Tteok, The Best Korean Rice Cake

What is a rice cake?

Glutinous rice is pounded to a gluey, sticky mass, which is then formed into a variety of different shapes and sizes. Shape-wise, there are chubby and skinny, tall and short, round and oblong. Color-wise, they can be pale (made with white glutinous flour) or tan (made with brown rice). You'll find freshly cooked rice cakes, most frequently in cylindrical form, sold at some stores, though all Korean markets will carry refrigerated, pre-packaged rice cakes that must be boiled before use.

Korean rice cake types

Tteok is largely divided into four categories, such as "steamed tteok"，" pounded tteok", "boiled tteok" and "pan-fried tteok". The steamed tteok is made by steaming rice or glutinous rice flour in "siru", or a large earthenware steamer, so it is often called "sirutteok". It is regarded as the basic and oldest form of tteok. The pounded tteok is made by using a pounding board or mortar after steamed first. In making pan-fried tteok, the rice dough is flattened like a pancake and pan-fried with vegetable oil. The shaped tteok are made by kneading the dough with hot water which is usually shaped into balls.

Koreans relish the chewy texture of the rice cake with very little garnish and side ingredients. The classic preparation of dok boki is to boil the cylindrically shaped cakes and eat them coated in a red sauce of chili paste, fermented bean paste, soy sauce, and sugar, topped liberally with sesame seeds. You can follow the traditional route and boil your rice cakes in water or you can pan-fry them with a little bit of oil in a skillet. Or, char the cakes under the broiler until the surface is crackly and the inside is gooey and warm. The bi bim sauce—a tasty balance of sweet, savory, and spicy—is a wonderful dressing for the chewy cakes.

Korean rice cake recipe/ Tteok Recipe

Prep time：10 mins

Cook time：15 mins

Total time：25 mins

Rice cakes cooked with assorted vegetables and fish cake in a sweet and spicy sauce. These Korean rice cakes are delicious, easy to prepare, and taste like those found in Korean restaurants.

Serves:3 servings

Ingredients

The sweet and spicy sauce

3 tablespoons gochujang chili paste

1 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar

3 teaspoons soy sauce

4 teaspoons honey

3/4 cup water

Rice Cakes

1 pound rice cakes

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup onions, sliced

1/2 cup zucchini, sliced

1/2 cup carrots, sliced

3 oz fish cakes, sliced

Directions:

Soak the rice cakes in cold water for a few minutes, drain the rice cakes, and set them aside for now.

In a medium-sized skillet over low heat, mix together gochujang chili paste, granulated sugar, soy sauce, honey, and cup water. Stir the ingredients with a spatula until a sauce begins to form.

Add the rice cakes to the sauce, and mix to coat the rice cakes with the sauce. Cook the rice cakes for a few minutes until they have softened.

Next, add the minced garlic cloves, sliced onions, sliced zucchinis, sliced carrots, and sliced fish cake. Stir to evenly coat them with the sauce.

The sauce will start to reduce. Slowly add the rest of the water to form a liquid sauce that will coat all the rice cakes, veggies, and fish cake.

Once all the ingredients have softened, remove the skillet from heat.

Plate the rice cakes, and serve warm.