SEOUL – It’s not yet 10am and the eatery in central Seoul is still shut, but a queue had already formed outside the popular Tosokchon Samgyetang restaurant, a stone’s throw from Gyeongbokgung Palace.

It was July 15, or chobok, the first of the three hottest days of summer collectively known in South Korea as boknal, when it is tradition for South Koreans to tuck into a steaming bowl of samgyetang, or ginseng chicken soup, made from a whole young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice, ginseng, garlic and jujube.

While it may sound counterintuitive, many South Koreans believe that eating the nourishing soup on the hottest days of the year induces perspiration, cools the body and replenishes energy and nutrients depleted by the summer heat.

That belief has endured despite rising prices. 

The average price of a bowl of samgyetang has risen by nearly 30 per cent over the past five years, according to government data, from about 14,000 won (S$12.11) in 2021 to around 18,000 won in 2026.