"Boss, What Is This?" The 2,000 Won 'Pizza-Like Rice Cake' Causes a Sensation at Local Shops [Flavor File X]

Orders Surge at Neighborhood Rice Cake Shops as "Pizzaseolgi" Trend Spreads

Rising Preference for Chewy Texture Puts Spotlight on Fusion Rice Cakes Like Fruit Chapssaltteok

Rice Cake Sales Climb... "Adapting to Changing Times"

"We had so many customers asking for it that we started making it again right after the Chuseok holiday. We make them fresh every morning and sell them on the same day."

This is what the owner of a rice cake shop in front of a traditional market in Gangbuk-gu, Seoul, said on October 1 while arranging 'Pizza Seolgi' cakes priced at 2,000 won each on display. Pizza Seolgi is a rice cake made to resemble a pizza, with tomato sauce, cheese, pepperoni, and corn layered on top of Baekseolgi (steamed white rice cake). Reportedly developed at Youngdodari Tteokbang in Yeongdo, Busan, Pizza Seolgi quickly gained nationwide popularity via social media starting this spring.

In front of a traditional market in Gangbuk-gu, Seoul, a rice cake shop has 'Pizza Seolgi' priced at 2,000 won each displayed on the stand. Photo by Hyunjin Jeong

The shop owner also began displaying Pizza Seolgi on the stand starting last month. Many customers purchase it along with traditional rice cakes. The owner shared that, as demand for Songpyeon rises sharply around Chuseok, they paused making Pizza Seolgi for about a week. "Now that it's been featured in the media and is so trendy, not only young people but even older customers are buying one to try," the owner said, adding, "I plan to keep making and selling them for the foreseeable future."

Who could forget this year's craze for 'Dubai Jjondeuk Cookie (Dujjonku)'? Back then, long lines formed in front of major bakery franchises, cafes, and bakeries across the country as people scrambled to purchase these treats. Following that, 'Changuk Tteok', a local rice cake shop in Gwangju, also saw a huge spotlight for its Pumpkin Injeolmi, with large crowds flocking to its Seoul-area store openings. In the second half of this year, Pizza Seolgi has been leading the dessert trend. Various desserts with that signature chewy and elastic texture—breads, rice cakes, and more—continue to emerge in the market.

To sum up this year's food trend in a word, it's no exaggeration to call it "the year of chewy delights in 2026." At the heart of this is rice cake, renowned for its distinctively soft, springy texture. There is even a new term—"Tteok-pilgrimage" (tteok + pilgrimage)—describing fans traveling to sought-after rice cake shops and distribution channels for popular flavors. In this edition of Flavour Expert X-File, we'll take a closer look at the rising trends of our traditional rice cake desserts capturing the nation's attention.

Local Rice Cake Shops Join the Trend..."Ordering More Pepperoni and Rice"

The Pizza Seolgi trend has changed the way local rice cake shops order their ingredients.

On October 4, The Asia Business Daily reviewed the order histories of about 150 rice cake shop owners on 'Sikbom', an online food ingredient marketplace operated by Marketboro, a CJ Freshway subsidiary, at our request.

Orders for pizza cheese, the key ingredient in Pizza Seolgi, have spiked noticeably. In the second quarter of this year, there were only 7 orders for pizza cheese, but in the third quarter, that number soared to 477. Notably, almost 94% of these third-quarter orders were placed within August alone, indicating that the Pizza Seolgi trend took hold among local rice cake shops just last month.

Pizza Seolgi contains more than just cheese, of course. Orders for pizza sauce jumped from just 2 in the second quarter to 271 in the third quarter—an increase of over 130-fold. Orders for pepperoni went from 4 to 261 over the same period. Orders for corn and black olives, which were each just 1 in the second quarter, increased to 126 and 100 respectively in the third quarter. Even rice orders, used to make Baekseolgi, more than doubled from 275 to 566.

During the early-year Dujjonku craze, there was a shortage of ingredients like pistachios and kadaif. We asked if the Pizza Seolgi trend had caused similar supply issues. An industry source explained, "Since pistachios and kadaif are already scarce ingredients, the impact was severe. But the main ingredients of Pizza Seolgi are sufficiently supplied, so prices do not seem to be affected."

Besides Pizza Seolgi, another trendsetting product this year is fruit Chapssaltteok—glutinous rice cakes stuffed with fruit like tangerine, strawberry, or kiwi. The 'Limited Edition' brand has been getting attention for its modern take on Chapssaltteok, growing rapidly by word of mouth after launching in the Seongsu-dong café district. A recent visit to their Seoul train station location found long lines of customers even on a weekday evening. Some customers said they waited an hour to buy one on the weekend.

As this chewy rice cake trend continues, the food and restaurant industry is rolling out related products. Last month, GS25 launched a frozen dessert inspired by Limited Edition's signature Yogurt Chapssaltteok, and it quickly gained popularity. In August, The Venti launched the yogurt dessert brand 'Yogobora' and has been selling 'Yogumochi'—chapssaltteok filled with Greek yogurt, peach, corn, and more. Paris Baguette's 'Choco Chewy Churros,' featuring that signature chewy bite, also achieved cumulative sales of 1.7 million units in just one month after launch.

Fusion Rice Cakes in the Spotlight... Sales Reaching 1 Trillion Won

Looking at recent rice cake trends, it's not just about recreating traditional flavors; what stands out are fusion menus that emphasize chewy textures with novel ingredients. Alongside Pizza Seolgi and fruit Chapssaltteok, products like Chapssaltteok filled with fresh cream and Injeolmi coated with castella crumbs instead of traditional roasted soybean powder have also captured consumer interest. With their hybrid appeal—reminiscent of rice cakes, cakes, and pies all at once—these treats blur the boundaries of dessert and directly target young consumers' preferences.

Limited Edition Yogurt Chapssaltteok Released by GS25. Provided by GS25

In fact, this transformation of rice cake has been ongoing for some time.

The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) noted in the 2023 'Processed Food Segmentation Report: Rice Cakes and Hangwa' that, "As dessert culture becomes more ingrained, more stores are treating rice cakes and hangwa as desserts," analyzing that new products like strawberry cream cheese rice cakes are being developed in response to evolving tastes and preferences. At the time, the retro and 'Hal-mennial' (grandmother + millennial) trends also boosted interest in rice cakes and other traditional snacks. With the rise of well-being trends, demand also grew for processed foods made with rice instead of wheat flour.

At the same time, advances in rice cake logistics and distribution have been expanding the market. While sales were once centered around neighborhood mills and rice cake shops, companies now produce and distribute rice cakes through advanced logistics systems, enabling refrigerated and frozen shipping. Online ordering and transaction systems have also become highly organized, allowing for nationwide and even international sales. Consequently, fusion rice cakes with mixed ingredients can now be sold over long distances.

As a result, rice cake consumption has continued to grow each year. According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics' 'Domestic Sales by Product Category', the domestic sales of rice cake products increased from 564.1 billion won in 2018 to 962.4 billion won last year—a 71% increase over seven years. With this year's nationwide craze for chewy desserts, attention now turns to whether sales will surpass 1 trillion won.

As Baekil and Dol Tteok Fade, Local Rice Cake Shops Face Challenges..."Adapting to the Times"

A week before Chuseok, the biggest national holiday, people visiting the Seongnam Moran Traditional Market on the 9th's five-day market are purchasing ritual items such as fruits, fish, and rice cakes. Photo by Yongjun Jo jun21@

With rice cake consumption among people in their 20s and 30s on the rise, you might expect more customers visiting neighborhood rice cake shops. According to the Korea Rice Cake & Food Processing Association, there are around 20,000 rice cake shops currently nationwide. However, the number of local rice cake shops has reportedly been declining over the past three years. Even though new demand has emerged for products like Pizza Seolgi and fruit Chapssaltteok, large bulk orders for events such as Baekil (a baby's first 100 days) and Dol (a baby's first birthday) have decreased compared to the past.

An association official explained, "While some young people have opened new rice cake businesses, closures have increased due to the aging population. Larger businesses with more capital have grown their sales and expanded exports by leveraging social media." They added, "As consumer preferences change, rice cakes are also adapting with the times, creating new products rather than just relying on traditional varieties."

When was the last time you visited a local rice cake shop? Do you know which shop in your neighborhood sells the trendy Pizza Seolgi? As the cool breeze of fall arrives, why not enjoy these new dessert trends alongside your favorite traditional rice cakes at your local shop? Here's hoping you have a relaxing weekend—and a tasty adventure in dessert!

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.