North Korean officials claim Kim Jong-il made burritos for 2011.
According to Rodong Sinmun, Kim Jong Un’s father invented the wheat wrap and that their sales have soared despite the current food crisis.
A recent broadcast also featured street food, claiming that Kim Jong Un has an ‘intense interest’ in Mexican street food.
North Korean media claimed that Kim Jong-il made burritos in 2011, and they are now very popular. Pictured is a woman purchasing the “wheat wraps” in Pyongyang
North Koreans are seen eating the burritos outside of the Kumsong Food Factory Pyongyang in newsreel footage.
Also, the broadcast featured a mural featuring Kim Jong-il smiling as he prepared burritos in his kitchen.
However, North Koreans living in secretive states claim that such foods are almost non-existent.
According to UN experts, the food crisis has put people at risk of starvation. Kim warned that it may continue until 2025.
Hyun-seung Le, who was born to an elite North Korean family and fled Korea in 2014, stated that many of his fellow countrymen wouldn’t dare to eat a burrito.
State broadcast showed a mural of Kim Jong-il grinning in a kitchen where burritos were being prepared (pictured)
A recent broadcast claimed that Kim Jong Un has taken a serious interest in street food, and made a mention of it in his propaganda.
According to him, this is due to the fact that they don’t even have an opportunity of encountering it.
“The overwhelming majority of Americans don’t have enough money to pay for foreign food. They don’t have the money to buy it.
“In 1990s, butter and bread lovers were ridiculed and called socialist traitors.”
He said that in many instances, the ingredients needed to create foreign food were not available.
He said that he had never seen wraps or burritos for sale in North Korea.
“Perhaps that there are no places where you can get burritos or wraps.
“The penetration of Western foods in North Korea is very low because it has few places to eat them and there aren’t many different food options.
Newsreel footage shows North Koreans eating burritos from a stand at the Kumsong Food Factory, Pyongyang.
North Koreans, who managed to escape the state secretiveness of North Korea insist that such foods are almost non-existent in their country.
It is a complete lack of various cooking ingredients like milk, cheese, or spices.
North Korean versions use doner meat and include cabbage, carrot, and other vegetables.
Kim Jong-il suggested that the ‘wheat wraps” should be accompanied with mineral water during summer and warm tea during winter.
Rowan Beard, a guide with Young Pioneer Tours – which specialises in organising North Korea trips – said he had not encountered the dish in Pyongyang.
To protect the coronavirus, North Korea has closed its borders to all foreigners since January 2020.
“It is the first time I have seen doner meat in North Korea,” said Mr Beard.
“I have never tried a burrito, wrap or sandwich there.” This looks delicious! When North Korea opens for tourism, I’ll definitely give it a try.
Although he said that western food was ‘fairly common in Pyongyang’, he agreed it wasn’t so prevalent elsewhere.
According to UN experts, people are at risk of starvation due to food insecurity. Kim warned that it may continue until 2025.
He stated that you can find hamburgers, french fries and spaghetti at certain restaurants spread around the Capital.
“But, not so much beyond Pyongyang.”
Today, Mr Lee resides in the US, and on Pyonghattan YouTube Channel, his sisters and fellow defector Seohyun recount his 29-years in North Korea.
According to him, pizza and hamburgers were only popular in Pyongyang’s ‘fancy restaurants’ over the last 10 years.
He said that he was not familiar with foreign food before then.
“North Korea has been long refusing foreign products and cultures,” he stated. “Foreign foods are not an exception.”
Although the exact origin of modern burritos is unknown, the term burrito was found in an 1895 Mexican dictionary. It is listed as a food item.
Food shortages are still a problem in North Korea. Kim Jong Un acknowledged last June that it was “tense” despite all the propaganda.
Kim informed his citizens in October that they can expect to eat less until China opens its borders in 2025.
External factors are blamed by the government for food shortages. They cite sanctions, natural disasters, and the pandemic of coronavirus.