In Korea, several winter foods lighten us up for the New Year. Today, I’m going to introduce you to the two most famous Korean New Year dishes: rice cake soup (Duk Guk) and Ga-rae-tteok.
Let's talk about Korean rice cake soup first. Korean rice cake soup is a traditional Korean winter dish that is mainly eaten during the New Year holidays. We use sliced rice cakes with additional toppings like vegetables or sliced meat, and then we pour these into a Duk-Guk Gukmul (떡국 국물). In Korean culture, we believe we get 1 year older when we eat 1 bowl of this soup. Overall, Korean rice cake soup is symbolic of Korean New Year. It's one of the iconic foods that is necessary for the New Year.
Due to the aspect of longevity and prosperity that it represents such as hope and winning, Ga-rae-tteok is a popular food for the New Year. It's reasonable to assume that the long, cylindrical shape of the rice cake is an evident symbol of one's hope for a long and prosperous life. Traditionally it has been one of the foods that people in the family would eat and share the dish as well as their year’s wishes.
Gare-dduk is also one important food for the Korean New Year. According to the U.S. Department of State, “ Ga-rae-tteok will bring long life and wealth. Since ancient times, Koreans have traditionally shared rice cakes at important banquets.” As mentioned in the quotegarae-duk represents an important factor in our lives, life and wealth, making it important for Korean culture. Ga-rae-tteok is mainly made up of rice. Ga-rae-tteok are also used in making duk-guk and other Korean dishes. It symbolizes happiness, celebration, and health. Eating or having a dish of Ga-rae-tteok in the New Year is one way for Koreans to celebrate a new year coming.
Duk-guk has more cultural significance because it is related to Korean customs and traditions. Eating this dish is not only about the flavor but also enjoying the feeling of growing up, and growing up together as a ritual. During the New Year, sharing a bowl of Duk-guk with relatives and friends consolidates the ties and offers hopes for health, happiness and success in the coming year.
To conclude, there are still many more traditional Korean foods for New Year not mentioned in the article, but Koreans tend to eat mainly duk-guk and Ga-rae-tteok. Ga-rae-tteok and duk-guk are traditional Korean New Year celebrations.
