Menu
Tteokbokki with fish cake and egg

떡볶이 · Tteokbokki

Tteokbokki

떡볶이

What exactly is it?

Soft rice or wheat cakes cook in a sweet, spicy red sauce. Rice cakes tend to have a dense bite, while wheat cakes soften and absorb the seasoning. Fish cake and boiled eggs are common additions, and some versions retain plenty of sauce.

Main ingredients

Rice or wheat cakes, chili paste or flakes, sugar and scallion; optional fish cake and stock

Ordering and serving

Jeukseok tteokbokki cooks in a tabletop pan with optional noodle additions. It differs from ready-cooked stall portions; check whether the order is by person or by pan.

Origins and changes

Older recorded tteokbokki combines rice cakes, meat and vegetables in soy seasoning. The red street-food version uses chili-based sauce, while the soy-seasoned style survives under the name gungjung tteokbokki.

Sources checked

Related foods

How do similar dishes compare?

Choose a dish to compare ingredients, flavor and serving style side by side.

Dish to compare

Tteokbokki

떡볶이

Main ingredients
Rice or wheat cakes, chili paste or flakes, sugar and scallion; optional fish cake and stock
Flavor and character
Soft rice or wheat cakes cook in a sweet, spicy red sauce. Rice cakes tend to have a dense bite, while wheat cakes soften and absorb the seasoning. Fish cake and boiled eggs are common additions, and some versions retain plenty of sauce.
How to eat it
Jeukseok tteokbokki cooks in a tabletop pan with optional noodle additions. It differs from ready-cooked stall portions; check whether the order is by person or by pan.
Read about this dish →

Royal-court tteokbokki

궁중떡볶이

Main ingredients
Rice cake sticks, beef, shiitake mushrooms, vegetables, soy sauce and sesame oil
Flavor and character
Rice cake sticks are stir-fried with beef, mushrooms and vegetables in soy seasoning. There is no red pool of chili sauce; the cakes take on the flavor of the meat and soy sauce. It is generally mild, but commonly contains beef and wheat-containing soy sauce.
How to eat it
It is a useful rice-cake option for someone avoiding chili heat. Look for it as a separate menu item rather than assuming a red tteokbokki shop can substitute soy sauce.
Read about this dish →
Find nearby food places →

Check the restaurant’s actual menu for the dish you want.