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Dessert trends in Korea change fast these days. As soon as one becomes popular, it shows up everywhere within a few weeks, and people’s attention quickly shifts to the next thing. The dessert getting the most attention right now is fruit chapssaltteok, which is a piece of fruit wrapped in a thin layer of chewy glutinous rice cake.

The most famous place for it is Hanjeongseon. Until recently, you could buy it after just a short wait. That’s no longer the case. The lines have gotten incredibly long, which makes it much harder to get one. I did get to try it.

The strawberry, pineapple, gold kiwi, and whole tangerine varieties contain red bean paste, while the mango and melon varieties contain yogurt. Looking at the full menu, it seems the fillings are carefully matched to complement each fruit.

The red bean option is the more traditional combination. Red bean paste is sweet and pairs naturally with the chewy rice cake on the outside. Fruits like strawberries, pineapples, kiwis, and tangerines tend to be tart or juicy, so they seem to balance out the sweetness of the paste. Mango and melon take a different approach. Since these two fruits are already very sweet, yogurt is used instead of red bean paste to create a lighter, fresher filling.

It’s easy to see why this trend has taken off. It’s easy to eat with your hands, the size is just right, and it looks good in photos. That matters a lot for how quickly something spreads on social media. It also feels lighter than cake or bread, and with a variety of fruits to choose from, you can pick according to your taste.

The surest sign that this has become a real trend is the response from other brands. Several of them have started releasing their own chapssaltteok-based desserts. It’s the same pattern we saw with Dubai-style desserts earlier this year: once one product gets popular enough, other brands quickly put out similar versions.

Since dessert trends change quickly, it’s hard to say how long this one will last, but right now it’s the dessert everyone is talking about.