Jungkook's Bulguri Ramen Recipe: The Viral Buldak + Neoguri Combo BTS Fans Love
Only Jungkook could invent a noodle dish famous enough to get trademarked. On a Weverse livestream — and later in a written recipe post he dropped for ARMY — BTS’s Jungkook mixed two of Korea’s most beloved instant ramyeon into one bowl and called it “Bulguri” (bul-GOO-ree). The internet lost it.
If you’re still riding the BTS high after their World Cup halftime moment, this is your kitchen homework. Here’s exactly how to make it, what to buy if you’re outside Korea, and how Koreans actually eat it at 2am. Let’s cook.
The Story Behind Bulguri
Jungkook is famously a foodie — ARMY has whole highlight reels of him eating on live. This one started when he combined Samyang’s Buldak (the fiery “fire chicken” stir-fry noodle) with Nongshim’s Neoguri (a chewy, seafood-forward udon-style ramyeon). Smash the two names together — Bul-dak + Neo-guri — and you get Bulguri.
The recipe caught fire so fast that Nongshim reportedly moved to trademark the name, and sales of both noodles jumped as fans rushed to recreate it. Heads up: the original livestream clip was later taken down over background music copyright, so I’m not embedding a reupload here — but the recipe he shared lives on. And it’s genuinely great.
Ingredients (with US Swaps)
Makes 1 big bowl (or 2 small). The right-hand column is for anyone who can’t find the exact Korean packs.
| Ingredient | Amount | No Korean store? Swap this |
|---|---|---|
| Samyang Buldak (fire chicken noodle) | 1 pack | Any spicy stir-fry ramyeon, OR plain ramen + 1 tbsp gochujang + ½ tsp cayenne + pinch of sugar |
| Nongshim Neoguri (seafood udon-style) | 1 pack | Any thick udon-style instant noodle + ½ a seafood/dashi stock cube |
| Perilla oil (deulgireum) — Jungkook’s finisher | 1 tsp | Toasted sesame oil (nuttier, not identical, but close) |
| Water | ~550 ml | Same |
| Optional: cheese slice, 1 egg, seaweed flakes (gim) | to taste | American cheese single, any egg, nori crumbles |
Step-by-Step
- Boil the water. Bring about 550 ml to a boil, then drop in both noodle blocks.
- Build the base. Add Neoguri’s soup powder and its little kelp/veg flakes — then only half of Buldak’s liquid sauce. (Full send comes later, if you dare.)
- Cook it down. Simmer 4–5 minutes, stirring, until the noodles soften and the liquid reduces to a glossy sauce. You want saucy, not soupy. That’s the whole point of Bulguri.
- Taste & adjust. Want more heat? Add the rest of the Buldak sauce a little at a time.
- Finish off the heat. Kill the flame, drizzle the perilla oil, and toss. Optional: melt a cheese slice on top, slide in an egg yolk, shower with seaweed flakes.
- Eat immediately. Bulguri waits for no one.
🇰🇷 How Koreans Actually Eat It
Here’s the cultural piece English recipes usually skip. Bulguri isn’t a “dinner” in Korea — it’s late-night, sitting-on-the-floor, one-more-episode comfort food. And mixing two ramyeon into one bowl is its own tradition: Koreans call this DIY-remix move being a modisumer (modify + consumer). Jungkook didn’t invent the concept — he just made the most famous version of it.
The other very-Korean part: the toppings. A single slice of cheese melted on top to round off the spice, or an egg for richness, is standard. And nobody drinks it like soup — you cook the water down so you can scoop noodles and sauce together with chopsticks. Soupy Bulguri is, frankly, a crime.
Jamie’s Tips (aka How Not to Ruin It)
- Don’t dump all the Buldak sauce. Half first, taste, then add. The full packet is no joke — you can always add heat, you can’t remove it.
- Reduce the water. If it looks like soup, keep cooking. Bulguri should cling to the noodles.
- Perilla oil goes in LAST, off the heat. Boil it and you cook off the exact nutty aroma that makes this taste like Jungkook’s and not just spicy noodles.
Want It in Seoul?
Fun fact: you don’t need a kitchen. Korean convenience stores like GS25 and CU have self-serve ramyeon machines right in the store — grab both packets off the shelf, cook them at the counter station, and eat at the window bar with the city going by. It’s the most authentically Korean way to have your Bulguri moment, no stove required.
Difficulty: Easy (if you can boil water, you’re in)
Serves: 1 hungry person (or 2 sharing)
Spice level: 🌶🌶🌶🌶 (4/5 — adjustable with the sauce)
3 Bulguri Variations Fans Swear By
Once you’ve nailed the base, this is where it gets fun. Being a modisumer means the recipe is a starting point, not a rulebook. Three upgrades worth trying:
- Cheese Bulguri. The classic. Melt one or two cheese slices in at the very end — it cuts the Buldak heat into something creamy and addictive. This is the version most Korean fans default to.
- Rosé Bulguri. Riding the same wave as rosé tteokbokki: stir in a splash of milk or cream with the cheese for a pink, mellow, slightly sweet sauce. Great if 4/5 spice scares you — it dials things down to a friendly 2/5.
- Bulguri Rajuk. Jungkook is also a known fan of rajuk (ramen-rice porridge). Toward the end, stir in a scoop of cooked rice and let it thicken into a porridge. It stretches one bowl into a proper, sit-down meal — and soaks up every drop of that sauce.
My honest ranking? Cheese for a weeknight, rosé when friends who “can’t do spicy” come over, rajuk when I’m genuinely hungry and it’s past midnight. There’s no wrong answer here.
FAQ
Is Bulguri really spicy?
It has a kick — Buldak is genuinely hot — but Neoguri’s milder, seafoody broth tames it, and using half the sauce keeps it very doable. A cheese slice or egg mellows it further.
Can I make it vegetarian?
Not as-is, since the seasoning packets lean on meat and seafood flavor. Sub a vegetarian instant noodle, build heat with gochujang, and use a veg dashi or kelp stock for the savory depth.
Where do I buy Buldak and Neoguri?
H Mart and most Asian groceries carry both, and they’re easy to find on Amazon. Buldak in particular has gone mainstream — plenty of regular US supermarkets stock it now.
I’ve made this more times than I’ll admit, and the perilla oil is the whole thing. Skip it and you’ve got spicy noodles; add it and suddenly it tastes like the exact bowl Jungkook was grinning over on live. It’s a two-minute, two-packet dish that somehow feels like a tiny piece of ARMY history. Make it at 1am with a cheese slice on top. You’ll get it.
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