Tteokguk or Korean Rice Cake Soup

Tteok means rice cake and guk means soup in Korean.
Eating the Korean traditional dish, tteokguk, in the morning of the New Year's day makes you one year older.

Advertisement

[Reporter : Yoon Sook-ja, President Institute of Traditional Korean Food] "The tteokguk is white and stands for purity so we eat it to prepare for the New Year".

[Interview : Ji Myung-kil mkji@arirang.co.kr] "Every home has there own way of making there tteokguk and the start is with this garetteok which symbolizes long life then it is sliced into an oval shape like a coin bringing you wealth and prosperity".

The sliced rice cakes are put in a broth made by simmering beef or chicken which is the main ingredient in a seasoned stock.

Each province has a way of putting their own spin on the tteokguk.
For example, Saeng tteokguk is also a speciality in Korea's mid-Chungcheong province where the rice dough is cut into preferred shapes and sizes.

Joraengi tteokguk which is from Gaesong region in North Korea is made with rice cake that is twisted in small cocoon shapes which is believed to ward off evil.

[Reporter : Yoon Sook-ja, President Institute of Traditional Korean Food] "Chickens are famous in Jeolla province so they eat tteokguk made from chicken broth. In Gyeongsang province oysters are abundant so they like to eat oyster tteokguk".

No matter what shape or size, the important thing is that you eat it.
Ji Myung-kil. Arirang News.