Rabokki, or Tteokbokki with Ramen, is one of Korea's most popular street foods for a reason! Chewy rice cakes and ramen noodles are generously coated in a spicy-sweet gochujang sauce. Delicious add-ins like fish cake, hard-boiled egg, and cheese make this dish extra hearty, rich, and addictive!
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🌶 What is Rabokki?
Rabokki (라볶이) is a combination of tteokbokki/ddeokbokki/dubokki (떡볶이) and ramyeon (라면), or instant ramen noodles. Tteokbokki is a simple dish that consists of tubular rice cakes, fish cake, and a spicy red sauce. It's commonly found on street carts or in snack shops (bunsikijips) that are frequented by teenagers for an after-school snack. But it's also a great midnight snack after a night out on the town!
The reason why rabokki is my absolute favorite Korean dish is because of how hearty, saucy, umami-rich, and full of texture it is! Tteokbokki and ramyeon are tasty on their own but together, they're much much more addicting. You get double the texture and rabokki is usually more decadently dressed. My favorite topping? Super melty cheese. It adds richness but also takes the edge off the spicy sauce. Which means you can eat a lot more 😉
For more delicious Korean dishes, try Jumeokbap (Korean Rice Balls), or Bibimmyeon (Korean Cold Spicy Noodles), or Instant Pot Dakdoritang (Spicy Korean Chicken Stew).
How Do You Pronounce It?
Rabokki is pronounced RAH - boh -kee. Tteokbokki, on the other hand, is pronounced DUK - boh- kee.
Why You'll Love It
- One pan: This cheesy rabokki recipe is all made in one skillet! It's super easy and only takes 35 minutes from start to finish.
- No Korean broth/dashi needed: The best tteokbokki traditionally starts with a Korean broth made from anchovies and seaweed. For a fuss-free, super simple rabokki, we use a shortcut without sacrificing any flavor.
- Korean ingredient staples: All of the ingredients in this recipe are fridge and pantry must-haves if you frequently cook homemade Korean dishes.
🧂 Ingredients
- Oil: Avocado oil is my favorite oil to cook, fry, and sauté with because of its high smoke point (500°F) and neutral flavor.
- Onion, garlic, and green onion: Basic aromatics to flavor the sauce.
- Gochugaru: Korean chili powder. They come in varying levels of coarseness, from finely ground powder to larger flakes. Any type would work here.
- Gochujang: Fermented Korean chili paste that's spicy, smoky, and a little sweet. It forms the base of our sauce.
- Fish sauce: The secret ingredient to a quick and easy rabokki! Instead of starting with a traditional anchovy and seaweed broth (which would take an extra 30 minutes), add a small splash of fish sauce for the same umami taste.
- White sugar, soy sauce, water, and sesame oil: For the sauce. Most tteokbokki sauces are too sweet for my taste so this one is less sweet than usual. Feel free to add more sugar if you like it sweeter.
- Instant ramen: Traditionally, instant ramen packs (like Shin Ramyun or Neoguri) or cup noodles are used. I also like using Lotus Foods Millet & Brown Rice Ramen from Costco.
- Rice cakes (tteok): Refrigerated or frozen tubular rice cakes are easy to find, but need to be soaked beforehand. If using fresh tteok, skip this step.
- Fish cake (eomuk): Adds a spongy, meaty taste and texture.
Toppings
- Cheese: Mozzarella cheese is my go-to because it's milky, mild, and melts beautifully. Another popular option is a slice of processed American cheese right on top.
- Eggs: Medium to hard boiled eggs work best in this dish.
- Sesame seeds
Where Can I Find These Ingredients?
Your best bet is finding them at H-Mart, a big Korean supermarket chain, or another large Asian grocery store. Weee! is an online Asian grocery store that's very convenient as well.
Gochujang: There are different levels of spiciness so if you're unsure about the spice level, start with mild and work your way up. You can purchase it at most Asian markets, Amazon, or Weee!. You can also find the Mother In Law's brand at some American markets like Whole Foods.
Gochugaru: The chili flakes come in packets or large spice jars. These are usually placed in the same aisle as gochujang. You can find several different brands at an Asian market, Amazon, Whole Food, or Weee!.
Fish sauce: My favorite brand is Red Boat Fish Sauce. It's made with only 2 ingredients (anchovies and salt) and tend to be stronger in flavor than other brands. Red Boat is pretty easy to find now, including at Whole Foods, Costco, Amazon, and Kroger.
Rice cakes: These come in different shapes and sizes. The long cylindrical/tubular ones are most traditional for tteokbokki. Feel free to use frozen, refrigerated, or fresh - but fresh has to be used within 1-2 days. You'll have to specifically visit an Asian supermarket or Weee! for these. Sometimes you can get lucky on Amazon.
Fish cakes: These are usually in the frozen aisle next to imitation crab or processed meats. There are different sizes (half sheets or full sheets). Visit any Asian market to find them.
Substitutions & Variations
- You can substitute water with vegetable, chicken, or anchovy broth for more flavor. If using anchovy broth, leave out the fish sauce.
- Feel free to use any type of noodles you'd like. Even danmyeon (sweet potato noodles), somyeon (wheat noodles), or soba (buckwheat noodles). I'd recommend using a thinner, chewy noodle.
- A lot of people like to add the seasoning pack that's in the instant noodle packs. Feel free to but you may need to reduce the amount of salt, soy sauce, and fish sauce or else it'll be too strong or savory.
- To make this gluten-free, use gluten-free ramen noodles. Replace the soy sauce with tamari or coconut aminos and use a gluten-free gochujang. Read the labels carefully to avoid cross-contamination.
- To make this vegetarian, leave out the fish sauce, fish cakes, and hard boiled eggs.
- To make a less-spicy, mild rabokki, use a mild gochujang and start with half of gochujang and gochugaru. If it's still too spicy, add more water to dilute the spices and extra cheese will cool the spice.
🔪 How To Make Tteokbokki with Ramen
⬇️ Please scroll down to the recipe card to see full ingredient amounts and instructions.
STEP ONE: First, if you're using frozen or refrigerated rice cakes, soak them in water for 10-20 minutes. Then drain and set aside.
STEP TWO: Meanwhile, chop all your ingredients. Cut the fish cake into triangles, cut the dark parts of the green onion into 1 inch segments, slice white onion and pale parts of green onion, and mince the garlic.
STEP THREE: Heat some oil in a large pan and add the onion with a pinch of salt. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the edges start to become translucent.
STEP FOUR: Then add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant. If there's browning on the bottom of your pan (like mine), add a splash of water and scrape it up. That's all flavor!
STEP FIVE: Next, add the gochugaru, sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce, gochujang, salt, pepper, and water. Bring it to a boil and then turn the heat down to let simmer gently for 8-10 minutes. It should've reduced slightly and turned brick red.
STEP SIX: Turn the heat back to high. I'm using brown rice ramen which takes longer to cook than instant ramen, so I drop mine in first. Double check the ramen package instructions to see when you should add the ramen.
STEP SEVEN: Then add the rice cakes (and ramen, if you haven't already). Let simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring often so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
Note: My rice cakes cracked because I repeatedly froze and thawed them. Don't make my mistake and portion out individual servings (1 lb) of tteok and freeze in zip-top bags.
STEP EIGHT: Add the dark green segments of green onion and the fish cake. Stir and let warm up for about 1 minute.
STEP NINE: Turn off the heat. Add the sesame oil and season to taste. Top it with your favorites - mine are hard-boiled eggs, cheese, and sesame seeds. If adding cheese, cover with a lid to help it melt. Serve immediately.
💭 Top Tips
- Use a large skillet with tall, straighter sides for ramyeon tteokbokki. The large surface area allows for more evaporation so the sauce will thicken faster. My favorite is a braiser pan. It's also great to use on top of a portable burner at the dining table, which is how Korean restaurants often serve stews and saucy dishes like this.
- For an extra saucy rabokki, par-boil the ramen separately first. The noodles will absorb less of the sauce that way.
- Double check the cook time of your ramen. You want it to be al dente by the time the rice cakes are done cooking. Tteok will take 8-10 minutes to soften in the sauce, so add your noodles accordingly. If using instant ramen, add it at the same time as the tteok.
- Rabokki is best enjoyed fresh. As it cools, the rice cakes and noodles absorb more of the sauce so they can get too soft.
🥡 Storing & Freezing
Storing: Cheesy rabokki's texture is best when eaten immediately. The noodles will bloat and break, and the rice cakes will stiffen in the fridge and lose their as bouncy texture. But if you have leftovers, let it cool to room temperature and store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Freezing: I do not recommend freezing ramen tteokbokki. The cooked rice cake and noodles will not be enjoyable after thawing.
Reheating: Reheat in the microwave in 1-minute intervals. Or warm in a large skillet until heated through. Add a splash of water if it looks dry.
Make Ahead: Make Tteokbokki with Ramen fresh to keep it as saucy as possible. For ease of cooking, chop and measure out all the ingredients first. You'll be able to finish cooking Rabokki in just 10-15 minutes that way.
📖 Recipe FAQs
Tteokbokki is rice cakes in a spicy red sauce. It's usually a pretty simple dish and sometimes has egg, fish cake, and onion added in. Rabokki is the same dish but with ramen noodles as well.
The base of the sauce is water or anchovy broth. Gochujang and gochugaru add spice and red color, which is then balanced with soy sauce and sugar.
Rabokki is spicy and sweet from the sauce. The chewy ramen noodles and rice cakes add fun texture while soaking up the sauce. If you have add-ins like onion, fish cake, eggs, or cabbage, it creates a very hearty dish that's comforting and addictive.
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📋 Recipe
Rabokki - Tteokbokki + Ramen
Ingredients
- 1-2 tablespoon cooking oil
- ½ onion sliced; about 1 cup
- 3-4 cloves garlic minced
- 2½ tablespoon gochugaru Korean chili flakes
- 3 tablespoon white granulated sugar
- 1½ tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon fish sauce
- 3 tablespoon gochujang Korean chili paste
- 4 cups water
- 1-2 packs instant ramen
- 1 lb tubular rice cakes
- 2-3 half sheets fish cake (eomuk) cut into triangles
- 3-4 green onion whites sliced thinly and dark green cut into 1 inch segments
- ½ tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Toppings
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 hard-boiled eggs halved
- Sesame seeds
Instructions
- If your rice cakes are frozen or refrigerated, soak in water for 15-20 minutes until separated. Then drain and set aside.
- Heat oil in a large, wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion along with a pinch of salt and cook for 2-3 minutes or until edges start to get translucent. Then add garlic and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant. If the bottom of your pan has browned bits, add a splash of water and use your wooden spoon to scrape up the bits.
- Add gochugaru, sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce, gochujang, water, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Stir to dissolve the seasonings and bring to a boil. Then turn the heat down to let simmer for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the ramen and rice cakes. Let simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until ramen is cooked through, rice cakes are soft, and sauce has reduced. Don't worry if it still looks watery, it'll continue to thicken.
- Stir in fish cake and dark green parts of green onion, letting it warm through. Then turn off heat and stir in sesame oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Sprinkle the mozzarella over the top and cover with lid. Let sit for 2-3 minutes to allow residual heat to melt cheese.
- Top with hard boiled eggs, whites of green onion, and sesame seeds. Serve immediately.
Notes
- A lot of people like to add the seasoning pack that's in the instant noodle packs. Feel free to but you may need to reduce the amount of salt, soy sauce, and fish sauce or else it'll be too strong or savory.
- Double check the cook time of your noodles. You want it to be al dente by the time the rice cakes are done cooking. Tteok will take 8-10 minutes to soften in the sauce, so add your noodles accordingly. If using instant ramen, add it at the same time as the tteok.
- For an extra saucy rabokki, par-boil the ramen separately first so it absorbs less sauce.
- Substitutions:
- To make this gluten-free, use gluten-free ramen noodles. Replace the soy sauce with tamari or coconut aminos and use a gluten-free gochujang. Read the labels carefully to avoid cross-contamination.
- To make this vegetarian, leave out the fish sauce, fish cakes, and hard boiled eggs.
- To make a less-spicy, mild rabokki, use a mild gochujang and start with half of gochujang and gochugaru. If it's still too spicy, add more water to dilute the spices and extra cheese will cool the spice.
Billy
One of the Korean street-food staple! This recipe tasted exactly like home. Thank you!
Jessica
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed it!