Ddukbokkie (Hot and spicy rice cake)

I think I've been watching too much Korean drama/variety show. Some of the popular dish which were introduced to me from the shows are jjajangmyun and ddokbokkie/tteokbokki. This time, I'm experimenting with ddokbokkie, or hot and spicy rice cake. It is a very popular snack which is commonly purchased from street vendors

I made my own ddok (or sticky rice cake) from scratch during my first attempt. The rice cake is made of rice flour, water and sometimes, sesame oil. The rice flour used in preparing ddok is very different than the usual rice flour which we used in Malaysia. I took the initiative to grind my own rice flour using short grained rice to make them. I think, it's important to know a bit more of our ingredients. Of course, the hardest part in preparing the ddok is the kneading process. The dough is a bit tough!

Of course, you can either buy your own ddok, or made them from scratch. On my second attempt to prepare ddokbokkie, I finally bought myself a packet of ddok from the Korean grocery store. It's interesting to compare the taste between the fresh made ddok and the prepared ddok. But, if you want to made your own ddok from scratch, you can visit Aeri's Kitchen. There's the step by step tutorial and youtube link. 

Ddukbokkie (Hot and spicy rice cake)

(recipe from Maangchi)

300g Tube shaped rice cake for ddukbokkie 

3 tbsp Hot pepper paste  

1 tbsp or less sugar

4 cups water 

7 large (or more if you're using the smaller size )dried anchovies with heads & intestines remove

1 stalk green onions (cut into long pieces)

fish cake

sesame seed

1. Separate the tubes of rice cake into individual pieces.
2. Add water in a pan, and add dried anchovies. Boil the water for 10 minutes over medium heat. Dried anchovies made your ddokbokkie taste even more delicious.
3. Remove the anchovies and add in the rice cakes. Stir in hotpepper paste and sugar. Stir it constantly. Stirring is important.
4. Add in green onions and fish cake (this is optional) and continue stirring.
5. Keep stirring until the sauce is thick and the rice cake is shiny.
6. Transfer it to a plate and serve! You may sprinkle some sesame seed for garnishing.