Rainbow rice cake Mujigae-tteok 무지개떡

I’m going to introduce a beautiful Korean rice cake today. It’s called mujigae-tteok (무지개떡). Mujigae means rainbow, so my ancestors must have got the idea for the name from a rainbow! I love it! This is an example of how they incorporated natural beauty into their everyday life. Even though the name of the rice cake is “rainbow rice cake,” it is usually made with only 3-5 different colored layers. That’s why this rice cake is sometimes called “colorful rice cake” (색떡, saektteok).

In this recipe, I am using 5 different colors from bottom to top: brown, green, yellow, pink, and white.

This rice cake is made on special occasions like a baby’s 1 year old birthday, or a wedding. As you see in this video, making this rice cake takes a lot of effort and time, even though the ingredients are comparatively simple. However, if you make this rice cake for someone very special in your life, you wouldn’t care much about time and effort. : ) You may wish this while you’re rubbing the rice flour with your palms:

“I wish my baby becomes healthy, smart, and a good, warm-hearted person!”

“I wish my parents have healthy and long life!”

“To show my love for my lovely husband (or wife) !”

Leave a comment and let me know what you wish when you make this!

A note about short grain rice flour: the flour you buy at your local store or the flour you make may have more or less moisture in it than the rice flour I use in this recipe. This is because of many different things like how long it’s been in the freezer in the store, or the atmospheric conditions where you live. You may need to steam more or less, depending on how dry or wet your short grain rice flour is.

Cooking time: 1.5 hours

Ingredients

A 2 pound package of frozen rice flour (or make it at home), sugar, kosher salt, water, liquid food coloring (green, pink, and yellow), lemon, mugwort powder (ssukgaru 쑥가루), cocoa powder.

Cooking utensils:
Steamer, sifter, 8 inch (20 cm) ring or springform.

Directions

1. Thaw out frozen rice flour package and put it into a large bowl.
2. Sift the rice flour.
3. Add 10 cups of water in the bottom of a steamer, and place a wet cloth over the rack.
4. Place the 8 inch cake ring in the center of the rack.
   

Brown layer (the bottom layer):

1. Place 1 cup of rice flour in a medium sized bowl. Add 1 ts cocoa powder, a pinch of salt, 2 tbs of white sugar, and 4 ts of water.
2. Mix it all up and press out any wet lumps by rubbing the lumps gently between your palms.
3. Put the mixture into a sifter and sift into the center of the ring.
4. Flatten out the mixture so it sits level in the ring.
   *tip: a business card works well
   
   

Green layer:

1. Place 1½ cup of rice flour in a medium sized bowl. Add a pinch of salt, 2 tbs sugar, and 1 ts mugwort powder (ssukgaru).
   *tip: you can replace mugwort powder with green tea powder
   
2. Put 2 tbs of water and 1 drop of green liquid food coloring into a small bowl and mix well.
   *tip: Use a chopstick to get a very little amount of the food coloring
3. Add the green water to the rice cake mixture and mix it all up. Press out any wet lumps by rubbing the lumps gently between your palms.
4. Put the mixture into a sifter and sift into the center of the ring.
5. Flatten out the mixture so it sits level in the ring.

Yellow layer:

1. Place 1½ cup of rice flour in a medium sized bowl. Add a pinch of salt and 2 tbs sugar.
2. Put 1tbs lemon juice, 1 tbs water, and 1 drop of yellow liquid food coloring into a small bowl and mix well.
3. Add the yellow water to the rice cake mixture and mix it all up. Press out any wet lumps by rubbing the lumps gently between your palms.
4. Put the mixture into a sifter and sift into the center of the ring.
5. Flatten out the mixture so it sits level in the ring.

Pink layer:

1. Place 1½ cup of rice flour in a medium sized bowl. Add a pinch of salt and 2 tbs sugar.
2. Put 2 tbs water and 1 drop of hot pink (fuchsia) liquid food coloring into a small bowl and mix well.
3. Add the pink water to the rice cake mixture and mix it all up. Press out any wet lumps by rubbing the lumps gently between your palms.
4. Put the mixture into a sifter and sift into the center of the ring.
5. Flatten out the mixture so it sits level in the ring.

White layer (the top layer):

1. Place 1 cup of rice flour in a medium sized bowl. Add a pinch of salt, 2 tbs white sugar, and 4 ts water.
2. Mix it up and press out any wet lumps by rubbing the lumps gently between your palms.
3. Put the mixture into a sifter and sift into the center of the ring.
4. Flatten out the mixture so it sits level in the ring.

Now let’s garnish!

1. On the top of the cake place 5 dried cranberries to make flower petals. Put a few pine nuts in the center.
2. Cut a dried apricot into a thin strip, and place it as a flower stem.

Finally, let’s steam it:

1. Close the lid of the steamer and bring to a boil for 30 minutes over high heat.
2. Turn down the heat and simmer another 5 minutes.
3. Take out the rice cake and let it cool down. Serve with tea or coffee.