Kkul-tarae

is a Korean dessert based on the Chinese dragon's beard candy. It is popular as street food in Korean streets such as Insadong.

Cooking method

A hard dough of honey-maltose mixture is kneaded, twisted, stretched and pulled into skeins of silky threads, in which assorted candied nuts, chocolate, or other fillings are wrapped.

History

The dragon's beard candy was never considered a traditional Korean candy and was first introduced to South Korea from China in the 1990s. Its original name was yongsuyeom, a direct translation of the Chinese name "dragon's beard". The first line of stores that opened in Seoul who marketed it as kkul-tarae were inspired from the dragon's beard candy that was sold in Chinese hotels. Despite initially revealing its Chinese origins explicitly, the Korean brands later changed their marketing strategy by attributing a fake history for the dessert, claiming it as a traditional Korean dessert enjoyed by the royal court with a 500 year old history. This marketing was later disseminated in news outlets, contributing to the public perception of the dessert being a traditional Korean dessert. The name was trademarked 7 November 2000 with intent to sell dessert similar to dragon's beard candy in Korea.