This tteokbokki recipe makes soft and chewy rice cakes, simmered in sweet and spicy sauce. Even better, you can make your own anchovy stock and have the perfect spicy and savory snack to go with your next refreshingly cold beer.
What is tteokbokki? And how does it taste?
Tteokbokki (ddeogboggi), is a popular Korean snack. It comes in many names and spellings, including ddeokbokki and ddukbokki and topokki.
This dish originated in the Choson dynasty (1392-1910) and was made with a soy sauce base. It wasn’t until 1950s that people began to make a more spicy version of teokbokki with gochujang (red chill paste) and gochugaru (“red pepper powder”).
The tteokbokki is a combination of sweet, spicy and savory flavors. It also has a nice texture due to the soft fish cakes, Asian rice cakes, and sesame seeds.
It’s becoming a popular comfort food in Korea, and the USA. It can be found in fast-food restaurants such as Pelicana and Korean street-food stalls. It’s so popular that Trader Joe’s sells a frozen version.
Fresh vs. dried vs. homemade rice cakes
I tried both fresh-made Korean rice cakes as well as refrigerated rice cakes purchased at my local H-Mart supermarket. Fresh rice cakes are soft and don’t require soaking before being cooked like refrigerated rice cake. You can also find rice cakes in long pieces that look similar to thick rice cake noodles. These rice cakes can be cut down to approximately two- to three-inch lengths.
jasmineandtea recently shared a method to make rice cakes: Roll up wet rice paper and cut it into smaller pieces. This is a fun way of making rice cakes with rice papers, but the texture is different. Our preference is to save rice paper for making fresh Vietnamese spring roll .
What is tteokbokki Sauce made of?
There are many types of this recipe, including royal tteokbokki, which is made with soy sauce and less spicy, and curry-tteokbokki, which has a curry base. There are many types of Spicy Rice Cakes. The spicy version we will make is made with gochujang (spicy chili paste) and gochugaru. You can also make it from a broth base of dried anchovies or kombu (or dried Kelp).
See more other similar rice dishes:
Tteokbokki recipe variants
All my tteokbokki items are purchased at Arirang Market or H-Mart. This recipe uses common tteokbokki ingredients. This Korean Tteokbokki Recipe can use any combination of the following:
- Fish cake
- Big green onions (larger than regular scallions and have a milder, sweeter flavor. However, you can use regular scallions as well).
- sesame seeds
- Boil eggs
- napa cabbage
- mandu (or dumplings)
What is the point of soaking teokbokki in water?
Rice cakes (or tteok) come in many shapes and sizes. This recipe calls to make rice cakes in logs of approximately two-to three inches in length. H-Mart, Airirang Market and other Korean grocery stores sell freshly made rice cakes and pre-made rice cakes.
Refrigerated rice cakes should be soaked in warm water for 10-20 minutes until they become soft. Otherwise, the tteokbokki sauce won’t work properly. Freshly made rice cakes can be dropped into the sauce immediately after being soaked.
Is it possible to make tteokbokki ahead-of-time or refrigerate it
Because the rice cakes can harden if they are stored in the refrigerator, I suggest making the tteokbokki recipe just before you plan to serve them. You can store any leftovers in an airtight container in your fridge for up three days.
To heat the sauce and soften the rice cakes, use a saucepot rather than a microwave to reheat the tteokbokki. Add about 2 tablespoons of stock to the pot. Bring it to a simmer until the rice cakes become soft.
Tteokbokki Recipe (Korean Spicy Rice Cakes)
Equipment
- large saucepan
- Tongs
- Strainer
- Knife and cutting board
Ingredients
STOCK
- 6 medium-sized dried anchovies
- 6 1×1" kombu pieces
- 1 small, yellow onion cut in quarters
- 4 c Filtered water
SEASONING
- 3 tbsp gochujang
- 1 tbsp rice syrup
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 tsp gochugaru
FILLINGS
- Rice cakes 1 lb, preferably soft and fresh
- 1 large green onion or 3 regular scallions, cut into 2-inch pieces
- Fish cakes 1/4 lb cut into triangles
- Optional 2 large boiled eggs
- sesame seeds
Instructions
- Pre-made rice cakes can be submerged in warm water for 20 minutes, or until they are slightly softened. This should be set aside so that you can move on to the next step. This extra step is unnecessary if your rice cakes are fresh and soft to the touch.
- Make the stock. Add all the stock ingredients to a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. After 10 minutes, reduce heat to a simmer or medium-low. Strain the stock and discard any remaining ingredients. The stock should be returned to the saucepan.
- Combine all seasoning ingredients in a small bowl. Stir until well combined. Stir the seasoning mixture into the saucepan.
- Refrigerated rice cakes: Drain the water completely after the rice cakes have soaked.
- Add the rice cakes, and fish cakes to your saucepot. Tongs are used to stir the rice cakes and fish cakes so that the seasoning is evenly distributed.
- Turn the heat up to medium. Stir frequently to ensure that the rice cakes don’t stick on the bottom of your pan. Cook for another 15 minutes, or until the liquid thickens to maple syrup consistency. The sauce should be smooth and soften the rice and fish cakes.
- Turn off the heat, then add the chopped big green onion and the hard-boiled eggs. Allow the eggs and green onions to heat for 2 minutes.
- Sprinkle with sesame seed and serve.
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