Easy Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread

This easy Korean cream cheese garlic bread is a bakery-style treat made with soft rolls, sweetened cream cheese filling, and a glossy garlic-butter coating. Sweet, garlicky, and ready in about 30 minutes — the perfect sweet-savory Korean snack to bake at home.

Korean cream cheese garlic bread isn’t your typical garlic bread — it’s sweet, garlicky, and filled with a lightly sweetened cream cheese that makes it a love-or-hate bakery item in Korea.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t a big fan at first, but after years of living in Korea (and bumping into these rolls at nearly every bakery), the sweet–savory combo grew on me. So I finally gave it a try at home — and to my surprise, it turned out just as beautiful (and dangerously delicious) as the bakery version.

To keep things simple, I use store-bought soft rolls so you can enjoy these bakery-style buns without making bread from scratch. If you prefer homemade, my milk bread recipe works beautifully — just shape the dough into rolls instead of a loaf.

Just like Korean corn dogs, this cream cheese garlic bread had its huge moment on social media — and for good reason. Once you taste it warm from the oven, you’ll understand why so many people fell for it.

If you love Korean street snacks, my roundup of must-try street foods will take you down the rabbit hole in the best way,

Key Ingredients for Korean Bakery-Style Garlic Bread

Soft Bread Rolls: For true Korean bakery texture, use soft, fluffy rolls — brioche, Kaiser rolls, or any pillowy dinner roll works well. What matters most is that the rolls are whole (not pre-sliced) so you can cut slits yourself and fill them properly.

Cream Cheese Filling: This is the sweet, tangy center that makes Korean garlic bread so polarizing (and so addictive). Use softened cream cheese and powdered sugar for a smooth filling that pipes easily and melts into the bread without becoming grainy.

Korean-Style Garlic Butter: You’ll start with the usual garlic bread ingredients—melted butter, minced garlic, dried parsley, and Parmesan—but the Korean version adds a sweet, creamy coating made with heavy cream and condensed milk. That’s the secret to the glossy bakery-style finish.

How to Make Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread

Prepare the Cream Cheese Filling. Soften the cream cheese until it’s easy to stir, then mix it with powdered sugar until smooth. It should pipe like frosting — soft enough to squeeze, firm enough to hold shape. Transfer it to a piping bag (or zip-top bag) and set it aside.

Mix the Korean-Style Garlic Butter. This butter mixture is what gives the rolls their glossy sweet–savory bakery finish. Gently melt the butter, then stir in minced garlic, condensed milk, heavy cream, dried parsley, and an egg. Keep the heat low so the egg doesn’t scramble; the mixture should look creamy and pourable.

Slice and Fill the Rolls. Cut each roll into six wedges, stopping just before the knife reaches the bottom so the roll stays intact. Pipe the cream cheese into the cuts — not too much, just enough so you can still dip the bread later. (If you’ve been to Korean bakeries, this is the classic “flower” shape.)

Dip the Rolls in Garlic Butter. Hold each roll by the bottom and dip the top into the garlic butter mixture, letting the bread soak it up. This soak is what gives Korean garlic bread its signature flavor, so don’t be shy.

Add Toppings and Bake. Place the coated rolls on a lined tray, add a little more cream cheese on top, and finish with Parmesan. Bake until the rolls turn golden and the edges crisp slightly — just long enough for the garlic butter to set.

Storing and Reheating (What Works Best)

These rolls keep well, but the sweet cream cheese filling and garlic butter coating firm up in the fridge. Store them in an airtight container for 3–4 days (they taste best within the first two). If you want to freeze them, wrap each roll tightly so the filling doesn’t dry out — they thaw beautifully.

To reheat, skip the microwave. A quick 5–6 minutes in a 350°F oven brings back the crisp edges and soft center, almost like a fresh bakery batch. If the tops look dry, brush a tiny bit of melted butter before reheating to revive the shine.

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