Tteokbokki (떡볶이)

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

Servings: 3 servings

Country of Origin

Korea

Korea’s premier street food consisting of chewy cylinder-shaped rice cakes and fish cakes simmered in a sweet, thick, and fiery gochujang sauce.

Presentation & How It's Eaten

Served hot in deep shallow bowls, often topped with hard-boiled eggs and scallions. Eaten with a spoon or toothpick alongside fried street snacks (twigim).

Ingredients

• 350g (12 oz) cylindrical Korean rice cakes (Tteokmyeon)

• 150g (5 oz) Korean flat fish cakes (Eomuk), cut into triangles

• 3 cups dried anchovy and kelp stock

• 1/2 onion, sliced

• 2 hard-boiled eggs

• 2 scallions, sliced into 2-inch pieces

Tteokbokki Sauce:

• 3 tbsp gochujang (chili paste)

• 1.5 tbsp gochutgaru (chili flakes)

• 2 tbsp sugar or corn syrup

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• 1 tsp minced garlic

Step-by-Step Directions

1. Soak Rice Cakes: Soak rice cakes in warm water for 10 minutes if hard/refrigerated; drain.

2. Boil Sauce Base: Bring anchovy stock to a boil in a wide pan over medium-high heat. Whisk in gochujang, gochutgaru, sugar, soy sauce, and garlic until dissolved.

3. Simmer Rice Cakes: Add rice cakes and onions to boiling sauce. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 8–10 minutes, stirring frequently so rice cakes don't stick to bottom.

4. Add Fish Cakes & Eggs: Add fish cake triangles and hard-boiled eggs. Simmer for 4 minutes until sauce reduces to a thick, glossy coat.

5. Garnish: Toss in scallions and cook 1 minute more before serving hot.

Cooking Tips

• Stir Frequently: Rice cakes release starch as they cook, which thickens the sauce but can burn easily on the bottom of the pan if left unattended.

Nutrition Facts

(Estimated per serving)

• Calories: ~390 kcal

• Total Fat: 6g

• Saturated Fat: 1.2g

• Cholesterol: 130mg

• Sodium: ~840mg

• Total Carbohydrates: 72g

• Dietary Fiber: 3.5g

• Sugars: 16g

• Protein: 12g