Tteokbokki are chewy rice cake tubes cooked in a gochujang-based sauce: sweet, spicy and sticky. Seoul's most eaten street food since the 1950s.

The modern spicy tteokbokki (gochujang-sauced rice cakes) was invented by Ma Bok-rim in Sindang-dong, Seoul, in 1953 after the Korean War. The original Joseon dish was entirely different: a non-spicy preparation using soy sauce, beef and vegetables, eaten by the royal court. Ma Bok-rim's gochujang version was a post-war reinvention that spread from Sindang-dong across the city and then the country. Sindang-dong Tteokbokki Town still operates today, a cluster of restaurants each claiming the original recipe. Variations now include rabokki (with ramen), cheese tteokbokki, and cream-based versions.

Where to eat Tteokbokki in Seoul

3 editor picks for Tteokbokki in Seoul, ranked by editorial score. All Seoul signature dishes · Tteokbokki across every city.

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Make it at home

Serves 225 minEasy

Ingredients

  • 300g tteok (cylinder-shaped rice cakes, fresh or soaked if dried)
  • 150g fish cakes (eomuk), sliced
  • 3 tablespoons gochujang
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon corn syrup or honey
  • 500ml anchovy and kelp broth (or water with 1 tsp dashi powder)
  • 2 stalks spring onion, cut into 5cm lengths

Method

  1. Bring the broth to a boil. Add gochujang, soy sauce, sugar, and corn syrup. Stir to combine.
  2. Add the tteok and fish cakes to the boiling sauce. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring regularly to prevent sticking.
  3. After 8 to 10 minutes, the sauce should be thick and coating the rice cakes. Add the spring onion.
  4. Cook a further 2 minutes. The tteok should be soft but still chewy in the centre.
  5. Serve immediately from the pan while the sauce is still bubbling.

Editor tip. The sauce reduces quickly, so add extra broth if it becomes too thick before the tteok are fully cooked. Fresh tteok cook faster than soaked dried ones.

Common allergens: Gluten in tteok (rice cake may contain wheat), Sesame.