Our Taste of Home: Tteokguk
By Jean Park
Growing up, one of my favorite meals was actually one that I consumed very rarely. Tteokguk, or rice cake soup, is traditionally served to celebrate Korean New Year because the dish is a symbol of rebirth or new beginnings. My grandmother used to tell me that the round shape of the tteok (rice cake) is representative of Korea's old coin currency, yeopjeon, which symbolizes good fortune. There were only a few times I remember having this dish for New Years Day, but each time was very memorable. The last time I had tteokguk with my family was actually in Korea, which felt so special. We spent the holidays near my father's hometown and on New Year's Day, my family and I spent the morning hiking up a mountain trail towards an old Buddhist temple. On our way back down, we walked past a small restaurant serving tteokguk and it was the perfect meal to end our hike with. It is the best kind of comfort food to have during cold winter mornings. As an adult, I find myself craving it often, but still continue the Korean tradition of having tteokguk once a year.
Last year, I attempted to make tteokguk for the first time and the process has made me appreciate it even more. The base of the soup can be made using different types of broth, but I like to use anchovy broth for mine because that's how my mother prepares it. In my trial and error process, I found that the most flavorful way of creating this broth is to soak dried anchovies in cold water overnight. The broth is the most important part of the dish because the rice cakes will soak up some of that flavor, creating a delicious balance of texture and taste in each bite. I also like to add a little soy sauce and a good amount of black pepper to my broth for a little spice. For the rice cakes, I usually pick up a bag of pre-sliced gareatteok (unsweetened rice cake shaped like a long cylinder) at the market. To top off this soup, I like to add a few slices of beef brisket, egg jidan (eggs folded over like a crepe, thinly sliced), green onions, and slices of sheet gim (unsalted seaweed).
Image from Kimchimari blog, https://kimchimari.com/rice-cake-soup-tteokguk-ddukguk/
When I'm in the kitchen, I tend to take shortcuts, especially when it comes to cooking Korean soups, but I've learned to value the slowness and complexity in creating this dish. The difference in taste is noticeable when I take the time to understand how various flavors mix and match together. Cooking Korean food becomes less intimidating when I take the time to understand the different ingredients and combinations. It has helped me value the spectrum of flavors in Korean cuisine, which is something I wasn't used to given my Americanized palette. It has inspired me to decolonize my understanding of Korean cuisine and seek out the traditional dishes my grandmothers remember from their childhood. I look forward to perfecting my tteokguk and other ancestral Korean recipes to share with family members and others in the future.