Glutinous ricecakesare considered a staple of festive foods in traditional Korean cuisine, with a history almost as long as that of eating grains.Rice cakeshave been enjoyed in Korea since ancient times.Koreans make rice cakes during birthdays, coming home, children's one-hundredth day and first birthday, weddings, and ancestor worship, seeking peace and safety.During festivals such as the Lunar New Year or Mid-Autumn Festival, various types of festival rice cakes are prepared, including azalea cake in March and pine cake for the Mid-Autumn Festival.Korean cuisine shares many similarities with Chinese traditions; for example, on the 15th day of the first lunar month, glutinous rice porridge is eaten, and during the Dragon Boat Festival, people drink chrysanthemum wine.Rice and japonica rice are used as ingredients in making Korean rice cakes. The methods of preparing these cakes are very similar to those in China, with distinctions between steamed cakes and pounded cakes.Many types of sweet pastries and variously shaped snacksare made from glutinous rice, often filled with savory or sweet fillings. Some sweet pastries are even coated with petals and pan-fried in oil.In the past, Korean nobility placed great importance on eating rice cakes during festivals; museums and traditional food research institutions in Korea exhibit exquisite porcelain dishes and specialized tools used for making rice cakes from hundreds of years ago.

Visitors to markets in Seoul, traditional food institutes, and the city of Seokjeon in Jeollanam-do, South Korea, can see and taste a wide variety of these beautifully crafted rice cakes, even finding it hard to bring themselves to eat some that are incredibly colorful and intricate.Korean rice cake (rice cake made from glutinous rice) preparation involves using small molds similar to those used in Chinese pastries. These molds produce various shaped snacks about the size of a walnut, made from ceramic or wooden materials.Rice cakes are an essential part of gift-giving, especially during wedding gifts and offerings to one's mother-in-law, symbolizing sincere and loving intentions.During moving days, it is customary to distribute rice cakes to neighbors as well.In the unearthed murals from Korea’s Silla period (676-935 AD), there are depictions of pounding cakes, and during the Joseon era (1392-1910), Korean rice cake culture reached its peak.Korean rice cakes are often made as sweet pastries and various shaped snacks.Most of these pastries have fillings that can be fresh, salty, or sweet.Sweet pastries also need to be coated with petals before being pan-fried in oil on a flat pan.In the past, Korean nobles placed great importance on eating rice cakes during festivals; in Korean museums and traditional food research institutes, there are exquisite porcelain items from hundreds of years ago that were used by nobility to eat rice cakes, as well as tools specifically for making rice cakes that have been passed down through folk traditions.In the markets of Korea, at the Seoul Traditional Food Research Institute, and in Sujeon Yeongeo-ri, Jeollanam-do, various beautifully crafted rice cakes were seen and tasted.Even before tasting those vibrantly colored and exquisitely designed plum blossoms,tangerine flowers,peach hearts,silk leaves,mangoes,pears,apples,persimmons,and even small watermelons, one could not bear to eat them.In Korea, making rice cakes (glutinous rice cakes) is similar to Chinese colored pastries using wooden molds (the molds for making rice cakes are very small, resulting in pastry pieces about the size of a walnut; these molds can be made from clay or wood).During festivals, one cannot do without giving away rice cakes as gifts, especially when sending gifts to one's mother-in-law.It is said that there are meanings of sincerity, love, and filial piety contained in the rice cakes.

Moving into a new home also has the custom of making rice cakes and distributing them among neighbors.Rice cakes appeared on the frescoes unearthed from Korea's Silla Dynasty (676-935 AD), and during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910 AD), Korean rice cake culture reached its peak.(Nian mi gao) production uses a pattern similar to Chinese designs.Pastry.Mold (the mold for making glutinous rice cakes is very small, and the resulting snacks are typically the size of walnuts; molds can be made of clay or wood).Walnuts.Various shapes and patterns are created from these small point-sized pastries.During festivals, glutinous rice cakes cannot be missing, especially in gift baskets sent to one's mother-in-law, as they carry meanings of sincerity, love, and filial piety.There is also a custom of giving glutinous rice cakes to neighbors when moving house.Molds for making pastries have been found in the wall paintings excavated from ancient Korean tombs, dating back to the Silla period (676-935 AD), and the culture of rice cakes reached its peak during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910).