[theList] Know and Gain Weight... The Calorie King of Seol Food 'Tteokgalbi'

Holiday Foods, High in Calories and Fat... Top 10 High-Calorie Dishes

As family members gradually gather to celebrate Seollal, the major Korean traditional holiday, the dining table becomes abundant as well.

Eating representative Seollal dishes such as rice cake soup (tteokguk), braised beef short ribs (sogalbijjim), jeon (Korean pancakes), and fried foods often leads to a full stomach.

However, since holiday foods often involve frying and stir-frying, resulting in high-calorie and high-fat dishes, it is necessary to control portion sizes to avoid excessive calorie intake.

Eating too much greasy food without caution can easily cause stomach upset or indigestion.

If you want to moderate your intake of high-calorie foods, it helps to know the calorie content in advance.

Based on the "Holiday Food Nutrition Analysis Data Book" published by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, we looked into the calorie rankings of major holiday dishes.

10th Place - Sujeonggwa & Sikhye

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Sujeonggwa and sikhye, often served as holiday desserts, are representative traditional Korean beverages. Sujeonggwa features a unique spicy and deep flavor from healthy and delicious ingredients such as cinnamon, ginger, honey, pine nuts, and dried persimmons.

On the other hand, sikhye, made from rice and malt, is sweeter than sujeonggwa and is one of the favorite drinks among children. However, both drinks are not low in calories. Sujeonggwa and sikhye contain approximately 133 kcal and 130 kcal per serving (150g), respectively.

9th Place - Japchae

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Japchae is a dish made by stir-frying glass noodles with various vegetables, mushrooms, and meat, then seasoning with soy sauce. It is a staple at festive tables and holidays, but since the ingredients like glass noodles are stir-fried in oil, it tends to be high in calories. Japchae contains 204 kcal per serving (150g).

If you are concerned about calories, you can make japchae using konjac instead of glass noodles. Konjac is composed of 97% water and has almost no calories but can provide the texture of japchae. It is also rich in dietary fiber, which promotes satiety and is effective for dieting.

8th Place - Yaksik

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Yaksik is a healthy dish made primarily from glutinous rice with ingredients such as jujubes, pine nuts, and chestnuts. Also called "yakbap," yaksik is prepared by soaking glutinous rice in water, steaming it in a steamer, mixing it with sesame oil, then seasoning with brown sugar, white sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce, caramel, and various additives before steaming again. Yaksik contains 244 kcal per serving (100g).

7th Place - Donggeurangttaeng

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Also known as "yukwonjeon," donggeurangttaeng is one of the more labor-intensive jeon dishes. It requires many ingredients such as meat, tofu, eggs, and vegetables, and the cooking process is complex. After mincing the meat, finely chopping onions and carrots, and mashing tofu, great care is taken to maintain the round shape. Since donggeurangttaeng is deep-fried, it contains 309 kcal per serving (150g).

You can reduce the calorie burden by slightly changing the ingredients. Instead of pork, which is relatively high in saturated fat, you can use plant-based protein foods like tofu and beans.

6th Place - Fried Dried Filefish (Jwipo Twigim)

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Fried foods are indispensable during Seollal, and among them, fried dried filefish (jwipo twigim) has the highest calorie content. It is a must-have dish on the Gyeongsang-do ancestral rite table and contains 357 kcal per serving (100g). This is higher than fried squid (308 kcal), fried shrimp (301 kcal), and fried sweet potato (253 kcal).

Vegetable tempura also shows relatively high calories at 321 kcal, mainly because it has a larger surface area exposed to oil compared to other fried foods.

5th Place - Perilla Leaf Jeon

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Among jeon dishes, perilla leaf jeon has a high calorie count. It is a dish that captivates the palate by thickly stuffing minced pork between perilla leaves. Perilla leaf jeon contains 361 kcal per serving (150g).

Following it are green onion jeon (293 kcal), pollack jeon (268 kcal), chive jeon (253 kcal), napa cabbage and mushroom jeon (241 kcal), flatfish jeon (230 kcal), and water parsley jeon (226 kcal).

4th Place - Beef Skewers (Sogogi Sanjeok)

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Beef skewers are made by cutting seasoned beef, green onions, and mushrooms into bite-sized pieces, threading them onto skewers, coating them with flour and egg batter, and pan-frying. Since they are fried in plenty of oil, beef skewers contain a high calorie count of 453 kcal per serving (200g).

However, if you cook them with chicken breast instead of beef, you can reduce the calories. The dry texture of chicken breast can be improved by finely chopping the meat and seasoning it evenly. Mixing soy sauce, cooking wine, oligosaccharide, salt, and pepper while kneading the mixture thoroughly results in a much softer texture.

3rd Place - Braised Beef Short Ribs (Sogalbijjim)

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Sogalbijjim, a staple on holiday tables, is beloved for its sweet and savory seasoning. However, it is also high in calories, fat, and sodium. Sogalbijjim contains 495 kcal per serving (250g). When preparing rib dishes, briefly blanching the meat in hot water can reduce fat intake.

2nd Place - Rice Cake Soup (Tteokguk)

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The representative dish that comes to mind during Seollal is rice cake soup (tteokguk). Tteokguk is made by slicing garaetteok (cylindrical rice cakes) diagonally and cooking them in a clear broth or beef bone broth, then topping with beef, egg garnish, seaweed flakes, and other garnishes.

There is a saying that "you must eat a bowl of tteokguk to grow one year older," but since the main ingredient, rice cake, is high in carbohydrates, it should be eaten in moderation. Tteokguk contains 711 kcal per serving (800g), and one ladle (12 rice cakes, 100 kcal) has calories equivalent to one-third of a bowl of rice. Adding more egg or meat garnishes on top increases the calorie content further.

1st Place - Grilled Short Rib Patties (Tteokgalbi)

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Tteokgalbi boasts the highest calorie content among Seollal foods, with 762 kcal per serving (250g). A 250g serving corresponds to two large pieces, and consuming this amount means you do not need to intake any more fat or saturated fat for the day. It is recommended to use lean cuts of meat for tteokgalbi and to blanch the meat once in hot water to remove excess fat before cooking.

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