Summer is almost over, and fall is coming. I think it is time to start making warm Korean soups like Tteok Mandu Guk again.
But do you ever have days like this?
You want to warm yourself up with a hot bowl of soup and just rest.
You want to eat something good, but you don’t want to cook.
Of course, you can order food. But sometimes, even that doesn’t work.
So today, I want to share one of my easy tips for days like that.
Actually, I feel a little embarrassed to even call this cooking.
Why?
Because we are basically putting together ingredients that are already made and boiling them. Haha.
So instead of calling this a recipe, maybe I should call it Auntie Jin’s easy cooking tip.
What Is Tteokguk?
Have you ever heard of tteokguk (떡국)?
Tteokguk is a Korean soup made with sliced rice cakes. Traditionally, we make the broth with beef or anchovies and cook the rice cakes in it.
In Korea, families traditionally eat tteokguk together on New Year’s Day.
We even say that when you eat a bowl of tteokguk, you become one year older.
In Korea, we traditionally thought of everyone as becoming one year older when the new year began, even if their birthday had not come yet.
So tteokguk has a special connection with the Korean New Year.
But I like to add mandu (만두), Korean dumplings, to my tteokguk.
Then it becomes tteok mandu guk (떡만두국).
Simple, right?
You don’t have to wait until New Year’s Day to eat it.
For me, tteok mandu guk is one of those simple meals that makes me feel warm and full.
After eating it, I can say,
“Ah, I ate well.”
So let me show you my super easy way to make it.
Once you have the ingredients ready, you are almost done!
Ingredients
For 1 serving
- 1 pack of Beef Bone Flavored Soup
- 1 cup of tteokguk tteok (sliced rice cakes)
- 4 mandu (Korean dumplings)
- 2 green onions
If your rice cakes are frozen: Soak them in cold water first.
For the green onions: Slice them thinly and set them aside.
How to Make Tteok Mandu Guk
1. Boil the Beef Bone Soup and Add the Frozen Mandu(Dumplings)
Pour one pack of Beef Bone soup into a pot and bring it to a boil.
When the soup starts boiling, add the frozen mandu first.
Most store-bought mandu are frozen, and they take longer to cook than the rice cakes. So make sure to add the frozen mandu before adding the rice cakes.
You don’t need to thaw the mandu first. Just add them straight from the freezer.
2. Add Tteok (the Rice Cakes)
If your rice cakes are frozen, soak them in water first.
Drain the rice cakes, then add them to the pot after the frozen mandu.
Keep boiling until the mandu are fully cooked. When they are cooked, they will usually float to the top.
By that time, the rice cakes should also be nice and soft.
And…
That’s it!
Yes, really. Haha.
3. Add the Green Onions
Pour the tteok mandu guk into a bowl and sprinkle the sliced green onions on top.
Simple, but let’s make it look delicious!
You may be wondering,
“Wait, we didn’t add any seasoning?”
That’s right.
The gomtang soup is already seasoned, so you can eat it just as it is.
Taste it first. If you think it needs more salt, add a little. You can also sprinkle a little black pepper on top.
Jin’s Cooking Tips
If your tteokguk rice cakes are frozen, soak them in water before cooking.
Frozen rice cakes can be hard and sometimes stick together. Soaking them in water helps separate them and soften the outside a little before they go into the hot soup.
You don’t need to soak them for a long time. Just put them in water while you prepare the other ingredients.
Then drain the water and add the rice cakes after the frozen mandu.
This little step helps the rice cakes cook more evenly and become nice and soft.
This is a great meal for a day when you are too tired to cook but still don’t want to eat junk food.
You can fill your stomach with a warm bowl of soup, rice cakes, and dumplings.
I know because I had one of those days just a few days ago.
After finishing a big project, sometimes I don’t even want to take care of myself.
When I think about it, we often put taking care of ourselves at the bottom of our list.
We take care of our work.
We take care of other people.
And taking care of ourselves often comes last.
On a day like that, make a bowl of tteok mandu guk for yourself.
Eat something warm and filling.
And give yourself a little pat on the back.
“You worked hard. Good job.”
Everyone, you worked hard this week too.
In English, you have the expression “comfort food,” right?
I understand comfort food as food that makes not only your body but also your heart feel better.
It is the kind of food that gives you comfort and energy whenever you eat it.
In Korea, we often call this kind of food “soul food (소울푸드).”
Yes, soul + food.
It’s Konglish. Haha.
Korea actually has quite a few funny Konglish words.
I think Koreans are pretty good at bringing something from another culture, changing it a little, and making it our own.
Maybe Konglish is a good example of that.
But…
“Soul food.”
It’s not bad, right?
Haha. 😄