Tteokbokki (Spicy Korean Rice Cakes)
Chewy cylinders of rice cake simmer in anchovy-kelp stock with gochujang, chili flakes and sugar until the liquid cooks down to a glossy red sauce. That is tteokbokki, from tteok (rice cake) and bokki (stir-cooked), and Korean snack shops keep it bubbling in wide, shallow pans all day. Fish cakes, cabbage and green onions go into the same pan, and whole hard-boiled eggs roll around in the sauce until they turn orange. Expect real heat, rounded off by the sugar in the sauce.
By Mei Lin Tan
Published
- Prep Time
- 15 mins
- Cook Time
- 30 mins
- Soak
- 20 mins
- Total Time
- 1 hr 5 mins
- Servings
- 4 servings
How do you make Tteokbokki (Spicy Korean Rice Cakes)?
Soak 450 g rice cakes for 10-20 minutes if hard, and boil 4 eggs for 10-12 minutes. Bring 500 ml anchovy-kelp stock to the boil with 3 tbsp gochujang, 1 tbsp gochugaru, 2 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp soy sauce and garlic. Simmer the rice cakes, cabbage, fish cakes and peeled eggs for 10-12 minutes, stirring, until the rice cakes are soft and the sauce coats them.
- Total time
- 1 hr 5 mins
- Calories
- 480 per serving
- Protein
- 17 g
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Method
- Simmering
Ingredients
Rice cakes and eggs
Sauce
Fish cakes and vegetables
To serve
Equipment
Medium bowl for soaking · Small saucepan · Slotted spoon · Bowl of iced water for the eggs · Small bowl · Wide shallow pan or deep skillet, about 28 cm, with a lid · Wooden spoon or heatproof spatula
Quick Directions
Soak the rice cakes
Separate the rice cakes and soak hard ones for 10-20 minutes.
Boil the eggs
Boil the eggs for 10-12 minutes, cool in iced water and peel.
Mix the sauce and cut the vegetables
Stir the sauce paste together and cut the cabbage, green onions and fish cakes.
Simmer the rice cakes
Boil the stock with the paste, then simmer the rice cakes and cabbage for 5 minutes.
Add the fish cakes and eggs
Simmer with the fish cakes and eggs for 5-7 minutes, until the rice cakes are soft and the sauce coats them.
Finish and serve
Wilt the green onions for 1 minute, halve the eggs and serve hot.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Every step for making tteokbokki (spicy korean rice cakes), written out in full.
Soak the rice cakes
Pull apart any rice cakes that are stuck together. Fresh, soft ones only need a quick rinse. If yours came from the fridge or freezer and feel hard, cover them with lukewarm water and soak for 10-20 minutes, until one bends a little when you squeeze it. Drain well.
Boil the eggs
While the rice cakes soak, bring a small saucepan of water to the boil. Lower in the eggs with a spoon and boil for 10-12 minutes, so the whites and yolks are firm all the way through. Lift them out with the slotted spoon into the bowl of iced water, leave for 5 minutes, then peel.
Mix the sauce and cut the vegetables
Stir the gochujang, gochugaru, sugar, soy sauce and garlic together in a small bowl into a thick red paste. Cut the cabbage into 3 cm pieces, the green onions into 5 cm lengths and the fish cakes into triangles or 3 cm strips.
Simmer the rice cakes
Pour the stock into the wide pan and bring it to the boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the sauce paste until no lumps remain, then add the drained rice cakes and the cabbage. When it bubbles again, turn the heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring often and scraping the bottom, because rice cakes stick and the sugar scorches.
Add the fish cakes and eggs
Add the fish cakes and the peeled eggs. Keep simmering for 5-7 minutes, stirring and rolling the eggs through the sauce, until the rice cakes are soft and chewy right through and the sauce coats them but still looks a little loose; it keeps thickening off the heat. Bite one to check: there should be no firm white core. If the sauce gets too thick before the rice cakes soften, stir in 2-3 tbsp water.
Finish and serve
Stir in the green onions and cook for 1 minute, just until they turn bright green and soft. Take the pan off the heat, halve the eggs, scatter over the sesame seeds and serve straight away, while the rice cakes are at their softest.
Recipe Tips
- Use a wide pan. With the rice cakes in one layer the sauce reduces fast and coats every piece; in a deep pot it stays thin for longer and the top layer of rice cakes stays pale.
- Gochujang heat varies a lot. Many tubs carry a heat rating, so pick a mild or medium one, and use just 1-2 tsp gochugaru if your table doesn't like much heat.
- Bring the pan to the table as soon as it's done. Rice cakes firm up as they cool, and a pan left standing for 15 minutes turns stiff and sticky.
- Boil the eggs a day or two ahead if you like. Keep them in their shells in the fridge and peel them just before they go into the sauce.
Variations
- Gungjung tteokbokki, the older royal court version made with soy sauce instead of chili: leave out the stock, gochujang, gochugaru, fish cakes, cabbage and eggs. Stir-fry 150 g thinly sliced beef, 1 sliced onion and 100 g sliced shiitake mushrooms in 1 tbsp oil until the beef is browned with no pink left, then add the soaked rice cakes, 3 tbsp soy sauce, 1 1/2 tbsp sugar, the garlic and 125 ml water. Simmer for 6-8 minutes, stirring and adding 2-3 tbsp water if the pan dries, until the rice cakes are soft right through and glazed. Finish with 1 tsp sesame oil and the green onions.
- Rabokki: once the fish cakes have simmered for 2-3 minutes, add a 120 g block of instant ramen noodles, without the seasoning packet, and 250 ml more stock. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the noodles are tender.
- Cheese tteokbokki: scatter 100 g grated mozzarella over the finished pan, cover and leave off the heat for 2 minutes, until melted.
Nutrition (per serving)
| Calories | 480 |
|---|---|
| Protein | 17 g |
| Carbs | 81 g |
| Fat | 8 g |
| Saturated fat | 2 g |
| Fibre | 3 g |
| Sugar | 12 g |
| Sodium | 1420 mg |
Estimated from the listed ingredients; values vary by brand.
Related Recipes
Storing & Reheating
- Fridge
- Tteokbokki is best eaten as soon as it is made, because the rice cakes turn hard as they cool. Cover leftovers and put them in the fridge within 2 hours; they keep for up to 2 days. Don't freeze it: the cooked rice cakes turn grainy and break up.
- Reheat
- Put the leftovers in a pan with 3-4 tbsp water, cover and warm over medium-low heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring now and then, until the rice cakes are soft again and everything is steaming hot, 74°C (165°F).
Tteokbokki (Spicy Korean Rice Cakes) FAQs
What kind of rice cakes do I need for tteokbokki?
Use rice cake sticks about 1.5 cm thick and 5 cm long, sold as tteokbokki tteok or rice cake sticks in the fridge or freezer section of Korean and Asian grocers. They are made from rice flour dough that is steamed and shaped, which is why they are dense and chewy. Garae-tteok, the longer and thicker logs, also work cut into 5 cm lengths; they take a few minutes longer to soften. The thin oval slices sold for rice cake soup work too, and soften in about half the time.
Can I make tteokbokki without anchovy stock or fish cakes?
Yes. Replace the stock with 500 ml water and 1 tsp fish sauce, or with vegetable stock. Without fish cakes, add 100 g more rice cakes. Made with vegetable stock and no fish cakes, the dish contains no fish at all, though it tastes a little less savoury.
How do I make anchovy-kelp stock at home?
Simmer 10 large dried anchovies, with the heads and dark innards pulled off, and a 10 cm square of dried kelp in 600 ml water for 15 minutes, then strain. You will have about 500 ml. It adds about 20 minutes to the recipe, so stock bags or powder from a Korean grocer are the quicker route.
How can I make tteokbokki less spicy?
Use a mild gochujang and cut the gochugaru to 1 tsp, or leave it out. An extra 1-2 tsp sugar softens the heat too. For no chili at all, make gungjung tteokbokki, the soy sauce version in the variations, which is mild enough for most children.
Disclaimer
- Nutrition information is an estimate based on the listed ingredients. It changes with the brands, portion sizes and swaps you use.
- Read ingredient labels for allergens and for diet claims such as gluten-free or vegan. Products and their ingredients can change.
- Cooking times are a guide, since ovens, air fryers and slow cookers all run differently. Use a food thermometer and cook meat, poultry and fish to the safe internal temperatures in government food safety guidance.
- This recipe is general information, not medical or nutrition advice. If you have an allergy, a health condition or a special diet, check with a qualified health professional.
