If You’ve Never Had Tteokbokki, This Is The Time To Try It Out

Tteokbokki is made from a few ingredients but packs a punch of flavor, making it a delicious comfort food with a wonderful texture and sweet, spicy, and savory flavors melding together. The Korean rice cakes are cooked with gochujang, Korean red pepper paste, in order to make the tasty dish. Tteokbokki translates to “stir fried rice cakes,” which is exactly what it is. There are some variations, including Gungjung-tteok-booki, which incorporates beef, vegetables, and soy sauce.

What You Need

Anchovy Broth

1 oz. dried anchovies, gutted

6 cups water

12 dried shiitake mushrooms

6 inch piece dried kelp

3/4 teaspoons kosher salt

Tteokbokki

1 pound Korean rice cakes

1 tablespoon grape-seed oil

1 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)

1/4 cup gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoons white vinegat

1 tablespoon honey

2-3 cups anchovy broth, divided

6 oz. Korean fish cakes, cut into bite size pieces

3 green onions, sliced

1 teaspoon toaste sesame oil

toasted sesame seeds

What To Do

For the anchovy broth, toast the anchovies in a large pot over medium low heat until they are slightly golden, making sure to stir frequently. Add the water, mushrooms, and salt and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Once boiled, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the broth from the heat, add in the kelp and allow to sit and steep for 10 minutes. Strain the broth and reserve the kelp, mushrooms, and fish, for other dishes.

Separate the rice cakes if they are stuck together and then rinse in cool water. Drain the rice cakes, place them in a large bowl, and cover with 3 cups of hot water, allowing them to soak for 15 minutes or until they have softened. Drain the rice cakes and put aside.

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat and then add in gochugaru, gochujang, garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, and honey. Stir everything together and cook for about 1 minute or until the mixture is fragrant. Add in 2 cups of anchovy broth and bring everything to a boil. Add the rice cakes and cook until they are fully cooked and tender, which will take about 10 minutes.

Add the rest of the broth in order to loosen up the sauce until it reaches your desired consistency. Stir in the fish cakes, green onions, sesame oil, and cook until the onions have softened. Sprinkle with fresh green onions and toasted sesame seeds.