[FOOD] Why Buldak Fried Noodles Go to Malaysia?

Author | JUNG Gil-hwa, The President of Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE)

2024.01.19

The Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE) has been running the Overseas Correspondent Reporters since 2004. As of this year, nearly 40 correspondents from 35 countries are active, and the cumulative number of articles has reached 16,265 (as of today). Our overseas correspondents quickly capture and report on Hallyu phenomena and trends around the world. In short, they are the global Hallyu ambassadors. When it comes to the Korean wave, it can be said to be a faster and more vibrant newsroom than the international bureaus of the famous legacy media.

Recently, Hong Seong-ah, a correspondent in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, sent us an interesting report which title is "The diversity of buldak fried noodles in multi-ethnic Malaysia". In addition to the recent popularity of Korean buldak fried noodles in the K-food craze, Hong also focuses on this as a cultural phenomenon in terms of connectivity and scalability that is unique to Malaysia. The following is an excerpt from the correspondent's report, which I hope will be well received by the Korean media and the hallyu community. The following content is excerpted and reorganized from the correspondent's report.

Correspondent in Malaysia

According to Hong, Malaysia ranks fifth in the export market for Korean ramen noodles. In addition, the popularity of Korean ramen in Malaysia is driven by Samyang Food, represented by Buldak fried noodles. In 2021, Samyang Food's sales in Malaysia will be about 25 billion won, accounting for 81% of the market share of Korean ramen in Malaysia. That's an impressive number. One of the reasons for the local popularity of buldak fried noodles is the proliferation of modisumer (a combination of modify and consumer) recipes, he analyzes. A good example of this is the "fusion" buldak fried noodles that have been making waves in Malaysia recently.

What's making a big splash are Malaysian recipes that reflect local cuisine rather than simply incorporating local ingredients. A typical example is the 'buldak fried noodle omelette', which is popular at night markets. It's a variation of the local dish Murtabak Maggi. Maggi ramen noodles are tossed in a thin batter with eggs, onions, minced meat and other ingredients to make "Murtabak Maggi". Nowadays, "buldak fried noodles" are used instead of "Maggi", and when the spiciness is neutralized with a protein-rich egg, it becomes a "Malaysian buldak fried noodle omelet". Other fusion dishes such as fried noodle pancakes and fried chicken burgers are popping up all the time.

Correspondent Hong Seong-ah believes that the reason for the popularity of buldak fried noodles in Malaysia, a gastronomic paradise, is that the food culture of enjoying different combinations using different recipes by different ethnic groups is becoming more common. The same fried chicken noodles can be prepared differently depending on the ingredients and recipe. Malaysians are enjoying the new appeal of buldak fried noodles with a variety of dishes in line with the slogan "Truly Asia". This is similar to the localization of K-pop into V-pop in Vietnam, T-pop in Thailand, etc. It's a remarkable phenomenon in the localization of the Korean wave. It's exciting.

Hong Seong-ah has been working as a foreign correspondent for KOFICE Malaysia, based in Kuala Lumpur, since May 2018. She has been reporting from Malaysia, one of the main hubs of the Korean wave in Southeast Asia. In particular, she covered the Hallyu Life and Culture Hanmadang Mokkoji event in November 2022 and the 2nd Walk the Dog International Documentary Festival in 2023. Hong is a Ph.D. candidate in Strategic Human Resource Management at Universiti Sains Malaysia. (END)

PS.

Title: "The diversity of buldak fried noodles in multi-ethnic Malaysia" by HONG Seong-ah

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