The Tasty World of Tteokbokki

If you’re looking to expand your knowledge of Asian cuisine, tteokbokki is a great place to start. Tteokbokki is a Korean stir fried rice cake dish made with garae-tteok, or long cylinder rice cakes, called tteokmyeon, or tteokbokki-tteok (rice cake noodles), and has been a staple in Korean cuisine since the 19th century. Today, there are a number of different variations of the beloved Korean dish, including curry-tteokbokki, seafood-tteokbokki, rose-tteokbokki, cheese-tteokbokki, and more, so if you want to learn more about tteokbokki and find the dish that works best for you, keep reading on.

The first tteokbokki recipe was recorded in a 19th century cookbook called Siuijeonseo under the spelling steokbokgi. Back then, tteokbokki was known by various names such as tteokjjim (steamed rice cakes), and teok-japchae (stir-fried rice cakes), but today you might find the popular dish under the name ddukbokki, topokki, jeukseok tteokbokki, or ddeokbokki. Tteokbokki can be found at snack bars, called bunsikjip, or street vendors, called pojangmacha.

Along with the rice cakes that gives the meal its name, tteokbokki is also made with either a helping of spicy gochujang, or chili paste, or a non-spicy alternative like ganjang, or soy sauce, When the dish was first created, there was also a Koren royal court version that contained white rice cakes, sirloin steak, soy sauce, scallions, rock tripe, and toasted and ground sesame seeds. The tteokbokki sold at snack bars are typically made with gochujang, while street vendors usually make the soy-sauce based version of the dish and call it gungjung-tteok-bokki, which translates to “royal court tteok-bokki.”

Now that you’re caught up on the history of the dish, it’s time to learn more about the tteokbokki variations available on Bokksu Market. Yopokki makes an instant ramen that’s definitely worth adding to your online grocery order. And, with six deliciously tasty flavors, there’s something for everyone!

If you love the taste of kimchi, then the Yopokki Instant Tteokbokki Rice Cake Cup: Kimchi might be just the meal for you. Made with the classic garaetteok noodles and flavored with a sweet tomato chili sauce, this instant cup of tteokbokki heats up in just a few minutes, and can be enjoyed as is or with a hard-boiled egg or seafood topping for extra flavor.

Or, indulge your kimchi obsession even further with the kimchi-flavored instant cup of tteokbokki and rabokki ramen. This cup of rabokki, which is a combination of tteokbokki and ramyeon noodles, is also made with a hint of sweet and spicy kimchi sauce that is sure to transport you back to the streets of Korea where this dish originally hails from. Feel free to add eomuk fish cakes and boiled eggs on top for an even more authentic tasting experience.

As for the other Yopokki flavors, you can have your pick of Myeongnan Pollock Roe Mayo, which covers the noodles in a creamy, mildly spicy, and umami pollock roe mayo sauce,

Jjajang Black Bean Paste, which features a prominent savory, spicy, and sweet black bean sauce,

or the Sweet & Spicy

and Garlic Teriyaki flavors for some comfort food classic seasonings.