Korean Street food Tteokbokki - Rice cake stir fry with cheese

Tteokbokki -  Rice cake stir fry 

Tteok-bokki is one of most popular street food in Korea. I remember growing up this was my go to after school snack with friends. The flavor is sweet, spicy with a chewy rice cake texture that once you start, it gets addictive! This beloved dish give me the warmest memories of living in Korea. 

This dish has evolved over the years and now you can find some in restaurants with loaded ingredients like, Ramen, Spam and Cheese toppings. In the popular show Squid Game, the dish was shown in the first episode when the main character takes his daughter out on her birthday for a tasty treat. This recipe is closest to the original flavors I enjoyed.

Create your own Korean street food experience by serving this up with your family and friends. Let me know how you like it!

Serving 2

Cooking time 25 min

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups of frozen Tteok (look for it in H-Mart or local Asian Market)

1/2 onion sliced 

1/2 cup of slice cabbage (optional)

1/2 cup korean fish cake emok sliced to 2" (optional)

1 carrot in 1/8” diagonal slice

4 scallions chopped into 2” piece

2 garlic cloves minced

Sauce

2 tablespoon gochujang (Fermeted red pepper paste)

1 tablespoon gochugaru (fine red pepper flakes )

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

Optional 1 teaspoon of sesame oil

2 cups of anchovy stock or veggie stock

Optional topping 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

Step 1

Soak the frozen rice cake in cold water for 15 minutes and drain.

Chop onions, cabbage and fish cake if using, carrots, scallion, mince garlic and set aside.

Step 2

In a deep sautéed pan, add stock and all sauce ingredients. Gochujang, gochujaru, Soy sauce, and sugar. Let it come to a boil under medium heat.

Once it boils, lower the heat and add in the drained rice cake. Let it cook in broth in medium low heat. Keep stirring slowly so that the rice cake does not stick to the bottom of the pan. After 10 minutes, check the texture of the rice cake by pinching with a fork. Once the texture is soft add the chopped vegetables and mix well under low heat. Continuously stir everything together slowly for another 10 minutes until all ingredients are cooked and the sauce is thickened like gravy. If using cheese topping, spread the cheese to the top and let melt for 2 minutes. Serve immediately.