“Dujjonku,” short for “Dubai jjondeuk cookie” (Dubai chewy cookie), is currently the undisputed dessert protagonist in Korea. Whether lining up in freezing temperatures or attempting “Dukketing” (Dubai + Ticketing), people are enthusiastic to try the tiny pistachio-and-kadayif-filled chewy cookie. Initially, many believed that the “Dubai dessert” craze would be short-lived, destined to follow the same rise-and-fall trajectory as tanghulu and the Taiwanese castella. Yet the Dubai dessert trend has proven remarkably resilient two years later.
The “Dubai dessert” trend originated in the United Arab Emirates in 2021 as a milk chocolate bar named “Can’t Get Knafeh of It.” Filled with Middle Eastern ingredients such as pistachio-tahini cream and kadayif, the bar became a global sensation in 2024 after going viral through influencer videos. People started jumping on the bandwagon, and in Korea, the resale price of a single bar hit 100,000 KRW.
It seemed like the Dubai craze was ending by the end of 2024. Dupes of the Dubai chocolate, along with “Dubai donuts”, “Dubai icecream”, and “Dubai cookies” were everywhere, but people were no longer as keen on buying them. However, creative Koreanization saved the Dubai dessert from meeting the same fate as other trending desserts. Dujjonku was born. By wrapping the pistachio-and-kadayif paste in chocolate-marshmallow dough, the dessert earned a chewy texture somewhat similar to the traditional rice cake, “tteok”. The Korean obsession with this jjondeuk texture, seen in favorites like tteokbokki, allowed this reinvented version to thrive.
Ms. Seo, a civilian who queued at four different places to find the ideal Dujjonku, commented, “The crunchiness of the kadayif is addictive, and it harmonizes well with the chewiness of the cookie. It’s like a paradox of textures.” She also noted the shift in sweetness: “It was surprisingly not too sweet; I expected it to be sweeter.” While the initial Dujjonkus were almost overwhelmingly sweet to many, some cafes have recalibrated the recipe to suit the Korean palate. In Korea, a dessert being called “not too sweet” is the ultimate compliment.
While some critics predict that Dujjonku will eventually fade like tanghulu and the Taiwanese castella, some believe it might become a permanent staple, joining the Korean garlic bread and the over-stuffed macaron “ddung-caron.” The primary hurdle remains the price point. Hee-jun KIM (Mueunjae 25), who waited an hour to buy Dujjonku, remarked, “It was really delicious, but 6,500 KRW is a lot for one cookie. I might be a regular if it were priced around 3,000 KRW.”
While the bandwagon culture initially launched the Dubai dessert trend, the ultimate staying power lies behind the Koreanization. This reflects Korea’s long history of creative adaptation that turns fleeting fads into staples. For instance, the American corn dog was transformed into the K-Hotdog by adding the sweetness of sugar and the chewiness of glutinous rice flour. Similarly, Italian pizza has branched into uniquely Korean varieties such as sweet potato pizza and K-BBQ pizza. In each case, “Koreanizing” foreign foods makes the dish stay relevant for longer.
By reimagining global flavors through a local lens, Korea is creating a new K-dessert genre that often finds its way back to the global stage. As Dujjonku continues to dominate social media, one can’t help but wonder: which global favorite will Korea reinvent next?
