Korean Christmas: Rice cake soup for good luck

In the first of a three-part series, Lincoln Tan looks at the different traditions around Christmas lunch for migrant communities and finds the thing that makes the Kiwi festivities unique is the diversity of ways we celebrate.

At Christmas, Korean families eat kimchi and drink rice cake soup, chef Alex Kim says.

South Korea is the only East Asian nation to recognise Christmas, or Sung Tan Jul, as a national holiday.

But celebrations there have less to do with presents and decorations, and more to do with the religious traditions that come with the holiday season.

"Whether you are Christian or not it doesn't matter, we see it as a time to spend with family," Kim said.

Many consider Christmas as a time for new birth and renewal, he said, similar to how New Year is regarded.

"One dish that we always eat at Christmas dinner is a rice cake soup called tteok guk," he said.

The disc-shaped rice cake is filled with meat or seafood and served in a clear broth.

"The clear soup symbolises a clean, fresh start and the rice cakes look like coins, so they symbolise prosperity for anyone who eats them," Kim said.

It is also common practice for Koreans to eat out to celebrate Christmas.

A preferred choice for the more affluent is hanjeongsik, or "royal court table cuisine", Kim said.

The meal is served with a selection of dishes, including rice and soup, stewed hot pot, a variety of meat and seafood, kimchi and sauces.

"Hanjeongsik also comes with 12 side dishes," Kim said.

"It consists of ingredients that come from the land, sky and sea, which is believed to provide a balanced meal for the wellbeing of those who eat."

Hanjeongsik is on the Christmas menu at Kim's restaurant, Hansik, at the back of Victoria Park Market in central Auckland.

Tania Lelisi, 51, a human resources manager from Henderson, who had her first taste of royal cuisine there described it as "something completely out of the ordinary".

"I loved in from the moment I walked in to the moment I walked out... my tastebuds went into overdrive experiencing the wonderful flavours," Lelisi said.

"When I first walked up those little stairs into our private area, I was wowed...the settings, the decorations, everything was lovely."

But she found the savoury desserts were "quite strange".

"I am used to desserts as being sweet," Lelisi said,

Koreans also consider Christmas the most romantic time of year and it's a time for couples to celebrate love.

Grandpa Santa, known as Santa Harabujee, sometimes wears blue instead of red.

The Korean community here numbers over 30,000 people and almost three-quarters live in the Auckland region.

About 60 per cent are Christians - 33 per cent being Presbyterian, Congregational and Reformed and 19 per cent Catholic - according to Statistics New Zealand.

Christmas is banned in North Korea, and Koreans there cannot attend services for the holiday or decorate their homes.