Making Deokkbokki (Korean Ricecakes in Red Pepper Sauce)

Deokkbokki is a popular street snack in Korea. You can find it almost anywhere there is a food cart. Most food sellers have a hot plate of deokkbokki in its fiery red sauce, simmering away. Deokkbokki is basically long rice sticks cooked in gochujang (korean red pepper paste). The basic ingredients also include slices of fish cake, leeks, onions and sometimes whole boiled eggs.

Korean kids usually buy it in a paper cup (costs about 50 cents) and eat it with a toothpick (which they use to stab the deokk (rice cake) and shovel it into their mouths. The first time I tasted it, it was so hot that it brought tears to my eyes. But kids here are so used to the spiciness that it doesn't faze them a bit. I have to drink two gulps of water before I can eat another rice cake.

I finally had a chance to learn how to make this snack when hubby's school hosted an post-Christmas party for the kids. Stella, the school's secretary, showed me step-by-step on how to fix deokkbokki. I can't believe how simple it was. She had to fix large amounts of deokkbokki for the school event so I'll include measurements in ( ) for those who want to fix a regular amount of it.

In a flat-bottom pan, add the following (1 cup) julienned cabbage, (1/2 cup) sliced leeks, (1 tbsp minced garlic) and (about 2 cups) water. Turn the heat up to medium and let it come to simmer.

Add about (2-3 tbsp) gochujang. This is red pepper paste and can usually be found in Korean grocery stores or Asian food marts. If you need some, email me and I'll send you some authentic homemade gochujang. There's a large jar in my fridge and I swear this stuff lasts forever.

Next is a very important step, the sugar. Yes, deokkbokki has some sugar in it, this is to counter the gochujang flavor. Add about a (tablespoon or two) of sugar.

Last is beef bouillion powder. Stella says that this is optional since one can use plain salt and pepper. I used about (1 tbsp) of beef bouillon powder. Stella also added a smidgen of MSG (I know some of you are cringing about this but I use it too). You can omit this too, if you prefer. Mix everything up and continue to let it simmer.

Now cut the deokk into 2-inch pieces and the fish cake into 2X3 inch slices. If the deokk you bought is fresh (like what is available here for me) you can simply add the pieces to the pan. If they are packaged and bought from the supermarket, you would need to soak them in hot water for 5 minutes and then drained before adding to the pan. You would need about (4 cups of) sliced rice and 2 cups sliced fish cakes. Add both the rice cakes and fish cakes to the pan ( that would be simmering by now). Mix everything very well and let simmer until the sauce has reduced and become sticky.

Taste the sauce before turning off the heat. See if it needs more salt, more sugar. Or if it is too sticky, add more water to it. And if it is too watery, just let it cook a little longer. To avoid using beef bouillon, I suggest using vegetable or chicken stock. And deokk or rice cake doesn't only come in long thin tubes. Some shapes are thin oval slices, long big tubes (the size of water hoses) and even fun shapes like snowman figures. You can use any shape you want. And optional ingredients also include slices of shitakke mushrooms, sliced carrots, broccoli, etc.

Next time, I'll post another deokkbokki recipe, only this time, the sauce is soy-sauce based. :)