Tteokbokki (떡볶이) is one of the most popular street foods and comfort foods in Korea. Tteokbokki literally means stir-fried rice cakes: tteok is the word for rice cake, and bokki essentially means fried. Spicy, pungent, sweet, savory and saucy, tteokbokki is a delicious comfort food that’s relatively easy to make and completely customizable.
Tteokbokki is made with a specific kind of rice cake called garae-tteok, which is a long, cylinder-shaped, chewy rice cake. The rice cakes are simmered in a sauce that is a mix of sweet, savory and spicy. There are two sources of heat in this dish which come from gochujang, a Korean red chili pepper paste, and gochugaru, Korean red chili pepper flakes, which are combined with sugar, soy sauce and garlic. The base of tteokbokki sauce is created from dried anchovies, a staple of Korean cooking, along with kelp and mushrooms to add a crucial umami flavor. The rice cakes themselves are very mild, but when you cook them in sauce, they soak up flavor like a sponge.
With the versatility of tteokbokki, you can add or take away ingredients to make it your own. There are many variations to tteokbokki, including the sauce and different additions. You can easily substitute with vegetable or chicken broth, or opt for honey or brown sugar for a sweet flavor. The sauce can range in thickness and spice level, and additions can include fish cakes, onion or hard boiled eggs for extra protein, ramen noodles, cheese, vegetables or dumplings.
Tteokbokki rice cakes can be found at Korean markets and usually come freshly made by the store, commercially made fresh and packaged, or frozen. Tteokbokki could be compared to a savory mochi or a gnocchi in a spicy sauce and is a sweet and spicy classic Korean street food that is beloved by people of all ages.
