Goguma mattang고구마맛탕

Goguma mattang is Korean sweet potato cut into chunks, fried, and coated in a shiny syrup that turns crisp as it cools. It is a home-style snack that shows up every fall.

emart24's Ice Goguma Mattang is a frozen take: the sweet potato is dried of extra moisture, then coated three or more times with sugar and a special syrup. You eat it frozen, straight from a resealable pouch. The coating cracks like tanghulu while the inside stays soft.

emart24 got the idea from a hit in Japanese convenience stores and launched its own in late August. It prepared about ten times the usual first batch for a frozen dessert, and it still sold out in 12 days; stores had their orders limited after the first week. Second-week sales were double the first.

By mid-September it was #1 in emart24's whole frozen category, ahead of dumplings, pizza and chicken — the first time a dessert took that spot. Sales for September 14–20 were 35% higher than in its launch week.

Look in the freezer at emart24 convenience stores in Korea for Ice Goguma Mattang (아이스고구마맛탕) in a standing pouch. Because of order limits, some stores may run out.

At home: cut sweet potato into chunks, fry or air-fry until golden, then toss in a pan of bubbling sugar and corn syrup (mulyeot) or rice syrup (jocheong). Freeze the cooled pieces if you want an icy crunch.