CU PBICK Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak Review [Korean Food]

Home » K-food Review » K-Convenience Store Food » CU PBICK Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak Review [Korean Food]

Today’s new lunchbox from CU is the PBICK Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak Double Set. A number of convenience-store brands have released “budae bokkeum” (army-base stir-fry) over the years, and this one is just about the only one on sale right now. It launched as a new menu with a completely different makeup from CU’s earlier celebrity-chef and Spam budae bokkeum versions. The flavor isn’t over the top — nicely moderate — so it wasn’t much of a burden as a full meal. So let’s take a look at what it’s like.

Table of Contents

📋 At a Glance

Product: PBICK Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak Double Set (PBICK The Kitchen)
Store: CU
Price: 5,900 won (approx. $4.30 USD)
Weight: 370g
Calories: 602 kcal (sodium 76% of daily value)
Main components: Budae bokkeum (square ham, sausage, cheese), soy jjimdak (Brazilian chicken), stir-fried kimchi, rolled omelet, stir-fried imitation crab
Verdict: ★3.5 — Ham-loaded, mild budae bokkeum that goes well with rice for a solid meal, though the jjimdak is a bit ambiguous.

PBICK Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak Double Set: Price and Highlights

As I mentioned, this is just about the only budae bokkeum menu currently on sale. It’s not simply budae bokkeum on its own — it’s a “double set” lineup that pairs it with jjimdak too. You could call it one of the traits that emerged as CU’s lunchboxes were renewed under PBICK. They keep launching menus that rotate steadily within a few templates: two-tier lunchbox, double set, bapdoduk, and so on. The price for this one is 5,900 won.

Note that you must remove the lid before microwaving this one. In the past you’d always take everything off, but these days some are heated with the lid on and some without, so I always end up checking. No instructions on the package? Then just take the lid off and heat it.

This menu comes to 370g at 602 kcal, with sodium at 76% of the daily value. Given the price point, you might find the volume and calories a bit lacking — but with prices up so much lately, you have to treat around 5,500 won as the midrange for a lunchbox. Even single-item and noodle lunchboxes now sit in the late 4,000s. As a note on ingredients, the jjimdak (soy chicken bulgogi) uses Brazilian chicken.

What’s in the Double Set

Let’s take a quick look at the makeup. CU’s PBICK double-set format — two main dishes (split into a top main and a sub main) plus three side dishes — stays essentially the same here. That said, the three sides do vary a little from lunchbox to lunchbox.

Expressing the sausage flavor of budae bokkeum

Introducing the budae bokkeum side layout

The Star Side: Budae Bokkeum

First is what you could call this menu’s key side, the budae bokkeum. Convenience-store budae bokkeum has occasionally had minor issues — too much cheese, or too little ham with a bit too much vegetable. But since PBICK’s slogan itself is along the lines of “do one side properly,” it’s striking how generously they loaded on the ham. It also looks like they laid about a quarter-slice of cheese on top and melted it. (It was pre-cooked, so I didn’t melt it myself!)

The Jjimdak and the Sides

The next main is the jjimdak, and this one, too, is made up almost entirely of meat rather than vegetables. So by volume alone it’s a little questionable whether to call it a main, but as you eat, it probably won’t feel that lacking. The remaining sides are three: stir-fried kimchi, rolled omelet, and stir-fried imitation crab.

The sides overall seem put together to be easygoing enough not to divide opinion. It looks like a menu where they poured quite a bit of effort into the main, the budae bokkeum. I’m quite curious how the two mains will taste.

Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak Double Set: The Taste

Now let’s dig right in. I cooked it for 1 minute 30 seconds in a 1000W microwave with no lid. A little oil came out of the budae bokkeum and jjimdak, giving it a slightly glossy look. And the cheese melted a touch more too, right?

The Taste of the Budae Bokkeum and Jjimdak

First I tasted the budae bokkeum. The ham came in two types: square press ham and sliced sausage — whether Vienna or frankfurter, I’m not sure. It’s not Spam-level quality, of course, but since they used a sausage with a fairly high pork content, it was quite enjoyable. The sauce itself wasn’t too spicy — on the mild side — and it was just right eaten with rice.

The jjimdak was quite unremarkable eaten with the sauce. How to put it — the chicken pieces are shaped rather oddly, so instead of feeling like eating chicken, it had a slight sense of eating pork-neck bulgogi. Since the chicken has just a tiny bit of onion in it, you end up eating it a bit for the sauce flavor. A little ambiguous. Haha.

Explaining the stable budae bokkeum combo

The other sides, on the other hand, are the easygoing kind you picture with a convenience-store lunchbox, so eat them here and there as you feel like it. The stir-fried kimchi was cooked down quite dry, so it was surprisingly tasty.

Budae bokkeum recommendation consumer review

Final Verdict

CU’s double-set concept is, by design, a lunchbox with two main dishes — but this menu felt more like a 1.5, if that makes sense. The budae bokkeum was decent enough to eat, while the jjimdak felt like a lot had been left out. Still, the overall makeup goes well with rice, so it should be fine as a single meal. It was a menu worth eating as a lunch alternative without much strain on the wallet. For readers abroad, it’s an easy way to try Korea’s budae-bokkeum flavor from a convenience store.

Harmonious budae bokkeum and jjimdak layout

For more on CU’s PBICK The Kitchen lineup (two-tier lunchbox, double set, bapdoduk, and more) and the renewal behind it, you can read the (Korean source) Electronic Times (ET News) report.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How much is CU’s PBICK Budae Bokkeum & Jjimdak double set?

It’s 5,900 won. It comes to 370g at 602 kcal, with sodium at 76% of the daily value.

Q. What’s in the budae bokkeum and jjimdak double set?

The two mains are budae bokkeum (army-base stir-fry) topped with ham, sausage, and cheese, and a soy jjimdak made with Brazilian chicken. The sides are stir-fried kimchi, a rolled omelet, and stir-fried imitation crab.

Q. How does the budae bokkeum and jjimdak double set taste?

The budae bokkeum is loaded with ham and mild rather than spicy, so it pairs well with rice. The jjimdak, though, is a bit ambiguous — you end up tasting the sauce more than the chicken.

Q. Is the budae bokkeum and jjimdak double set worth it?

Yes, it’s a no-fuss lunch alternative worth recommending. The jjimdak is a slight letdown, but the budae bokkeum is filling and goes well with rice, making it a decent 5,900-won meal.

image sources