7th Seoul International ‘Tteok’ Fair

The 7th Seoul International ‘Tteok’ Fair, held on May 8^th and 9^th, will be a celebration of a time-honored Korean delicacy. Tteok has significant importance in Korean culture. The rice cake is eaten on the wintry, New Year’s Day to signify luck, purity, and another year of life. It is decorated with flowers to welcome spring. To battle the summer heat, rice cake pearls swim in honeyed water with pine nuts. In fall, red bean tteok is eaten to ward off bad luck.

This year’s fair will have seminars, exhibitions, and activities for all ages. This year will truly be an international competition because it will have the first international rice cake competition. This competition will be open to non-Korean nationals and the first place contestant will win 2 million won. This competition will be on May 8^th at 3pm. There will be competitions for Koreans as well on both days.

Plus, there will be over 50 international trading companies and business consulting services for those interested in the rice cake business. There will be something for all ages. And the festival will start with the cutting of the world’s largest rice cake.

The special guest for the event is Chef Rachel Yang. Her Seattle restaurant Joule (www.joulerestaurant.com) was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal. This graduate of Brown University has worked at the prestigious Alain Ducasse restaurant in New York and she has also had the good fortune to work with Chefs Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller. This French-trained chef will be giving cooking demonstrations of her Korean inspired dishes on both days of the fair.

The Event Zones

There will be several event zones on both days of the event, which will be fun for all ages. The event zones will let participants make flower shaped rice cake, taste different rice cakes and rice wines, and make rice flour by pounding a large traditional wooden mallet.

The free rice cake making classes will be held throughout both days of the fair. The classes will last 50 minutes and the instructions will be in English. Spots are limited for the classes so be sure to make a reservation by calling 02.741.5477 or e-mail Soo-hyun at soochoi@paran.com

Doors open at 10am and the event will be held at the aT Center in Yangjae. Go to www.kfr.or.kr for more information.

Contact Soo Hyang Choi at soochoi@paran.com or call at 02.741.5477 / 010.4272.1900 to ask questions, and to make reservations for the rice cake making classes.