스낵
Origin of Snacks
The word ‘snack’ is said to have originated from the word ‘snap’, or ‘snacken’ which means ‘to bite’ in Middle-Age Dutch. ‘Snacken’ became ‘snac’, which again changed to ‘snack’, meaning ‘to bite once’ in Middle English.
By the simplest definition, snack is a ‘light meal’ which can include any food of a small portion that can be eaten outside the three daily meals. The general consensus about what consists of a snack is that the food should not be heavy on the stomach, has crispy texture gained from simple processes such as steaming, drying, or puffing. Flavor variations and/or enhancement can be achieved through coating or seasoning processes afterward.
Types of Snacks
  • Wheat Snack
    Wheat Snack
    This type of snacks uses wheat or flour, and was first developed in Japan applying their knowledge in manufacturing rice snacks. Due to their bland taste, these oriental snacks match up well with other flavored ingredients for a numerous flavor variations. Wheat snacks can be an alternative to a meal since they are nutritious and easy to digest. These fun snacks are very popular in Korea.
  • Potato Snack
    Potato Snack
    Potato snacks can be divided into two main groups. Natural potato chips are potatoes that have been sliced raw, fried in oil, then added with seasoning. Formed potato snacks use potato powder formed into a sheet and shaped. Potato snacks have overwhelming popularity over other types of snacks all around the world, especially in the United States. They are ranked second in the Korean snack market, following wheat snacks.
  • Corn Snack
    Corn Snack
    Corn snacks use powdered corn as the main ingredient and take up approximately 30% of the whole Korean snack market. The current shaping method uses the extruder, which lends to a great possibility for product variations. However, corn has a distinct taste which can only be matched with certain flavored ingredients, so the future development of the corn snack market relies on new flavor combinations. Corn snacks feel softer when chewed and their savory taste is popular among all ages.
  • Rice Snack
    Rice Snack
    Rice snacks are made of rice and take up a huge slice of the Japanese snack market. These snacks struggled in the past due to the unstable supply of rice and questionable production methods. However, a significant growth is expected in the future as the benefits of rice is more publicized and the rice supply is being controlled as part of the government policy.