# The Backpacker Chef

The Backpacker Chef (Korean: 백패커; RR: Baekpaekeo), Also known as Backpacker, is a South Korean variety program that airs on tvN.
Season 1 aired on Thursdays at 20:40 (KST) from May 26 till October 6, 2022, for 20 episodes. It starred Baek Jong-won, Oh Dae-hwan, Ahn Bo-hyun and DinDin.
Season 2 aired on Sundays at 19:40 (KST) from May 26 to November 10, 2024. For this season, Baek Jong-won and Ahn Bo-hyun returned, together with new cast members Lee Soo-geun, Heo Kyung-hwan and Go Kyung-pyo.

## Overview

The Backpacker Chef is a cooking entertainment program that challenges the extreme mission of improvising a customized food within a limited time in an unfamiliar place to the customer. Cast members leave with only one backpack containing a variety of kitchen tools and ingredients, and present instant catering for unfamiliar guests at the venue of the day.
In the first season, Backpacker Chefs went on 18 different business trips and cooked for 3078 people, preparing more than 100 different dishes.

## Cast
### Main
#### Current

* Baek Jong-won (Seasons 1-2)
* Ahn Bo-hyun (Seasons 1-2)
* Lee Soo-geun (Season 2)
* Heo Kyung-hwan (Season 2)
* Go Kyung-pyo (Season 2)

#### Former

* Oh Dae-hwan (Season 1)
* DinDin (Season 1)

### Guest cast
#### Season 1

* Kim Dong-jun (ZE:A) - Episode 5
* Young K (Day6) - Episode 8 & 9
* Andy (Shinhwa) - Episode 12
* Lee Ho-cheol - Episode 13
* Yang Se-hyung - Episode 18
* Heo Kyung-hwan - Episode 19
* Fabrizio Ferrari - Episode 8, 9, 14, 17, 19

#### Season 2

* Lee Do-hyun - Episode 2
* Fabrizio Ferrari - Episode 3, 21
* Miyeon ((G)I-dle) - Episode 3
* DinDin - Episode 4, 5, 18
* Bomi (Apink) - Episode 7
* Kang Han-na - Episode 8
* Hyojung (Oh My Girl) - Episode 9
* Seohyun (Girls' Generation) - Episode 11
* Yuri (Girls' Generation) - Episode 12
* Cho Kyu-hyun (Super Junior) - Episode 13
* Soyou (Former member of Sistar) - Episode 17
* Jang Ye-won - Episode 18
* Kwon Eun-bi - Episode 19
* Seok Matthew (Zerobaseone) - Episode 21
* Kim Min-jong - Episode 22

## Airtime

| Season | Air date | Airtime |
| 1 | May 26 — October 6, 2022 | Thursdays at 20:40 (KST) |
| 2 | May 26 — November 10, 2024 | Sundays at 19:40 (KST) |

## Episodes
### Season 1

| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Location | Mission | Guest appearance |
| 1 | May 26, 2022 | Jeongeup, Jeollabuk-do | Unlimited fast food to a wrestling club made up of 22 elementary, middle, and high school students | No guest |
| 2 | June 2, 2022 | Byeonsan, Jeollabuk-do | A vegetarian meal to 20–30 people who visit Wolmyeon-am | No guest |
| 3 | June 9, 2022 | Meteorology 1 in the middle of Yellow Sea | Multinational party dishes for 17 employees of the meteorological ship of Korea Meteorological Administration | No guest |
| 4 | June 16, 2022 | Pocheon, Gyeonggi-do | A dinner for 300 people of artillery brigade at the Pocheon military base 10 lunchboxes for soldiers training the mountains | No guest |
| 5 | June 23, 2022 | Paju, Gyeonggi-do | A dinner for 400 members of the 1st Infantry Division, Ilwolseong Battalion | Kim Dong-jun (ZE:A) |
| 6 | June 30, 2022 | Jeju Island | Pork course dishes for a group made up of 15 of haenyeo | No guest |
| 7 | July 7, 2022 | Jeju Island | 50 servings of healthy course meals for the Jeju United FC football team | No guest |
| 8 | July 14, 2022 | Camp Humphreys | Korean snacks for 15 drill instructors of US Army and KATUSA | Young K (Day6) & Fabrizio Ferrari |
| 9 | July 21, 2022 | Camp Humphreys | Korean food for lunch of 500 US and KATUSA soldiers | Young K (Day6) & Fabrizio Ferrari |
| 10 | July 28, 2022 | Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do | A cool summer dinner for 250 trainees at Fire Fighters' Academy | No guest |
| 11 | August 4, 2022 | Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do | A low-sugar, low-salt lunch for 32 children at Seobuk-gu Police Station day care center An afternoon snack for the same children later | No guest |
| 12 | August 11, 2022 | Seoul Grand Park | A hot meal for 120 zookeepers A summer snack for 4 elephants | Andy (Shinhwa) |
| 13 | August 18, 2022 | Gyeongbuk Correctional Institution | High protein, high calorie, and high fat lunch for 200 prison guards | Lee Ho-cheol |
| 14 | August 25, 2022 | Yeongdam, Busan | Cheat day meals for 150 athletic students at Busan Sports High School | Fabrizio Ferrari |
| 15 | September 1, 2022 | Jinhae Naval Base | Fusion Korean food for 120 sailors of ROKS Hansando | No guest |
| 16 | September 8, 2022 | Yecheon, Gyeongsangbuk-do | MZ food for 27 elderly female painters at Shinpoong-ri Painting School | No guest |
| 17 | September 15, 2022 | Ganghwado | Western, Chinese, and Japanese food for 280 students at Chef High School | Fabrizio Ferrari |
| 18 | September 22, 2022 | Goyang, Gyeonggi-do | Superfood for 150 staff members of the operation room of National Cancer Hospital | Yang Se-hyung |
| 19 | September 29, 2022 | Yuseong-gu, Daejeon | College food for the 330 cadets at Armed Forces Nursing Academy | Fabrizio Ferrari & Heo Kyung-hwan |
| 20 | October 6, 2022 | Wonju, Gangwon-do | Camping food for cast members themselves who go on a healing camping trip as a reward vacation | No guest |

### Season 2

| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Location | Mission | Guest appearance |
| 1 | May 26, 2024 | Mageum-ri, Taean, Chungcheongnam-do | Clam cuisine for 150 workers of a clam fishing village, and their families | No guest |
| 2 | June 2, 2024 | Republic of Korea Air Force Headquarter in Gyeryong-si, Chungcheongnam-do | "Dinner Show, Western Food, and Cooking Performance" for 100 people | Lee Do-hyun |
| 3 | June 9, 2024 | Jincheon National Training Center | "Special meal" and "Paik Jong Won Street" for 500 people | Fabrizio Ferrari & Miyeon ((G)I-dle) |
| 4 | June 16, 2024 | Gyechon Elementary School | "Music is classical" and "Taste is latest style spicy tteokbokki" for 44 people | DinDin |
| 5 | June 23, 2024 | Mount Baegun, Gyeonggi-do, Gangwon-do | "Cold Food" and "Quick Delivery" for 120 soldiers at the "1000m above sea level". | DinDin |
| 6 | June 30, 2024 | Hwaseong Fire Station in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do | "Taste good even if you eat it later", "Easy to digest", and "Strongest nutritious food" for 110 firefighters during the Merit Reward Month. | No guest |
| 7 | July 7, 2024 | Incheon International Airport | "Feeling good, Tasty and Resort food" from famous holiday place (Hawaii, Ganmun-ri, Jeollanam-do, Bali, Da Nang, Maldives, Okinawa, Hainan, and Boracay) for 300 Airport Workers during the busiest Holiday month. | Bomi |
| 8 | July 14, 2024 | National Institute of Ecology (NIE) | "Cities" and "Summer seasonal food" for 200 NIE Staff. | Kang Han-na |
| 9 | July 21, 2024 | Incheon National Maritime High School | Turned the bad school foods with Baek Jong-won's magic into good food for 230 Students. | Hyojung (Oh My Girl) |
| 10 | July 28, 2024 | Geumsu Culture and Art Village | Cook traditional korean foods for 35 Geumsu village elders. | No guest |
| 11 | August 11, 2024 | National Archives of Korea | Cook the lost dishes that were originally popular in the past to 310 National Archives Korea staff. | Seohyun (Girls' Generation) |
| 12 | August 18, 2024 | Metropolitan Railway Vehicle Maintenance Workshop in Gyeonggi-do, Goyang-si | Cook Signature dishes from places that KTX visited for 180 workers. | Yuri (Girls' Generation) |
| 13 | August 25, 2024 | Arisu Water Purification Center, Gangbuk-gu, South Korea | "Rainy season, typhoon, stay away", "Taste that goes through fire and water" and "Number of people for drinking water is 3.5 million" for 100 workers. | Cho Kyu-hyun (Super Junior) |
| 14 | September 1, 2024 | National Forensic Service, Gangwon-do, Wonju-si | "Find a flavor solution" "Endorphin explosion" and "Adrenaline detected at the location" for 140 workers. | No guest |
| 15 | September 8, 2024 | Korea Expressway Corporation, Gimcheon-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do | "An important stop on the way home", “The flavor that started it, Chestnut, Geobong Wine, Chun Hyang”, for 120 employees. | No guest |
| 16 | September 15, 2024 | Midong Elementary School, Taebaek-si, Gangwon-do | "Tornado Kick, "Knifehand Strike" and "Hammer Smash" for 28 Students of the first children Taekwondo Demonstraion team before the National Liberation Day of Korea event. | No guest |
| 17 | September 22, 2024 | National Theater of Korea | "Multiple Toppings at once" and "Harmonious Meal" For 170 National Theater Workers. | Soyou |
| 18 | September 29, 2024 | Korea Aerospace Industries | "Stomach Booster", "GO Capacity, GO Calories", and "High Fast Food" for 200 Workers. | Jang Ye-won & DinDin |
| 19 | October 6, 2024 | Republic of Korea 1st Special Forces Brigade Headquarter | Cook the high quality fresh foods to the unit of 200 people before going for the 1,000-Ri March. | Kwon Eun-bi |
| 20 | October 13, 2024 | Gwangju Women's University, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju | Cook the $1 breakfast for 120 college students with just $120. | No guest |
| 21 | October 20, 2024 | Daegu Agricultural Meister High School, Suseong-gu, Daegu | "Harvest Season" and "100% self-sufficient" for 240 People. | Seok Matthew (Zerobaseone) & Fabrizio Ferrari |
| 22 | October 27, 2024 | Cheongju Post Office | "Breaking from Eating Alone Today" and "An Order for 4 or More People" for 84 Post Office Worker | Kim Min-jong |
| 23 | November 3, 2024 | Gwanak Police Station, Gwanak-gu, Seoul | "A meal that call for rice" for 140 Police Officer | No guest |
| 24 | November 10, 2024 | Youth Meal Mungan, Sinchon-dong, Seoul | "House Cook Master Paik" and "Kimchi's Transformation is Innocent" for 100 people. | No guest |

## Viewership

| Episodes | Episodes | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number |
| Episodes | Episodes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| | 1-10 | 803 | 716 | 809 | 1120 | 1259 | 1015 | 897 | 944 | 977 | 908 |
| | 1-20 | 845 | 800 | 823 | 1072 | 1076 | 967 | 1063 | 918 | 1226 | 902 |
| Episodes | Episodes | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number |
| Episodes | Episodes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| | 1-12 | 1.278 | 1.145 | 1.296 | 1.087 | 1.198 | 1.138 | 1.342 | 1.686 | 1.787 | 1.365 | 0.908 | 1.146 |
| | 13-24 | 1.225 | 1.391 | 1.395 | 1.068 | 1.323 | 1.396 | 1.584 | 1.490 | 1.510 | 1.414 | 1.330 | 1.524 |
Average TV viewership ratings :
| Ep. (2022 & 2024) | Original broadcast date | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) |
| Ep. (2022 & 2024) | Original broadcast date | Nationwide | Seoul |
| 1 | May 26, 2022 | 3.853% (1st) | 3.810% (1st) |
| 2 | June 2, 2022 | 3.196% (2nd) | 2.986% (2nd) |
| 3 | June 9, 2022 | 3.223% (1st) | 3.238% (1st) |
| 4 | June 16, 2022 | 4.727% (1st) | 4.435% (1st) |
| 5 | June 23, 2022 | 5.333% (1st) | 5.266% (1st) |
| 6 | June 30, 2022 | 4.236% (1st) | 4.295% (1st) |
| 7 | July 7, 2022 | 3.707% (2nd) | 4.146% (2nd) |
| 8 | July 14, 2022 | 4.171% (2nd) | 4.111% (2nd) |
| 9 | July 21, 2022 | 4.275% (3rd) | 4.331% (3rd) |
| 10 | July 28, 2022 | 4.056% (2nd) | 3.985% (2nd) |
| 11 | August 4, 2022 | 3.319% (2nd) | 3.564% (2nd) |
| 12 | August 11, 2022 | 3.275% (3rd) | 3.246% (3rd) |
| 13 | August 18, 2022 | 3.879% (3rd) | 4.146% (2nd) |
| 14 | August 25, 2022 | 4.636% (1st) | 4.766% (1st) |
| 15 | September 1, 2022 | 4.839% (1st) | 4.598% (1st) |
| 16 | September 8, 2022 | 3.748% (1st) | 3.697% (1st) |
| 17 | September 15, 2022 | 4.539% (1st) | 4.757% (1st) |
| 18 | September 22, 2022 | 4.175% (1st) | 4.094% (1st) |
| 19 | September 29, 2022 | 4.979% (1st) | 4.786% (1st) |
| 20 | October 6, 2022 | 3.946% (1st) | 4.068% (1st) |
| 1 | May 26, 2024 | 4.895% (2nd) | 5.435% (2nd) |
| 2 | June 2, 2024 | 4.621% (1st) | 5.075% (2nd) |
| 3 | June 9, 2024 | 4.839% (1st) | 5.473% (1st) |
| 4 | June 16, 2024 | 4.790% (1st) | 5.950% (1st) |
| 5 | June 23, 2024 | 5.192% (1st) | 4.843% (2nd) |
| 6 | June 30, 2024 | 4.291% (2nd) | 4.631% (2nd) |
| 7 | July 7, 2024 | 5.320% (2nd) | 5.785% (2nd) |
| 8 | July 14, 2024 | 4.790% (2nd) | 4.807% (2nd) |
| 9 | July 21, 2024 | 4.857% (2nd) | 5.509% (2nd) |
| 10 | July 28, 2024 | 5.312% (2nd) | 6.117% (2nd) |
| 11 | August 11, 2024 | 3.742% (2nd) | 4.112% (2nd) |
| 12 | August 18, 2024 | 4.298% (2nd) | 4.693% (2nd) |
| 13 | August 25, 2024 | 4.533% (2nd) | 4.879% (2nd) |
| 14 | September 1, 2024 | 4.949% (2nd) | 4.952% (2nd) |
| 15 | September 8, 2024 | 5.251% (2nd) | 5.897% (2nd) |
| 16 | September 15, 2024 | 4.012% (2nd) | 4.174% (2nd) |
| 17 | September 22, 2024 | 4.885% (2nd) | 5.643% (2nd) |
| 18 | September 29, 2024 | 5.270% (2nd) | 5.476% (2nd) |
| 19 | October 6, 2024 | 6.109% (2nd) | 6.674% (2nd) |
| 20 | October 13, 2024 | 5.561% (2nd) | 6.674% (2nd) |
| 21 | October 20, 2024 | 6.125% (2nd) | 6.903% (2nd) |
| 22 | October 27, 2024 | 5.341% (2nd) | 5.903% (2nd) |
| 23 | November 3, 2024 | 5.383% (2nd) | 5.908% (2nd) |
| 24 | November 10, 2024 | 6.171% (2nd) | 6.714% (2nd) |
| In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. This drama airs on a cable channel/pay TV which normally has a relatively smaller audience compared to free-to-air TV/public broadcasters (KBS, SBS, MBC and EBS). ||||