Duk Mandu Guk for New Year’s Day! This Korean Rice Cake and Dumpling Soup is a traditional Korean meal for ringing in the New Year. Many Korean families gather with friends and extended family members to make mandu and enjoy this soup together.
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The American Egg Board. All opinions are my own.
I love learning about different cultures and traditions. Often times, food is a huge part of a culture and how people identify themselves. You hear stories of people growing up, learning how to cook certain foods, taught to them, or family recipes passed down from generations and I think it’s such a beautiful thing.
Growing up in a Korean household in the United States, my parents made sure I knew how to cook and loved Korean food. We would often have Sunday breakfast together which was composed of sometimes a mix of American and Korean food: scrambled eggs, bacon and kimchi and rice, or just a full on Korean meal for breakfast. They raised us to be proud of our culture and heritage and I am trying to do the same thing with my daughters now.
KOREAN TRADITIONS FOR NEW YEARS DAY
For as long as I can remember, on New Year’s Eve, my mom would make the mandu stuffing and we would all sit at a table and stuff and shape and fold Korean dumplings together. The best part? Cooking some (boiling, steaming and pan frying) and eating them right away.
Whatever the dish is, eggs are always included in Korean food cooking. Whether it’s an ingredient in the recipe, or used as a garnish, eggs are a staple in Korean food cooking. I personally love eggs and I can eat them at any time of the day. I love adding eggs on just about everything: from fried rice to ramen to this soup dish: Duk Mandu Guk. Visit www.incredibleegg.org to learn more and for more great recipes!
DUK MANDU GUK
Duk Mandu Guk is a traditional Korean dish that is made and eaten on New Year’s Day. A lot of families gather together on New Year’s Eve or Day and make the dumplings from scratch. Click here for my dumpling recipe. The Korean rice cakes are added towards the end of the cooking process and this soup dish is comfort and deliciousness in a bowl! My mother would always make our Duk Mandu Guk even more special by making this beautiful and vibrant egg garnish to add on top. I have so many wonderful childhood memories when eating and enjoying this over the holiday season! We hope you try it!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE DUK MANDU GUK
You should be able to find many of these ingredients at your local Korean or Asian market or grocery store.
- Sliced rice cakes (fresh or frozen, depending on where you live); they look like flower petals
- Vegetable oil
- Eggs, yolks only
- Sesame oil
- Bone-in beef short ribs, or 2 ribs
- Beef brisket or boneless beef short ribs – cubed in 1/4-1/2 inch pieces
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Fish sauce
- Garlic cloves, minced
- Soy sauce + more if needed
- Ready-made frozen dumplings (or ingredients to make them homemade)
- Green onions, diced fine (just the green part)
- Gim – dried seaweed, shredded or cut with kitchen shears for garnish
HOW TO MAKE MY DUK MANDU GUK FOR NEW YEAR’S DAY
This is truly one of my favorite Korean food dishes! Not only is this so delicious but it’s also considered to be a good luck soup to welcome in the New Year.
KOREAN DUK MANDU GUK
Ingredients
- 1 to 1 1/2 lbs. Sliced Korean rice cakes fresh or frozen
- 1 to 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 4 to 6 large eggs yolks only
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1/2 lb. bone-in beef short ribs or 2 ribs
- 1/2 lb. Beef brisket or boneless beef short ribs cubed in 1/4-1/2 inch pieces
- kosher salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce + more if needed
- 15 to 20 ready-made frozen dumplings
- 4 to 6 green onions diced (just the green part)
- gim – dried seaweed shredded or cut with kitchen shears for garnish
Instructions
- Cover and soak the rice cake pieces in cold water for 30 minutes to 1 hour. You can even soak them overnight and leave them in the fridge. Drain when you’re ready to use.
- While your rice cakes are soaking, make your egg garnish. Separate the egg yolks from the whites and place them into 2 bowls. I like to save my egg whites and make an egg white omelette or scrambled eggs. Mix your egg yolks with a pinch of salt.
- Add 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil to a nonstick pan over low heat. Pour the egg yolk mixture into the pan and tilt the pan so the mixture spreads thinly to cover the entire pan. Let it cook for about 2 to 3 minutes. When ready, carefully flip it over and let it sit on the pan for another minute or two. Turn off the heat. Move to a cutting board and carefully slice into thin strips.
- For the soup: Heat the sesame oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium-high heat. After a few minutes, add the bone-in beef short ribs beef and sear on each side for a few minutes or until browned. Next, add in the cubed beef brisket and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally until the meat has been browned on all sides, for about 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add enough cold water to cover the beef, cover the pot with a lid, and increase the heat to high to bring to a boil. Once boiling, bring the temperature down to low and let simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface. The longer you let your beef simmer, the better it will taste!
- Next, add the fish sauce, garlic, soy sauce, and frozen dumplings. Taste and season with salt if needed and allow to simmer, uncovered, for a few minutes.
- Add the drained rice cakes and let boil for another 3 to 4 minutes. Taste the soup and season with more salt, soy sauce and/or garlic if needed. Keep checking the rice cakes to ensure you are not over cooking: If you cook them for too long, they become too soft and mushy! Add the green onions and turn off the heat.
- Ladle the Duk Mandu Guk soup into bowls and garnish with the egg garnish, more green onions and the gim. Serve immediately and enjoy!
