Kinja Eats: Tteokbokki

April 18, 2019

Daily Dish:

Tteokbokki

(stir-fried rice cakes)

Tteok-bokki (떡볶이) or stir-fried rice cakes is a popular Korean food made from small-sized garae-tteok (long, white, cylinder-shaped rice cakes) called tteokmyeon (떡면; "rice cake noodles") or commonly tteok-bokki-tteok (떡볶이 떡; "tteok-bokki rice cakes"). Fish cakes, boiled eggs, and scallions are some of the most commonly added ingredients. It can be seasoned with either spicy gochujang (chili paste) or non-spicy ganjang(soy sauce)-based sauce; the former being the most typical form,, while the latter is less common and sometimes called gungjung-tteok-bokki (royal court tteok-bokki). Today, variations also include curry-tteok-bokki, cream sauce-tteok-bokki, jajang-tteok-bokki, seafood-tteok-bokki, galbi-tteok-bokki and so on. Tteok-bokki is commonly purchased and eaten at bunsikjip (snack bars) as well as pojangmacha (street stalls). There are also dedicated restaurants for tteok-bokki, where it is referred to as jeugseog tteok-bokki (impromptu tteok-bokki).

History

The first record on tteok-bokki appears in Siuijeonseo, a 19th century cookbook, where the dish was listed using the archaic spelling steokbokgi (복기). According to the book, tteok-bokki was known by various names including tteokjjim (steamed rice cakes), tteok-japchae (stir-fried rice cakes), and tteok-jeongol (rice cakes hot pot). The royal court version was made from white tteok (rice cakes), sirloin, sesame oil, soy sauce, scallions, rock tripe, pine nuts, and toasted and ground sesame seeds, while the savory, soy sauce-based tteok-bokki was made in the head house of the Papyeong Yun clan, where good-quality soy sauce was brewed. In this version, short ribs among others was a common ingredient. The name tteok-bokki also appears in the revised and enlarged edition of Joseon Yori Jebeop, where it is described as a soy sauce-based savory dish.

It is believed that red, spicy tteok-bokki with gochujang-based sauce first appeared in the 1950s. When Ma Bok Lim participated at the opening of a chinese restaurant, she dropped ttoek accidentally and ate it, and found that it was delicious. After that, she started to sell it at Sindang and it became tteok-bokki these days. Today, the typical tteok-bokki purchased and eaten at bunsikjip(snack bars) and pojangmacha (street stalls) are red and spicy, while the soy sauce-based, non-spicy version is referred to as gungjung-tteok-bokki (궁중떡볶이; "royal court tteok-bokki"). Rice tteok gained in as the South Korean economy developed, and various versions of the dish have proliferated there and around the world.As it was a folksy food for working class people, wheat tteok was often substituted for rice.

Varieties

Like other types of popular food, tteok-bokki went through various fusions. Boiled eggs and pan-fried mandu(dumplings) were traditionally added to tteok-bokki.

Ingredients such as seafood, short ribs, instant noodles, chewy noodles are also added to the dish.

Haemul-tteok-bokki, (해물떡볶이; "seafood tteok-bokki") uses seafood as a sub ingredient.
Galbi-tteok-bokki (갈비떡볶이; "short ribs tteok-bokki") is a tteok-bokki uses short ribs as an ingredient.
Ra-bokki (라볶이; "instant noodles tteok-bokki") and jjol-bokki (쫄볶이; "chewy noodles tteok-bokki"), are quite similar. They both add noodles to tteok-bokki. ra-bokki and jjol-bokki differs from the kind of noodles added to tteok-bokki. ra-bokki adds ramyeon noodle, and jjol-bokki adds chewy noodles which are used to make jjol-myeon.
Jeongol (hot pot)-type tteok-bokki is called jeukseok-tteok-bokki (즉석떡볶이; "on-the-spot tteok-bokki"), and is boiled on a table-top stove during the meal. A variety of add-ons, such as vegetables, mandu (dumplings), and ramyeon or udong noodles are available at jeukseok-tteok-bokki restaurants. As jeukseok-tteok-bokki is usually a meal rather than a snack; bokkeum-bap (fried rice) is also a common end-of-meal add-on.

Variation based on sauce

Non-soy sauce- or chili paste- based tteok-bokki saucse have also gained in popularity. There are some well-known variations.

First it is curry-tteok-bokki. Curry tteok-bokki is roasted by yellow Korean style curry. It uses curry powder which includes a lot of turmeric component, which makes it healthier than other variations.

Second one is cream tteok-bokki. Cream sauce tteok-bokki is made with the idea of cream pasta, or carbonara spaghetti. Cream sauce and bacon are used instead of gochujang and fish cake.

Another well known variation is jajang-tteok-bokki, which uses jajang sauce instead of red pepper paste.

Gochujang tteok-bokki

Piquant, red gochujang-based tteok-bokki is one of Koreans' favorite snacks. Both soupy gungmul-tteok-bokki (국물떡볶이; "soup tteok-bokki") and dry gireum-tteok-bokki (기름떡볶이; "oil tteok-bokki") are commonly enjoyed, while the former is considered as the prototype. In gungmul-tteok-bokki, kelp-anchovy stock is often used to bring out the savory flavor. Gochutgaru (chili powder) is often added for additional heat and color, while mullyeot (rice syrup) helps with sweetness and consistency. Eomuk (fish cakes), boiled eggs, and diagonally sliced scallions are common additions to the dish. In gireum-tteok-bokki, the mixture of gochutgaru (chili powder), soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil often replaces gochujang (chili paste). Soft tteok sticks are seasoned with the sauce mixture, then stir-fried in cooking oil with a handful of chopped scallions and served. Tongin Market in Jongno, Seoul is famous for gireum-tteok-bokki.

There are also many variations in Gochujang tteok-bokki. For example there is perilla leaf tteok-bokki. original gochujang tteok-bokki and etc.

Gungjung-tteok-bokki

Sweet and savory, brown soy sauce-based tteok-bokki is often referred to as gungjung-tteok-bokki (궁중떡볶이; "royal court tteok-bokki"). Its history dates back to a royal court dish before the introduction of chili pepper, which happened in the Joseon era (17th & 18th Centuries). The earliest record of gungjung tteokbokki was that in the 1800s, a cookbook called "Siuijeonseo". Having a taste similar to japchae (stir-fried glass noodles and vegetables), it was enjoyed by the royals as a banchan and as a snack. Although traditional tteok-bokkiwas made with soup soy sauce, which is the traditional (and was the only) type of soy sauce in the pre-modern Korea, sweeter regular soy sauce has taken its place in modern times. Other traditional ingredients such as sirloin or short ribs, sesame oil, scallions, rock tripe, pine nuts, and toasted and ground sesame seeds are still commonly used in modern gungjung-tteok-bokki. Other ingredients such as mung bean sprouts, carrots, onions, dried Korean zucchini, garlic, and pyogo mushrooms are also used frequently. The dish is usually served with egg garnish.

Cheese Tteokbokki

Cheese tteokbokki, a variant of tteokbokki, refers to food that is placed on top of a complete tteokbokki or has cheese in it. When chewed, it combines rice cakes with cheese, which gives you a strong sense of it. It is sold in snack bars and is easy to eat at home. And depending on individual tastes, they can be eaten with green tea powder, herb powder, sesame, parsley, etc.

Gireum tteok-bokki

Gireum tteok-bokki (기금떡볶이; "oil tteok-bokki") is a variety of tteok-bokki that is stirfried in oil and served with little sauce. This style is most famously found in Seoul's Tongin Market, where visitors can buy coins, which in turn can be used to purchase food from various vendors around the market. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who visited Korea in February 2014, sampled Gireum tteok-bokki at the Tongin Market.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tteok-bokki

If you’re looking to try something new and delightfully spicy, then come on in to Kinja today and try our authentic and flavorful Tteokbokki. This dish goes well with a variety of drinks including hot tea, sake or a cold beverage of your choice. We look forward to serving you some of our authentic korean cuisine.

Author: Kinja