Songpyeon - Korean Rice Cake for Chuseok

1. If using frozen rice powder for rice cakes, thaw to room temperature. If you can’t buy one, you can make at home, follow my recipe for how to make fresh rice powder for rice cakes at home.
2. Soak dry mung beans in water for 2-3 hrs. If mung beans have a lot of skin, you may need to soak longer.
3. When mung beans are fully soaked, rub beans with hands to remove as much skin as possible. Drain top water away with the skins (as they will float to top). Add water again and repeat if necessary. No need to remove every single outer skin but as much as you can.
4. Get a steamer ready and steam the mung beans for 15 min until they are soft and crushes easily.
5. Use a blender to coarsely chop mung beans. You can just season with salt for the most traditional taste or add honey for a sweeter filling.
6. Crush sesame seeds using a mortar and pestle. You don’t need to crush all seeds, just about half so that the flavor is released. Mix with honey, pinch of salt and set aside. Optionally, you can add honey and sugar for extra sweetness.

Make Basic White Songpyeon Tteok Dough

1. In a bowl, add 2 cup rice powder. Add 4 Tbs hot boiling water and mix with spoon. Once it’s cooled a bit, knead dough with hand.
2. Knead the dough with the heel of your hand for few minutes. (5 min is good). Add 2 tsp boiling water, more or less depending on the dryness of the powder. Dough should not break easily but also not be so wet that it doesn’t hold shape.
3. Cover with a wet towel or plastic wrap. Let it rest for few minutes.

For Yellow Dough (Kabocha Squash)

1. Peel outer skin of Kabocha squash and cut couple think slices weighing about 50 grams. Cook in the microwave covered with wet paper towel for 40 seconds until fully soft.
2. In a bowl, add 2 cup rice powder. Add cooked Kabocha by pressing it against a sieve for best results.
3. Add 3 Tbs boiling water. Mix with spoon and then with your hands to form a dough.
4. Knead the dough with heel of your hand for few minutes.
5. Cover with wet towel or plastic. Let it rest.

For Green Dough (Ssuk/Mugwort)

1. In a bowl, add 2 cup rice powder and 2 1/2 tsp matcha powder or mugwort powder. Add more for darker green color.
2. Add 4 Tbs boiling water. Mix with spoon and then with your hands to form a dough.
3. Knead the dough with heel of your hand for few minutes. Add 1 tsp or more water as needed.
4. Cover with wet towel or plastic. Let it rest.

For Purple Dough (blueberry)

1. Measure 2 cups rice flour. Set aside. Boil water and have it ready.
2. Blend 1/4 cup blueberries with 2 Tbs water. Microwave for 25 - 30 secs until it boils and bubbles up. Strain 3 Tbs (which should be almost all of it) of the hot blueberry juice into a microwavable mixing bowl.
3. Reheat (because after straining, juice will have cooled) the strained juice in the microwave for another 10-15 secs until it just starts to bubble up. Take it out of the microwave and quickly add the 2 cups of rice flour. Mix with a spoon and the knead by hand.
4. Once it forms a dry and crumbly dough, add 1.5 to 2 tsp of HOT boiling water. Knead again. Adjust water amount to get playdough like consistency. Wrap with plastic wrap and rest for few minutes until ready to use. See video.

For Pink Dough (raspberry)

1. Measure 2 cups rice flour. Set aside. Boil water and have it ready.
2. Blend 1/4 cup raspberries with 2 Tbs water. Microwave for 25 - 30 secs until it boils and bubbles up. Strain hot raspberry juice into a microwavable mixing bowl. Should make about 3 Tbs.
3. Reheat (because after straining, juice will have cooled) the strained juice in the microwave for another 10-15 secs until it just starts to bubble up. Take it out of the microwave and quickly add the 2 cups of rice flour. Mix with a spoon and then knead by hand.
4. Once it forms a dry and crumbly dough, add 1.5 to 2 tsp of HOT boiling water. Knead again. Adjust water amount to get playdough like consistency. Wrap with plastic wrap and rest for few minutes until ready to use.

Let's make some Songpyeon -

1. Setup a station with all the fillings and doughs together. Prepare a small bowl of water and sesame oil. Prepare a tray with cover for the Songpyeon.
2. For each Songpyeon, make a 1 inch or slightly bigger little balls with your hand.
3. Then press down the center to form a little bowl with your fingers. If it starts to crack too much, dip your finger in the water bowl and add a little more water to the dough. Repeat again.
4. Fill the bowl with a filling – make sure you top it off.
5. Then close up edges to make a half moon shaped dumpling kind of a thing. Place on tray making sure they don't touch each other. Keep it covered.
6. Repeat with different color dough and different filling.
7. Layer bottom of steamer with pine needles. Place Songpyeon in the steamer.

Stove Top

1. Add 1 1/2 cup water to pot. Put in the steamer, line it with cheese cloth or pine needsle,lay the songpyeon, cover and steam for 12 minutes.

Instant Pot

1. Add 1 cup water to pot. Insert a silicon steamer basket or I just used a silicone steamer liner on top of the steamer insert that comes with Instant Pot. If you have pine needles, layer that first and then place the songypeon. If not, use a cheesecloth or steam mat with songpyeon, close lid, seal valve then select STEAM function for 12 minutes. When cooked, Manual Relase and open.

Korean Rice Cooker (the expensive multi-function, pressurized kind)

1. Add 1 cup water to rice cooker. Put in a steamer basket or silicon steam liner to pot with songpyeon. Close lid, select Steam function (for my Cuckoo, it's Multi-Cook) for 20 minutes.

When all cooked -

1. Prepare 2 bowls, tong and sesame oil. Fill one bowl with cold water.
2. When Songpyeon is cooked, turn off heat and let it cool in the steamer for 2-3 minutes. For Instant Pot and Rice Cooker, you can just open right away.
3. Using a tong, pick up rice cakes and drop them in the cold water for a quick rinse and to remove any stuck pine needles.
4. Transfer rinsed rice cakes into a colander to drain. Quickly (while it's still hot) add drained rice cakes to a bowl, drizzle sesame oil. Toss to coat Songpyeon evenly. This process of cold water bath and coating with oil helps Songpyeon to remain moist and from sticking to each other.
5. Serve warm or at room temp.