sundae-gukbap is a rice soup with sundae and pork offal. Sundae-baekban is a set of sundae, soup and rice.
- Jeonju's pi-sundae is known for being dark, soft and rich, with plenty of blood.
Styles & local versions
Abai sundae아바이순대
From Sokcho's Abai Village, where people who fled the North during the Korean War settled ("abai" is Hamgyeong dialect for a father or grandfather). It's like ordinary sundae but filled with sticky rice instead of glass noodles. Some guides use the same name for squid sundae, so check the menu.
Ojingeo-sundae (squid sundae)오징어순대
A Sokcho specialty that uses a whole squid body instead of pork intestine. It's stuffed, sliced, then dipped in beaten egg and pan-fried. There's no blood in it.
How to eat it
- 1Dip slices in the seasoning served with it, which changes by region.
- 2In soup, season to taste with the salted shrimp or spicy paste on the table.
History
- Sources differ. Some link it to the Goryeo period and Mongol influence, others point to 19th-century Joseon cookbooks, and one report says today's pig-intestine style took shape in the late 19th century.
Allergies and diet
Usually contains
- The filling contains pig's blood, and the casing is pig intestine.
- Offal is often added. Ask for sundae only if you don't want it.
- Salted shrimp on the table is shellfish.
- Squid sundae (ojingeo-sundae) is made with squid and dipped in egg.
Recipes differ between restaurants. If you have an allergy, always ask the staff before you order.
🗣️ Allergy card for the staff
Pick your allergy to see the sentence in Korean.
📍 Where to try it
- 🍲
Ihwa Chapssal Sundae 이화찹쌀순대
Soups & stews · Chinatown & Sinpo, Incheon · Since 1968
One of Incheon's 'big three' sundae-gukbap houses, near Dowon Station. A clean, clear pork soup with sticky-rice sundae, served since 1968.
Try: Sundae-gukbap
Locals' pickShort wait - 🍜
Abai Hoeguksu 아바이회국수
Noodles · Sokcho Market, Abai Village & Beach
A small noodle house near Abai Village, known for hoeguksu: chewy noodles tossed in spicy sauce with a heap of raw fish. The squid sundae is popular too.
Try: Hoeguksu
Locals' pick30-60 min wait - 🍲
Byeolmi Sundae 별미순대
Soups & stews · Songdo, Incheon
A Blue Ribbon soup shop in Songdo's second district, with about 20 years behind it. Its sundae-gukbap is a milky bone broth with Korean blood sausage and rice. Songdo residents rate it among the area's best bowls, so a weekday lunch line is normal. A spicy version is on the menu too.
Try: Sundae-gukbap (blood sausage soup with rice)
Short wait - 🐟
Cheongchosu Mulhoe 청초수물회 속초본점
Home-style meals · Sokcho Market, Abai Village & Beach
Sokcho's best-known mulhoe restaurant, by Cheongcho Lake: raw seafood in an icy, sweet-and-spicy broth. This is the original shop of a chain that now has branches around Seoul.
Try: Haejeon mulhoe
30-60 min wait - 🍲
Cheongwaok 청와옥 본점
Soups & stews · Jamsil, Seoul
The sundae-gukbap (Korean blood sausage soup) house that made Bangi-dong a destination, a short walk from Olympic Park. A rich pork broth comes with plenty of sausage and meat, and regulars add charcoal-grilled squid. Long lines are normal.
Try: Sundae-gukbap (blood sausage soup)
30-60 min wait - 🍲
Dancheon Sikdang 단천식당
Soups & stews · Sokcho Market, Abai Village & Beach
The most famous restaurant in Abai Village, the neighborhood built by refugees from North Korea. Try North Korean-style abai sundae (stuffed sausage) and squid sundae with a sweet-sour pollack salad.
Try: Abai sundae
Short wait - 🍲
Jo Jeom-rye Nammun Pi-sundae 조점례남문피순대
Soups & stews · Jeonju Hanok Village & Nambu Market
Nambu Market's famous blood sausage shop. Jeonju's pi-sundae is dark, soft and rich, made with plenty of pork blood. Have it on a plate, or in the rice soup, sundae-gukbap. It opens early and it's a true market meal, if you're an adventurous eater.
Try: Sundae-gukbap (blood sausage soup with rice)
Short wait - 🍲
Park Seobang Sundae Gukbap 박서방순대국밥 삼성본점
Soups & stews · Gangnam Station & COEX, Seoul
A second-generation sundae-gukbap shop in Samseong-dong that office workers around COEX rely on. The soup is full of meat, and the sundae set meal is the one to get if you're hungry. A long-standing Blue Ribbon pick.
Try: Sundae-gukbap (blood sausage soup)
Locals' pickShort wait - 🍲
Sigol Sundae 시골순대
Soups & stews · Hongdae, Seoul
A no-frills sundae-gukbap house between Hapjeong and Hongik University stations, where office workers come for lunch and friends come for soju at night. Its makchang sundae, Korean blood sausage in a thick pork casing, earned it a spot on the TV show Master of Living. The bowls of pork and sausage soup cost about 10,000 won.
Try: Sundae-gukbap
Locals' pickNo wait - 🍲
Yaksu Sundaeguk 약수순대국
Soups & stews · Dongdaemun, Seoul
A Yaksu Market institution for sundaeguk, pork and blood sausage soup. The broth is clean rather than heavy and the bowl is packed with tender head meat. It moved from its cramped alley shop into a new building next door, with the same cooks.
Try: Sundaeguk (regular or large)
Locals' pickShort wait - 🍲
Yennal Sundae 옛날순대
Soups & stews · Seogwipo & South Coast, Jeju
A Seogwipo locals' pick for sundae-baekban, a plain, satisfying set of Korean blood sausage, soup and rice. It's the kind of old-style shop that visitors rarely find, and it closes early. Order the offal plate only if you're adventurous.
Try: Sundae-baekban (blood sausage set)
Locals' pickShort wait
Sources
We check every fact against at least two sources and write it in our own words. Last checked: 2026-11-04.