This rose tteokbokki recipe is the perfect combination of rich, creamy, umami-filled sauce with perfectly smooth and chewy Korean rice cakes. Best part? You can make this yummy popular Korean street food dish in just 30 minutes in the comfort of your home!
What is rose tteokbokki?
Rose tteokbokki is a Korean fusion dish made of chewy rice cakes simmered in a creamy sauce made of anchovy broth, milk, cream, and gochujang paste. It is a milder, less spicy alternative to the popular classic tteokbokki dish. The sauce is creamy, rich, and smooth. Think of it as a Korean version of spicy carbonara!
This recipe is appropriately named “rose” for the pink-ish color of the sauce. While the name comes from the popular rosé pasta sauce, this cream tteokbokki dish uses gochujang instead of tomato sauce to create the beautiful pink hues. The perfect blend of Western and Asian flavors!
What ingredients do I need?
The sauce
Anchovy stock: We use the anchovy broth packets that come in tea bags. Easily found in Korean grocery stores, you only need to put the broth packets in boiling water for 10 minutes and the anchovy broth is ready to use! It can also be substituted with dashi, chicken broth, or vegetable broth.
Milk: In our recipe, we use 2% partly skimmed milk.
Cream: Adds richness and creaminess. We like using 15% cream, but you can opt for heavier if you like it rich!
Gochujang: One of the main stars of this dish, it adds the spicy, sweet, and savory flavor to the dish. It can easily be found in Korean or Asian supermarkets.
Gochugaru: Korean chili powder, this adds spiciness and the beautiful red-ish color to the sauce. Like gochujang, it’s readily available in Korean and Asian grocery stores.
As well as:
- Garlic
- Green onion
- Unsalted butter
- Soy sauce
- Sugar
- Sesame oil
- Mozzarella cheese
Rice cakes and proteins
Korean rice cakes (tteok): We use the cylinder-shaped Korean rice cakes (garae-tteok), but you can also use the flat rounded rice cakes for this recipe. Also, we recommend using the refrigerated tteok. The frozen ones tend to split easily when cooked.
Fish cake: The umaminess and chewy texture of these fish cakes blends super well with the creamy sauce! You can find them in the frozen section of Korean and Asian supermarkets.
Sausages: We use our favorite, hot-dog sausages! Easy to find and just so delicious. You can substitute with other types of sausages of your liking!
The classic version’s sauce only uses anchovy broth, gochujang, and gochugaru as the main components, while rose tteokbokki also uses milk and cream. This results in rose tteokbokki being a lot milder than the classic version in terms of spiciness, with a more subdued and smooth flavor.
We store ours in the fridge in an air-tight container, for up to three days. To reheat, we add a little bit of hot water and microwave. This helps loosen the sauce. To make sure the rice cakes heat up nicely and stay chewy, we like to put an ice cube and microwave it to create a steam effect. This helps the rice cakes to be tender.
We like to use garae-tteok (cylindrical rice cakes). They are usually available fresh or refrigerated in Korean markets, while they’re mostly available in frozen format in other Asian grocery stores. We recommend using the fresh or refrigerated rice cakes, since the frozen ones tend to split when cooked.
How to make rose tteokbokki
- Preparing the ingredients
Soak rice cakes in warm tap water for 5 minutes. Drain off water and set aside. Chop garlic and green onions, cut sausages and fish cakes to bite-sized pieces.
- Making the sauce
Heat pan over medium heat. Melt butter and add in chopped garlic and the white part of green onions. Stir-fry until tender and fragrant. Add in anchovy broth, milk, cream, gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, and sugar. Stir well to combine.
- Adding the rice cakes and proteins
Add in the rice cakes, and stir to prevent them from sticking. Let cook for about 7-8 minutes while stirring occasionally, until the rice cakes are soft and tender. Add the sausages and fish cakes, and cook for another 5 minutes. Turn off heat. Add the sesame oil and mozzarella cheese, stir to combine.
- Serving the dish
Sprinkle with the green part of green onions, and top with soft-boiled egg or any other topping of preference.
We hope you enjoy this recipe! If you're looking for more Korean-inspired meals, check out some of our yummy recipes:
Rose Tteokbokki
Ingredients
- 350 grams Korean rice cakes (tteok)
- 3 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 stalk green onion green and white parts separated, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cup anchovy stock
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp gochujang
- 1 tbsp gochugaru
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 3 hot dog sausages cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 sheets Korean fish cakes cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/3 cup grated mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- In a bowl, soak rice cakes with warm tap water for 5 minutes. Drain off water and set aside.
Making the sauce
- Heat pan over medium heat. Melt butter and add in the garlic and white part of green onion. Stir-fry until soft and fragrant.
- Add in anchovy stock, milk, heavy cream, gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, and sugar. Stir sauce well to combine.
Adding the rice cakes and proteins
- Add the rice cakes into the sauce. Let cook for 7-8 minutes or until soft and chewy. Stir occasionnally to prevent them from sticking to the pan.
- Once rice cakes are cooked, add in the sausages and fish cakes. Let cook for another 5 minutes.
Garnishes and serving the dish
- Turn off heat and add in the sesame oil and cheese. Stir to mix well until the cheese is fully melted.
- Garnish with the green part of the green onion and serve with soft-boiled eggs or other topping of preference.
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