Eobang Tteokguk

About the dish

One bowl of tteokguk, one year of age — so goes the saying. On Seollal, the lunar New Year that begins everything anew, families hold charye rites for their ancestors and offer New Year's bows to their elders, and all the food prepared for the ritual table and visiting guests is known collectively as sechan. The old farming almanac Nongga Wollyeongga even records the reckoning: how many measures of rice for the cakes, and how many for the wine.

Key ingredient

Rice (ssal) — Korea's staple grain and main energy source; easy to digest with B vitamins for a balanced meal. Autumn harvest, mainly from Icheon & Yeoju.

Ingredients

Main: garaetteok (rice-cake sticks), seafood broth, oysters or shrimp, egg, scallion, gim · Seasoning: soup soy sauce, minced garlic, salt

Simple recipe

1. Draw a broth from anchovies and kelp.
2. Soak the rice-cake slices.
3. Add the rice cakes to the boiling broth and cook through.
4. Season with soup soy sauce.
5. Top with egg ribbons, gim and scallion.

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A Glass · Traditional pairing