Welcome to Korea cuisine of Annie

1. Ingredients for Tteok

-Primary ingredients: Rice or glutinous rice
-Secondary ingredients: Bean, adzuki bean, honey, nut product, mugwort, etc.



2. Taste evaluation

-Spicy: ☆☆☆☆☆
-Salty: ☆☆☆☆☆
-Sweet: ★★★☆☆
-Sour: ☆☆☆☆☆
-Toasted flavor: ★★☆☆☆
-Chewy: ★★★★☆

3. Introduction to Tteok (Rice cake)

Tteok is traditional Korean dessert with a long history that is made with steamed white rice or glutinous rice.

It tastes and looks similar to Japanese Mochi (餅飯; もち) and Chinese Niangao (粘糕; 年糕).

The evidence of Tteok in Korea dates back to ancient times. It’s known by the fact that earthenware steamer, a tool to make Tteok, was found in a bunch of relics from that time.

It was cooked as meals than snacks and there have been many variations as the grain production has increased.

From the beginning of the era of the Three States, Tteok was cooked as special dishes for the upper class or ritual food prepared for ancestors but it’s been enjoyed as desserts by people since Goryeo Dynasty era.

Since Joseon Dynasty era, it’s one of essential foods for national holidays, weddings and parties like 60^th birthday.







Tteok is basically made with ground glutinous rice or white rice batter kneaded with hands or wooden hammer. You could add honey, adzuki beans, beans, nut products, mugwort and other ingredients.
The batter is kneaded a few times so it is chewy and Tteok itself is very delicious.

You could put honey or adzuki beans inside the chewy Tteok or eat it with bean flour on it.

Tteok is so delicious that it is also loved by foreigners not just by Koreans.

And there’s a special meaning behind this.

Tteok cannot be missed on the biggest holidays in Korea such as New Year’s Day and Chuseok(Korean Thanksgiving Day).

Koreans normally eat long and thin Garae-tteok on New Year’s Day. It implies the wish for long and healthy life like long Tteok.

And Koreans eat Tteokguk(sliced rice cake pasta soup) that also has Garae-tteok sliced into rounded pieces that look like the sun. It implies the wish for the good year just like the sun rises every day.

Garae-tteok is white rice batter steamed with a bit of salt so it’s chewy and plain-flavored.

You could just eat it or add it to other cuisines like Topokki or Tteokguk(sliced rice cake pasta soup).

Songpyeon is traditional food that Koreans eat on big holidays like Chuseok(Korean Thanksgiving Day).

Chuseok is around the time of harvest so there are plenty of crops harvested. And Songpyeon is rice cake offered to ancestors for harvest of that year.

Songpyeon is made by making round pieces of rice batter and putting grains like adzuki beans and beans in it.

There’s an old saying that you’ll have a pretty daughter after you get married only if you can make pretty Songpyeon so women do their best to make it pretty.

Unlike Garae-tteok with no filling, Songpyeon is made of white rice batter mixed with mugwort and black rice for its scent and flavor and it has sweet adzuki beans and soybeans that give extra sweet taste.

Not to mention Tteok is a good dessert for everyone, it is very popular among foreign tourists for its chewy texture and sweet taste.

Search on Wikipedia



4. Kinds of Tteok

Tteok is good snack for everyone so there are so many kinds.

I’m going to tell you a few popular ones among Koreans.


Garae-tteok: Plain flavored Tteok made of white rice batter with salt and boiled

Siru-tteok: Tteok made of white rice and adzuki beans and steamed in a steamer

Injeolmi: Tteok made of glutinous rice batter, boiled and served with soybean flour on it

Ssuk-tteok: Made of white rice batter mixed with mugwort and boiled that has mugwort scent and flavor

Ggul-tteok: Made of white rice batter mixed with sugar, honey or any sweet ingredients


If you’re a fan of chewy texture of Tteok, you should try the one made of glutinous rice instead of white rice.

5. How to enjoy Tteok even more

Tteok is very delicious that I can proudly introduce to anyone even if it’s their first try.

You could get various kinds of Tteok at a reasonable price at traditional markets.

If you can’t find traditional market near your hotel, you can also get it at food courts at department store or shopping mall so I say you should try.

It’s cheap so you can get a few to ease the hunger during your trip or have it for breakfast.

It’s made with rice so even a small piece would be enough to fill your stomach.

And there are new Tteok café these days in downtowns these days where they sell rice cakes with different kinds of tea.

I’d like you to try Korean style dessert Tteok after having delicious Korean food instead of donuts or cakes.