I will happily wonder the streets of Seoul until I find a food stall serving chewy, sweet and spicy tteokbokki! This popular Korean dish is one of my favorites to devour after a fun evening out with friends. And it’s very easy to make it at home! My tteokbokki recipe will make your tastebuds dance with its fiery gochujang and gochugaru based sauce.
Tteokbokki is a dish made of Korean rice cakes and fish cakes served in a bright red sweet, peppery, nutty, and spicy sauce. It’s one of those dishes I never tire of because I’m a huge fan of chewy rice cakes. It’s a dish that’s very filling, a popular street food in Korea, and one that’s becoming increasingly popular here in the West as well.
I kept the flavors of this tteokbokki very basic, not wanting to veer off too much from the original taste, since it’s already so perfect to begin with. It takes about 35 minutes to make from start to finish.
Why This Recipe Works
- The perfect bite. The rice cakes themselves are dense, chewy and springy all at once. Very satisfying in a similar way to Japanese mochi.
- Flavor for days. It’s one of the most famous Korean street-foods for a reason. Tteokbokki is fiery, savory and sweet perfection.
- It’s versatile. You can make it as simple or complex as you’d like. Common additional toppings include eggs, shredded cabbage, daikon, cheese, carrots, hot dogs and even ramen noodles.
Table of contents
Ingredients
- Tteokbokki Rice Cakes: These Korean rice cakes are made from short grain rice flour and salt. Once cooked, Korean rice cakes have a texture that is both dense and springy. They can be purchased at Korean supermarkets, sometimes at Walmart (in the frozen section) or here on Amazon.
- Tteokbokki Sauce: This is a mixture of anchovy stock, dried kelp, gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, and sugar. Bold, savory, spicy and sweet.
- Korean Fish Cakes: These are lightly fried until golden brown on the outside, and have a savory flavor and an almost bouncy texture. I prefer the thin, flat Korean fish cakes for this dish. Grab them at Asian grocery stores, next to the imitation crab sticks.
- Toasted Sesame Oil: Toasted sesame oil is added at the very end of the cooking process to preserve the delicate toasted nutty flavor. Since this oil has a low smoke point – unlike regular sesame oil which has a high smoke point – it tends to taste rancid if it cooks for too long.
- Scallions: Chopped green onions add a nice crunch to the dish and a sharp, clean bite.
- Sesame seeds: Optional but recommended to boost the nutty taste.
Variations
- Rabokki: This fun mash-up is everything you love about tteokbokki – with the addition of ramen noodles. Click here for the rabokki recipe.
- Rose Tteokbokki: A creamier, milder version of the fiery original. Rosé tteokbokki doubles down on dairy in the sauce with not only heavy cream, but cheese as well. Get decadent with my rose tteokbokki recipe.
How to Make It
- Make the stock: Pour the anchovy stock in a medium size pot along with a 6×6-inch piece of dried kelp, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, simmer for 10 minutes and remove the kelp.
- Add the seasonings: Turn the heat back up and stir in the gochujang (Korean red chili paste), gochugaru (Korean chili flakes), soy sauce and sugar.
- Cook the rice cakes: Once the sauce is boiling, add the rice cakes and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until they are soft. Make sure to stir frequently to prevent the rice cakes from sticking together, or to the bottom of the pan.
- Add the fish cakes: Chop the fish cakes into bite size strips and add them to the pot. Cook for 4 minutes.
- Finish with sesame oil and scallions: Turn the heat off and add the sesame oil and chopped green onion. Stir and serve tteokbokki in a bowl with sesame seeds on top (optional).
Expert Tips
- If your rice cakes come out of the package on the hard side, it’s a good idea to soak them in water for 10-15 minutes. If they’re already soft, you should be good to go.
- You can control the amount of heat that goes into your sauce by adding more or less gochugaru (Korean chili pepper flakes).
Storage
Refrigerate leftover tteokbokki in an airtight food storage container for 2-3 days.
- Refrigerated rice cakes get hard rather quickly. Reheat leftovers in the microwave until piping hot and soft.
- While you may be able to freeze tteokbokki, I don’t recommend it. Even if you bought the ingredients frozen before making this dish. That’s because the texture of the fish cakes and rice cakes will not be very pleasant once they are thawed a second time.
What To Serve With It
These spicy Korean rice cakes are quite filling so I don’t recommend serving them with other heavy dishes, unless you are starving. When I make this dish I like to serve it with small Korean banchan sides or other light dishes that won’t overpower the strong flavor of tteokbokki. Some of my favorites are:
- Korean Bean Sprout Salad (Sookju Namul)
- Edamame with Soy and Sesame Sauce
- Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim)
- Chive Pancake (Buchujeon)
- Miso Soup
- Basic Fried Rice
Frequently Asked Questions
You can find frozen tteokbokki rice cakes in any Korean supermarket – and in many Asian grocery stores. While I prefer the fresh frozen cakes, there are also dry versions sold online. Same goes for the fish cakes and sauce ingredients. If you don’t live near a Korean market, here are Amazon links to buy some of the base sauce ingredients: gochujang, gochugaru, anchovy soup stock, dried kelp, sesame oil.
Yes! But you’ll need to tweak your ingredients list. Use vegan dashi powder (made with shiitake mushrooms and kombu) instead of the anchovy stock. Or just use plain water. And use sliced Japanese aburaage (fried tofu pockets) instead of the fish cakes.
No, this recipe is not gluten-free since it contains soy sauce and Korean fish cakes. If you would like to make it gluten-free, use gluten-free soy sauce or tamari sauce, and tofu skin instead of fish cakes.
Did you like this recipe? Are there changes you made that you would like to share? Share your tips and recommendations in the comments section below!
Print
Tteokbokki (Dukbokki)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Korean
Description
A deliciously sweet and fiery Korean rice cakes recipe ready in 35 minutes.
Ingredients
- 1 pound tteokbokki (Korean rice cakes)
- 3 1/2 cups anchovy stock or water
- 6 x 6 inch piece dried kelp
- 3 tablespoons gochujang (Korean red chili paste)
- 1 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean chili pepper flakes)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 4 ounces Korean fish cakes, rinsed, patted dry and sliced into bite sized pieces
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 3 scallions, chopped
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Make the broth: In a medium size pot over high heat, add the anchovy stock and dried kelp and bring to a boil. Remove the kelp, lower the heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes, uncovered.
- Season the broth: Stir in gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce and sugar – and bring back to a boil.
- Cook the rice cakes: Add the tteokbokki cakes and cook for 8-10 minute, stirring frequently until they are soft.
- Add the fish cakes: Add them and cook for 4 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Serve. Turn off the heat and add the sesame oil and scallions. Stir and transfer to a bowl. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top and serve.
Notes
Tteokbokki is best served immediately after cooking. While the spicy Korean rice cakes can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days, they will naturally get hard when they cool down. Definitely better fresh!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 365
- Sugar: 8.1g
- Sodium: 794mg
- Fat: 2.6g
- Saturated Fat: 0.3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0.7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 75.4g
- Fiber: 1.5g
- Protein: 6.8g
- Cholesterol: 4.1mg
Questions and Reviews
Do you think tempeh could work I stead of the fish cakes?
Thank you for sharing the recipe! It’s absolutely delicious, probably the best tteokbokki I’ve ever had.
Very good Tteokbokki! I made it exactly like the recipe. I will definitely make it again. Thank you.
Thank you so much Dayne! 🙂