Welcome! For today’s post, I’m excited to tell you about the Lunar New Year called Seollal which is a part of a beautiful Korean tradition, and its iconic food – Tteokguk. Although this Korean rice cake soup called Tteokguk is often associated with the Lunar New Year in Korea and is considered the Korean New Year food, it shouldn’t stop you from cooking and having it anytime you want. As a matter of fact, growing up in Korea, my mom would whip this Tteokguk up fast in the morning for breakfast as it is a quick and easy dish to make. So if you like the soup and the recipe, you can also enjoy this rice cake soup any time of the year. In this post, I will go over the background information about this awesome Korean rice cake soup Tteokguk, the tradition, different variations, and my vegan Tteokguk recipe for you to try! The vegan recipe I’m about to share with you is easier, more nutritious, and well, in my opinion, more delicious than the traditional recipe. 🤤
History of Korean Rice Cake Soup, Tteokguk
Name Origins of Tteokguk
In the Dongguk Sesigi (東國歲時記) written by Hong Seok-mo in the 15th year of King Heonjong’s reign (1849) in the Joseon Dynasty, Tteokguk is introduced as ‘Baektang (白湯)’ or ‘Byeongtang (餠湯).’ ‘Baektang’ means white soup and ‘Byeongtang’ means boiling soup In other words, Tteokguk was described as white or boiling stew because it was a soup made by boiling white rice cakes.
The custom of Tteokguk as Korean New Year Food
You don’t have to enjoy Tteokguk only on New Year’s, but you need to have Ttoekguk on New Year if you are Korean!
There is a custom of eating it on the first day of the new year in Korea. Rice cake used in tteokguk is tteokguk rice cake which is made by slicing a long cylinder-shaped Garaeteok into thin coin-like shapes. Since tteokguk itself is originally made from long rice cakes, it means that it should live as long as Garaeteok. In the same way, noodles are eaten in China and Japan. This is because you can continue to eat more noodles without breaking the long threads of noodles.
Eating Tteokguk on Lunar New Year also means making a lot of money by eating round rice cakes that are in coin shapes. These days, many rice cake soups are cut diagonally and have an oval shape, but in the past, many were cut at a 90° angle and had a round shape. So in summary, the Korean rice cake soup eaten on the first day of the new year is to wish for a long life and good fortune.
Traditionally in Korea, people counted one year older on the Lunar New Year. So there used to be a saying that you are officially one year older after eating a bowl of the Korean rice cake soup Ttoekguk on the Lunar New Year. To wish for a good year ahead and celebrate like so, Tteokguk is now also eaten on New Year’s Day which is January 1st in the solar calendar when the new year begins.
Characteristic
Due to the nature of adding rice cakes from the beginning when boiling, the starch component seeps out, making the soup thick like a soup, unlike regular soup dishes.
Regional Differences for Tteokguk Recipe
It is natural for foods made with different ingredients available in different regions to be different foods even if the name and basics are the same. In principle, it is called “rice cake soup” if a soup is made with rice cakes. This is the charm of tteokguk: it can be in many variations and can change dramatically depending on the ingredients and cooking. It is one of the Korean foods that has a long history in each region, so its forms are incredibly diverse.
Different Broth for Tteokguk
Different broths are used depending on the region. Beef and bone broth are the most popular. Bones and meat can be used alone or combined. In some cases, pollack and anchovy broth are used, and in coastal areas, there are also variations such as adding oysters. Some very dark green soft seaweed called “maesaengi” is added to make seaweed rice cake soup.
Dumplings in Tteokguk
You can also make rice cake dumpling soup by adding dumplings. As a holiday food, the northern part eats dumpling soup and the southern part eats rice cake soup. In North Korea, people eat dumpling soup as New Year food. In the central region, people eat rice cake soup or rice cake dumpling soup.
Garnish
The toppings for rice cake soup vary depending on the region and family. Common garnishes include eggs or seaweed powder. Sometimes, green onions are added as a garnish. If you want to be fancy, using pine mushrooms is a great choice. Alternatively, you can use shredded shiitake mushrooms or wood ear mushrooms boiled in soy sauce.
In Gyeongsang-do, where my parents are from, a garnish called Kimi or Kkumi is added and is made using minced meat and either small-cubed or crushed tofu mixed. Meat garnish in Gyeongsang-do is usually seasoned with salt without using soy sauce while seasoning the meat garnish with soy sauce is common in most other regions. So the vegan Tteokguk recipe I will share with you later has that Gyeongsangdo tradition in it. I’m so excited to share the recipe with you!
Korean Rice Cake Soup, Tteokguk | Vegan Tteokguk Recipe
Although the Korean rice cake soup Tteokguk is a holiday food, the rice cake part of Tteokguk is also a popular food ingredient that can be easily found and sold. The rice cake of tteokguk is a very popular ingredient that you can include in many other Korean dishes. So if you have Tteokguk rice cake at hand, start exploring it by using it in many recipes!
Most of the ingredients for Korean rice cake soup Tteokguk can be easily purchased nearby in Korea. There are also easy and rough recipes you can make. You don’t need to put much effort into preparing most other ingredients. Sometimes people skip making meat garnish in the recipe, making it a great vegetarian or vegan dish.
Special Ingredients for Vegan Tteokguk
I am so happy you want to learn how to make vegan Tteokguk! This vegan Tteokguk recipe tastes very close to the traditional version of Tteokguk and what’s more, it is even tastier than the traditional one. There are a few special ingredients to make this so savory, comforting, and filling.
Making Egg Garnish
To make the egg garnish that looks and tastes like an egg, you need a bean curd sheet or tofu skin. It is made of soybean and therefore has lots of protein and has yellowish-orange color that is similar to egg garnish. Then you can season it with black salt, aka Kala Namak, which is salt that smells like an egg due to its sulfur content! It is such a great substitute for this egg garnish. They are not very common ingredients but these will come in handy if you are vegan. So invest in these two ingredients if you don’t already have them. Here are the products that I found on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
Bean Curd Sheet
ONTRUE Dried Beancurd Sticks, Asian Tofu Yuba, Precut Tofu 9.88 Oz (pack of 2): A bean curd sheet is a good source of Protein, naturally vegan, and a great gourmet food. This can be used in many other dishes too.
Black Salt, Kala Namak
Kala Namak Black Salt by The Spice Lab: Kala Namak, or black salt, is a natural salt in pinkish grey color, not a jet-black color as the name suggests, with a natural egg taste. This mineral salt in a nice glass packaging is one of the most popular black salt products on Amazon.
Star of the Show: Tteokguk Rice Cake
Then there is the Tteokguk rice cake that you need for Tteokguk, of course. 😋 Depending on where you are, you might be able to find rice cake for Tteokguk at your nearest Asian store. Or you might be able to purchase it from Amazon. The links are below. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. Both choices have three packages of 200gs, each of which will make about two to three portions.
Amazon’s Overall Pick Tteokguk Rice Cake Package
Korean Sliced Rice Cakes by Unha’s Asian Snack Box 21.16 oz (7.05 oz X 3 Individual Pack)
This package is the most popular rice cake package on Amazon with a good price point!
High-Quality Tteokguk Rice Cake Package
Korean Sliced Rice Cake by Somshi, 3 Individual Packs (3 Count, Pack of 1)
Although the one by Unha’s Asian Snack Box above is good, people seem to enjoy the quality of this rice cake package.
The Foundation of Korean Rice Cake Soup Tteokguk
The most important part of this Korean rice cake soup Tteokguk is to season the broth with salt and soy sauce well, and you are already halfway done making Tteokguk. Then you throw in rice cake, some vegetables, and dumplings if you like. As I told you earlier, this Korean rice cake soup Tteokguk used to be the dish my mom would make in the morning when she was too busy. Now let’s start with the recipe.
Vegan Tteokguk | Korean Rice Cake Soup
Ingredients
Method
- In a bowl, pour water and leave the bean curd sheets for 30 minutes.
- Take the bean curd sheets out and Boil them for 5 minutes. Then take it out and season it with black salt. Then thinly slice them.
- In a large pot, pour water and put dried wakame and leave it for 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, slice leeks into oval shapes.
- Start boiling water with wakame. Then add minced garlic, sliced leeks, and Tteokguk rice cake. You can put in the optional dumplings now. Season it with soy sauce.
- Cook for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt.
- Heat a frying pan. Pour 1/2 tbsp of neutral-tasting oil.
- Crush the tofu into minced meat texture, and put it in the pan. You may also dice the tofu into small cubes of 1cm in width, length, and height. Stir-fry the tofu. Sprinkle the soy sauce evenly on the tofu.
- Fry until the moisture in the tofu is gone. The tofu will get smaller and firmer in texture.
- Cut the seaweed sheet into thin slices with scissors.
- In a bowl, pour rice cake as you like. Then put the meat garnish, egg garnish, seaweed.
- Freshly grind black pepper on the top of the bowl, and serve!
Tips
1. Oat Milk for Vegan Tteokguk Broth
For any broth in my vegan cooking, I love using plant milk. It gives a deeper taste by lightly thickening the broth. My favorite plant milk for broth is oat milk for its slightly sweet and savory taste. Traditionally, meat broth was used a lot as a stock. But I have served this broth to all my beloved non-vegan friends as well and they loved it all. I love Tteokguk with white broth which traditionally came from bone broth. So oat milk for the vegan Tteokguk recipe works perfectly!
2. Eat It All At Once
Make just enough to eat the rice cake soup all at once. Unlike some soup that gets better the next day with more flavor, Tteokguk leftover is not so nice to have. If you leave the rice cake soup and try to boil it again later, the rice cake will swell and become too soft and mushy. It’s kind of like reheating instant noodles. That doesn’t sound so appealing, does it? If you need to make it all at once, just make the broth and you can cook the rice cake just before serving.
3. Want Instant Rice Cake?
Now, there are instant rice cake soups in a cup that you can eat by pouring hot water, like instant cup noodles. It is a product made by turning instant rice noodles into rice cakes, and it is cooked in boiling water to eat. Maybe you aren’t so sure if you want to make a big batch of the soup and just want to try and see if you like it. Then there is a product for you.
Surasang Tteokguk, Korean Rice Cake Soup, Simple and Nourishing New Year’s Soup 6.3 Ounce, Pack of 6
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
Celebrate with Korean Rice Cake Soup, Tteokguk
The Lunar New Year is coming up soon, and I want to make this rice cake soup for my husband and my in-laws. It’s so lovely to sit together with family and share a warm bowl of rice cake soup Tteokguk. I hope you try making it as well and like it. I wish you all the health and prosperity this year and more!
Do you like rice cake in general? I have blog posts for you to make a rice cake called songpyeon for Chuseok, the Korean Thanksgiving.
Rice Cake Recipe | Making Songpyeon for Chuseok
Decorative Rice Cake Recipe Part 1 | Flowers on Songpyeon
Decorative Rice Cake Recipe Part 2 | Flowers, leaves, pumpkin shapes
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