This tteokbokki is my big comfort meal and all of my favorite things at once. Soft, buttery cabbage, bright tomatoes simmered with spicy gochujang, perfectly chewy tteokbokki and a glossy, easy sauce. And I know, I know, it doesn’t have protein like my most popular tteokbokki, but sometimes you just want to get all your favorite vegetables into a big-carby pile and eat a gigantic bowl while watching reality TV. Summer Tomato Tteokbokki is for girls who like the simple things.
Table of contents
What is tteokbokki?
Tteok-bokki (prounounced “duck-boh-key”) is a common Korean street food and snack. It is a simmered rice cake, is a popular in Korea and usually made from small-sized long, white, cylinder-shaped rice cakes called tteokmyeon. That’s what is used in this recipe!
They are commonly referred to as tteokbokki-tteok, since there are many other varieties of rice cakes, however tteokbokki is the most commonly referred to term. Tteokbokki is most commonly seasoned with either spicy gochujang (chili paste) or non-spicy ganjang. There are many iterations and variations of tteokbokki, and the versions keep growing. I’m happy to add a brown butter tteokbokki to the list!
Ingredients you will need for this Summer Tomato Tteokbokki
I call this “summer tomato” because the tomatoes really make a difference to the sauce, but the scallions and cabbage are interchangeable for other vegetables! Here is the base of what you will need for both this recipe and the sauce:
- 1 1/2 pound bag of tteokbokki, 700 grams – I like this brand
- 6 medium scallions or spring onions, bottom white pieces only, 100 grams
- 1/4 large green cabbage, 350 grams
- 12 ounces globe or cherry tomatoes, 340 grams
- 1 inch knob of ginger, 20 grams
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 80 grams
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, 28 grams
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
For the gochujang sauce
- 1/3 cup gochujang paste
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 cups hot water
Step 1 – Soak your rice cakes
It’s crucial to cooking tteokbokki to soak the rice cakes. They usually come refrigerated but dry, and the soaking process helps ease them out of their dry state so they don’t break apart or burst when added to a hot pan + sauce.
The good news is you do not have to soak the tteok for long, I usually just let the rice cakes soak while I prep the rest of the ingredients. Then once I am ready for them, I drain them and we are good to go.
Step 2 – Prep the vegetables
I stated this before, but for me cabbage is a personal preference here, it gets all buttery and softened, so I think it’s the perfect comforting partner for the jammy summer tomatoes. Prep your vegetables by thinly slicing the scallions, chopping the cabbage into chunks, halving the tomatoes (or if they are bigger, cutting them into bite-sized pieces) and grating your ginger. Then you are basically ready to cook this Summer Tomato Tteokbokki!
Step 3 – Cook down the vegetables and aromatics
I like measuring my fat so that you know you have the perfect amount to get you through the recipe. This starts with both olive oil and butter, so you get both kinds of rich flavor.
Cook the scallions and cabbage first, which are a real treat to see caramelize together in the layers of fat. Season them liberally with salt before adding the tomatoes and the ginger. From here it’s mostly a visual cue, when the tomatoes are broken down and jammy, that’s when you can proceed with the rest of the recipe.
Step 4 – Add the tteokbokki and simmer in the sauce
Whisk together all the ingredients for the gochujang sauce and pour it into the pan. Now it’s time to drain the tteokbokki and add it directly into the vegetables. From here, you just let everything simmer until it’s nice and glossy and the tteok is cooked through, about 10-12 minutes.
Does this recipe keep well?
Absolutely! This recipe for freezes and keeps in the fridge so well.
For the fridge – put the recipe in air-tight containers and store for up to 5 days. To reheat, either microwave for a few minutes or gently warm up on the stovetop, adding splashes of water to thin out the sauce as needed.
For the freezer – freeze the recipe in individual portions. When you are ready to eat, either microwave on high for 8 minutes, stopping halfway through to stir, or add to a pan with 1/4 cup of water and bring to a gentle simmer before turning off the heat and serving.
Ingredient substitutions
This section is quickly turning into both your and my favorite on the blog! Here’s what to look for if you don’t have certain ingredients for this Summer Tomato Tteokbokki.
- TTEOK – this can easily be swapped with gnocchi, dumplings or an pasta you like! The only thing that may change is the simmering time.
- SCALLIONS – these can easily be changed for leeks or onions
- CABBAGE – swap this out for kohlrabi, bok choy, kale, zucchini, or any other vegetable you like!
- TOMATOES – you can use any variety of tomato, but their gentle acidity is very helpful in this recipe.
- GINGER – swap for garlic or pre-grated ginger!
- DARK BROWN SUGAR – swap for any honey, maple syrup, or agave sweetener you have!
And that’s it for this Summer Tomato Tteokbokki!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Summer Tomato Tteokbokki
Equipment
- 1 chef's knife
- 1 high sided sauté pan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pound bag of tteokbokki 700 grams
- 6 medium scallions or spring onions, bottom white pieces only 100 grams
- 1/4 large green cabbage 350 grams
- 12 ounces globe or cherry tomatoes 340 grams
- 1 inch knob of ginger 20 grams
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
For the gochujang sauce
- 1/3 cup gochujang paste
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 cups hot water
Instructions
- Soak the tteokbokki in cool water. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Thinly slice the scallions whites and set aside. Cut the cabbage into chunks and slice the tomatoes into bite-sized pieces. Grate the ginger.
- Set a high-sided sauté pan over medium heat. Add 1/3 cup of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of salted butter. Once the butter has melted, add the scallions and cook for a few minutes or until fragrant.
- Season with salt and add the cabbage, caramelize these two together for 8-9 minutes or until the cabbage pieces are beginning to soften.
- Add the grated ginger and tomatoes. Cook for 5-8 minutes or until the tomatoes are bursting and collapsed.
- In a cup to the side, whisk together the ingredients for the gochujang sauce until combined.
- Drain the tteokbokki and add it to the pan. Pour in the gochujang sauce and give everything a mix. Bring this to a simmer.
- Stir the mixture occasionally so no tteok sticks to the bottom, but otherwise let it simmer for 10-12 minutes or until the rice cakes are cooked through, meaning they are chewy and bouncy with no hard firmness to the center. The sauce should be thickened and glossy.
- Remove this from the heat and taste and season with more salt as preferred (it usually doesn't need any). Then scoop into bowls and serve warm!
I’ve had a bag of these in my fridge just waiting to be used, so when I saw this recipe, I knew it was the one! I didn’t have any tomatoes, so I used tomato paste. And the sauce could use a bit more sweetness for my (Canadian) palate, so I added a tbsp more of the brown sugar at the end. Absolutely delicious!