The Korea Times
For Koreans, “tteok” (rice cakes) are more than a snack — they’re edible markers of life’s most meaningful moments. From the milky-white “tteokguk” (rice cake soup) served on New Year’s Day to symbolize long life, to the half-moon “songpyeon” shared during the harvest festival of Chuseok as a wish for good fortune, these simple rice confections for long sat at the heart of Korean celebration and memory. Once seen as an “acquired flavor” in Western markets for its distinct chewiness and elasticity, tteok is now winning fans across North America and Europe — propelled by the unstoppable rise of the K-wave. Last month, Seoul-based American TikToker Carson Allen posted a “mukbang (eating broadcast) feast” video featuring Korean rice cakes. Sampling everything from airy “sul-tteok,” rice cakes made with fermented rice wine, to rich, cream-filled modern takes, her clip drew 134,000 likes and hundreds of intrigued comments. Around the same time, a viral video of Korean-American creator Elizabeth biting into “kkul-tteok,” honey-filled rice cakes racked up 1
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