Gungjung-tteokbokki is a dish made of white rice cakes, beef and a variety of dried and raw vegetables stir-fried with soy sauce for seasoning. Tteokbokki was not spicy and only made with soy sauce until the 18th century. Now, however, it is cooked with a spicy red chili paste, which has been seen in recipes since the 1950s. This is a recipe for a traditional style.

Ingredients 

● 300g white steamed rice cake,

● 1 tbsp sesame oil

● 100g beef (top round)

● 3 sheets brown oak mushrooms

● 20g dried pumpkin strips

● sauce 1: 1/2 tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp minced green onion, 1/2 tsp minced garlic, 1/8 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp sesame oil

● 1/3 onion, 1 green pepper, 1 red pepper

● 60g mung bean sprouts, 2 cups water, 1 tsp salt

● 1 egg, 1 tbsp edible oil

● seasoning sauce 2: 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp honey, 1 tsp minced green onion, 1/2 tsp minced garlic, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1/4 cups water

1. Cut the white rice cake into 4~5 cm-long, shred them into 4 pieces lengthwise, mix them with sesame oil together.

2. Clean the beef and cut into thin slices. Soak the brown oak mushrooms and dried pumpkin strips in water for 1 hour. Shred them into long, thin pieces. (beef 80g, brown oak mushrooms 45g, pumpkin strips 80g).

3. Cut the onion, green/red pepper into and pieces about 5 cm long.

4. Remove the heads and tails of mung bean sprouts, wash in water.

5. Panfry egg for garnish, cut into 5 cm-long strips.

6. Blend seasoning sauces separately.


1. Pour water into the pot and heat. When it boils, scald the mung bean sprouts with salt for 2 minutes and drain.

2. Preheat the frying pan and oil, stir-fry the onion and pumpkin strips for 2 minutes on medium heat. Stir-fry the peppers for 20 sec. Season the beef and mushrooms with seasoning sauce 1, and stir-fry for 2 min. on medium heat.

3. Preheat the frying pan, stir-fry white rice cake with seasoning sauce 2 for 3 minutes on medium heat. Add the beef, mushrooms, pumpkin strips, onion, peppers and mung bean sprouts, then stir-fry for 30 seconds. Turn the heat off, and garnish with the egg.

Tips

● Pumpkin strips may be replaced by gourd strips or carrot.

● If white rice cake is dried hard, scald slightly in boiling water.

(Adapted from the Institute of Traditional Korean Food)