Songpyeon, meaning “rice cake with pine needle fragrance” is a Chuseok delicacy cooked on August 15th according to the lunar calendar. Preparing the rice cake is a traditional Korean custom to worship the moon. Therefore, Koreans made half moon-shaped rice cake with freshly-harvested rice and prayed to the full moon for blessings. According to the 18th century record “Dongguksesigi”, a book on the traditional culture of Korea, locals used to make songpyeon in the fall and also served them for ancestral rites.

Main Ingredients :
(Serves 2)
5 cups non-glutinous rice powder, 40 g mugwort powder, 1 and 2/3 cups water, 1/2 tbsp salt, 2 tbsp sesame oil

Spices :
Ingredients for fillings: 100 g sesame seeds, 40 g sugar, 1/2 tbsp salt
Others: 200 g pine needles



☑ It’s important to knead the dough in boiling-hot water to half-cook it.
☑ Put the kneaded dough in the refrigerator to cool it slightly.
☑ Use less water when kneading the white dough than the green dough mixed with mugwort powder.
☑ Other fillings such as cooked beans or honey-braised chestnuts can also be used.
☑ When shaping songpyeon, squeeze the dough with the fillings gently with your hand several times to let the air out. If not, some songpyeon may not stay sealed when steamed.
☑ Laying a bed of pine needles will flavor the songpyeon with a green fragrance and also prevent the rice cakes from sticking to each other.
☑ Quickly dipping steamed songpyeon in water mixed with sesame oil will not only cool it, but will also add gloss to the rice cake.


Seon Dong-ju: Head Chef of the Menu Development & Consulting Division of CJ Freshway

Head Chef of the Menu Development & Consulting Division of CJ Freshway
Head Instructor of CJ Cooks / Host of Hansik Cooking Class