Hearty Beef and Rice Cake Soup (Tteokguk)
Hearty Beef and Rice Cake Soup (Tteokguk)
How to Make Korean New Year’s Rice Cake Soup with Beef (Simple Recipe)
How did you spend the first day of the New Year? I celebrated by making a warm bowl of Tteokguk, filled with hope for the year ahead. I truly hope 2022 brings even more wonderful things than 2021! Today, I’ll share a simple and easy recipe for this traditional New Year’s dish, perfect for beginners. It’s a comforting and delicious way to start the year.
Ingredients- 1kg Rice cake for soup (tteokguk tteok) (rinse fresh ones, soak frozen/hard ones in water)
- 200g Beef (for soup or bulgogi)
- 2 Eggs
- 2 Tbsp Soy sauce for soup (Guk-ganjang)
- 1.5L Anchovy-kelp broth or beef bone broth (or plain water)
- 2 Tbsp Sesame oil
- Pinch of seaweed flakes (crushed seasoned seaweed)
- Pinch of salt (to taste)
- 1/3 Scallion (thinly sliced)
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
Prepare the rice cakes for the soup. If you have fresh, soft rice cakes, simply rinse them under cold water. If you have frozen or hardened rice cakes, soak them in water while you prepare the other ingredients; this will make them soft and chewy.
Step 2
Choose your beef cut. For ‘tteokguk’, soup-cut beef is common, but thinly sliced beef for ‘bulgogi’ will also work beautifully and add extra tenderness.
Step 3
Pat the beef dry with paper towels to remove excess blood. Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces. Heat 2 tablespoons of sesame oil in a pan over medium heat and stir-fry the beef until it’s well browned and fragrant. Sautéing the beef thoroughly enhances its flavor.
Step 4
Once the beef is nicely sautéed, pour in the broth. Using an anchovy-kelp broth will add a lovely umami depth. Beef bone broth provides a richer, more classic flavor. Plain water is also an option if you don’t have broth.
Step 5
Bring the broth to a boil and simmer. Skim off any foam or impurities that rise to the surface to ensure a clear and clean-tasting soup. If you have a broth sachet (dashipack), you can also boil it in plain water to make a quick broth.
Step 6
Prepare the egg garnish. Crack the two eggs into separate bowls, separating the yolks and whites.
Step 7
Lightly grease a non-stick pan with a little oil over low heat. Pour in the egg whites and cook until set, then do the same for the egg yolks. Once cooked, roll up the egg crepes and slice them thinly into ‘jullienne’ strips. This makes for a beautiful and easy-to-eat garnish.
Step 8
For the final garnish, prepare some seaweed flakes. You can easily make these by crushing seasoned seaweed sheets (like ‘jimi kim’) inside a plastic bag.
Step 9
(This step seems to be a placeholder and can be omitted or integrated.)
Step 10
When the broth is boiling vigorously, add the prepared rice cakes. Stir gently to prevent them from sticking together.
Step 11
Once the rice cakes begin to float and soften, it’s time to season. Add 2 tablespoons of ‘guk-ganjang’ (soy sauce for soup) to the broth. If the flavor needs a little adjustment, add a pinch of salt at the end. Using only ‘guk-ganjang’ can sometimes make the broth look a bit cloudy, so a touch of salt is recommended.
Step 12
When the rice cakes are fully cooked and floating, your ‘tteokguk’ is almost ready! Stir in the thinly sliced scallions and cook for just another minute before turning off the heat. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with the prepared egg strips and seaweed flakes. Enjoy your delicious homemade ‘tteokguk’!
Step 13
In my household, we absolutely love serving ‘tteokguk’ with ‘mool-namul’ kimchi (dried radish kimchi)! The soft, chewy texture of the rice cakes paired with the crispness of the radish kimchi creates a wonderful contrast that my children especially adore. They insist it’s not proper ‘tteokguk’ without it! I highly recommend trying this delightful combination.
Step 14
This is truly a delicious and comforting New Year’s soup that you won’t want to leave a single drop of! I hope you enjoy this wonderful ‘tteokguk’ and have a healthy and happy year ahead!
