Rice Cake Soup: A Vegetarian Korean Recipe

This rice cake soup combines tender, oval-sliced garaetteok with a clear vegetarian broth built from kelp, mushrooms, garlic, and soy sauce. It serves four and takes about 30 minutes, including a short soak for firm or frozen rice cakes.

The result is a savory Korean rice cake soup with soft-chewy cakes, sliced mushrooms, scallions, and roasted seaweed. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer so the rice cakes soften without turning gummy.

Rice Cake Soup Broth, Rice Cakes, and Garnishes

Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 30 minutes

• 14 ounces (400 g) Korean oval-sliced rice cakes, or garaetteok
• 4 cups water or low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 piece dried kelp, about 3 by 4 inches
• 4 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• Fine salt, as needed
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 sheet roasted seaweed, cut into thin strips
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

If the rice cakes are frozen or firm, cover them with cold water and soak for 10 minutes. Fresh, refrigerated rice cakes usually need only a quick rinse. Drain before cooking.

Build a 4-Cup Vegetarian Broth

1. Place the water or vegetable broth, kelp, shiitake mushrooms, and garlic in a medium pot. Let the ingredients stand for 5 minutes before heating.
2. Bring the pot slowly to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Cook uncovered for 12 minutes, allowing the kelp and mushrooms to deepen the broth without making it cloudy.
3. Remove the kelp. Transfer the shiitake mushrooms to a plate, let them cool briefly, then remove their stems and slice the caps. Return the sliced mushrooms to the pot.
4. Stir in the soy sauce and sesame oil. Taste the broth before adding salt; soy sauce and vegetable broth can vary considerably in saltiness.

Do not boil the kelp aggressively, or it can give the soup a bitter, slippery texture. The finished broth should taste savory and gently mushroomy, with enough seasoning to flavor the neutral rice cakes.

Soak and Simmer Sliced Rice Cakes

1. Bring the seasoned broth back to a gentle simmer. Add the drained rice cakes and stir once to separate them.
2. Simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Frozen cakes may need closer to 5 minutes, while fresh cakes can finish sooner.
3. Check one cake by cutting or biting into it. It is ready when the center is heated through and the texture is soft-chewy, not hard in the middle or mushy at the edges.

Keep the heat low once the cakes enter the pot. A rolling boil can split thin slices and release excess starch, leaving the broth thick and cloudy. If the soup becomes too thick before serving, add a few tablespoons of hot water.

Garnish Soft-Chewy Cakes and Serve

Ladle the hot soup into four bowls immediately. Rice cakes continue absorbing broth as they sit, so serve as soon as they reach the right texture.

• Scatter sliced scallions over each bowl for freshness and color.
• Add strips of roasted seaweed for a traditional savory note.
• Finish with toasted sesame seeds and a small pinch of black pepper.

For a stronger mushroom garnish, reserve one shiitake cap per bowl and arrange the slices on top rather than stirring them all into the broth. Serve the vegetarian rice cake soup hot, while the cakes remain soft-chewy and the broth is clear.