Tteobokki (Spicy Korean Rice Cakes) Recipe

With this easy-to-follow recipe, you can learn how to make your own Korean-style tteobokki (spicy Korean rice cakes) dish at home.

Tteobokki (stir-fried rice cakes) are a popular Korean street food. You may also know it as topokki. There are many different versions, but this one is pretty basic, making it quick and easy to make at home.

Note that you will probably need to go to a Korean specialty store or large Asian supermarket that carries ingredients from different Asian countries to find all the ingredients for this recipe. You can also look online: frozen rice cakes can be purchased online and delivered to you.

What does tteobokki taste like?

The dish consists of thick, chewy rice cakes (which look like short, fat noodles) in a nice red sauce. It gets its color from gochugang (chili paste) and fine gochugaru (chili powder). The sauce has a rich umami flavor and is a balance of sweet and savory. This one is not Also spicy – ​​you can increase the gochugaru to your taste, if you wish.

The green shallots add a mild onion flavor and the green parts on top look pretty! Hard-boiled eggs are optional but help make this a more complete meal, and you can also add cabbage for a vegetarian element, or even incorporate kimchi.

What does tteobokki contain? Key Ingredients of My Tteobokki (Spicy Korean Rice Cakes) Recipe

• Rice cakes: These rice cakes may be labeled “garaetteok”, “toppoki rice cakes”, “tteokbokki-tteok” or simply “rice cakes”. You’ll be able to tell it’s the right thing just by looking at them. They are thick, white cylinders about 6cm long and 1.5cm thick (this varies) and are made from rice (but be aware that there is also a wheat-based version, so check the label). They’re more like thick noodles than a “cake” and when cooked they have a tender but chewy texture and absorb the flavorful sauce perfectly. They are most commonly found in the freezer section, although you may find “fresh” ones in the refrigerator section.
• Anchovy broth: I used anchovy stock “coins,” which are basically like a stock cube, dissolved in water. In a pinch, you can use dashi.
• Gochujang: This thick Korean chili paste is probably the most familiar of these Korean ingredients and you can get it in most major supermarkets. You will find it in a small jar, in the Asian cuisine section.
• Gochugaru: It’s Korean chili powder. It comes in two forms: finely or coarsely ground. You’ll need the thin version for this recipe – it gives a nice smooth finish to the sauce.
• Soy sauce: you can get Korean soy sauce if you go to the specialty store, or just use regular soy sauce if that’s what you have.
• Powdered sugar : this is added to balance the salty and umami flavors. You can use brown sugar for a deeper flavor, if desired. Traditionally, a liquid sweetener, such as oligo syrup, can also be added at the end of cooking (if you do this you may want to reduce the sugar) to add a bright finish to the sauce as well as a little extra sweetness.
• Eomuk (sheet fish cakes): These fish cakes come in the form of small rectangular sheets of approximately 14 cm x 8 cm. They’re usually frozen, but it’s easy to grab what you need from the package and then quickly return the rest to the freezer (packaged airtight) for later use. Because they are thin, they defrost at room temperature in just a few minutes.
• Green shallots: these add a mild onion flavor to the sauce and the green part also makes a lovely garnish on the dish.
• Hard-boiled eggs: these make a great side dish (and extra protein). Cook the eggs in boiling water for 10 minutes, then use a spoon to transfer them to a bowl of cold water for a few minutes, until they are cool enough to handle. Peel and cut in half. If you prefer a softer boiled egg, cook for 7 minutes.

Then try our Korean-Inspired Sticky Beef Hash Recipemore lots of other Korean recipes.

Recipe and notes from the food editor and recipe developer Tracy Rutherford.