Sometimes I scroll through the rabokki hashtag on Tiktok to see how other people make their rabokki.

Inevitably I get hungry, and ask Mike if he wants to share a bowl so I don’t feel so guilty eating a huge amount of carbs when most people are snug in bed. Always so worth it though!

What is rabokki?

Rabokki is a popular Korean street food that is ramen and tteokbokki in one dish. Ramen and rice cakes is carb on carb action and I am here for it.

Ramen + tteokbokki = rabokki!

Sometimes it’s called rapokki as well. It’s a sweet and spicy, super savory delicious dish, perfect for warming up with and a quick satisfying meal.

The combination of instant noodles, Korean rice cakes, and savory spicy-sweet sauce comes together incredibly quickly so it’s great when you’re craving something spicy, filling, and delicious. It goes awesome with beer and late night rabokki is one of my favorite late night treats, especially with cheese. The slurpy noodles, chewy rice cakes, and spice are a match made in heaven.

Rabokki is incredibly popular, both as street food and as an easy meal you can make at home. They even have Costco rabokki!

How to make rabokki from scratch

1. Make the sauce. In a small bowl, mix together gochujang, sugar, soy sauce, minced garlic, and a bit of gochugaru.
2. Simmer the soup with the rice cakes. Add the sauce with the rice cakes to a pot of water and bring to a simmer.
3. Cook the ramen. When the rice cakes are soft and chewy, add the ramen and cook it. If you like, add some Korean fish cakes.
4. Top and serve! Serve everything up topped with scallions and maybe a boiled egg and some cheese!

How to make instant rabokki

1. Make the soup. Open up the instant seasoning packet and add it to a pot with 2 cups water and 1 tbsp brown sugar and bring to a simmer.
2. Make the “rice cakes.” Lightly soak a piece of rice paper in warm water and tightly roll up. Cut it into 2-3 inch pieces. Repeat with one more piece of rice paper.
3. Cook the noodles. Add the noodles to the soup and cook for 2 minutes. Add your homemade rice cakes and simmer for 1 more minute.
4. Enjoy! Top with toasted sesame seeds, scallions, and a slice of cheese and enjoy!

Which one is better

Truthfully it depends on time of day. For me, after about 10pm the instant version starts looking pretty darn good. The rest of the time, I’d have to go with the traditional-with-real-ingredients version though.

Ingredients

• Instant ramen. You need the noodles from an instant ramen pack, but not the seasoning pack. I like using Shin Ramyun noodles because they’re thick and chewy.
• Korean tteokbokki rice cakes. You can find Korean rice cakes freshly made, packaged in the refrigerated section, or frozen in the freezer aisles at a Korean grocery store. If you can’t make it to the Korean grocery store, I have a tteokbokki substitute for you!
• Gochujang. A spicy Korean sauce. It’s savory, sweet, spicy thick fermented paste made from chili powder and sticky rice. It adds sweet and heat and a ton of flavor. Traditionally it comes in tubs, but these days you can find it in convenient squeeze bottles in the Asian aisle of literally any grocery store.
• Gochugaru. Korean chili flakes. Korean chili flakes are fruity, sweet, smoky, sun dried bright red flakes. They’re not too spicy and their heat is gentle and delicious. I always buy coarse gochugaru which looks like flaky sea salt. They usually come labeled with mild, medium, or hot, so you can buy them according to your spice preference. https://amzn.to/3sMzY6e
• Sugar, garlic, soy sauce. A bit of sugar makes the sauce sweet, garlic adds a hit of raw spiciness, and the soy sauce adds umami and salt.

Is rabokki spicy?

It really depends on your spice tolerance. I would say they are a little bit on the spicy side but they’re also a touch sweet. If you add cheese that helps cut the spice too. They’re spicy in an addictive way! If you like spicy, hot food, they won’t be too spicy for you and you can always adjust the sauce to adjust for your spice level.

What is the best instant ramen for rabokki?

You’re just going to be using the ramen and not the spice pack (unless you’re making instant rabokki) so the flavor doesn’t matter much, but if you’re going to be making the easy version of rabokki, I recommend either Nong Shim Shin Ramyun Black for regular spice or Samyang Buldak if you’re a spice fiend.

Where to buy Korean rice cakes

You can find tteokbokki rice cakes at Korean markets. They’ll usually come freshly made by the store, commercially made fresh and packaged, or frozen. If you can get ones that are fresh, they are the top choice, but packaged and frozen are good too.

Korean rice cake substitute

If you can’t make it to the Korean grocery store, I have the perfect rice cake hack for you. All you need is Vietnamese rice paper. They sell rice paper at most grocery stores in the Asian aisle. Just soak the rice paper, roll it up tightly, wait for minute and then slice them into rice cake lengths. Not the same as tteokbokki but a really good sub!

1. Place some warm water in a shallow bowl.
2. Lightly soak the rice paper.
3. Place the rice paper on a cutting board and roll it up tightly.
4. Slice the rolled rice paper into 2-3 inch lengths.
5. Use the rice rolls in your rabokki.

Rabokki toppings

Toppings make the rabokki! You can keep it simple with just ramen and tteokbokki or you can all all the mix-ins and toppings for a super luxe and filling rabokki.

• Onions – Add some onions to the mix, they add sweetness and onion vibes.
• Cabbage – if you want a little bit of health, add sliced cabbage when you’re simmering everything together. The crunch and softness are perfect with the spicy sauce.
• Dumplings – Go wild and add some mandu/Korean dumplings for an extra filling rabokki.
• Fish cakes – add sliced Korean fish cakes while you’re simmering the ramen and tteokbokki.
• Scallions – a sprinkle of sliced scallions add freshness.
• Eggs – soft or hard boiled eggs add some protein and are so good in the sauce.
• Cheese – melted cheese is AMAZING on rabokki. Go for a classic American slice or mozzarella, something super melty for cheese pulls.
• Toasted sesame seeds – adds a nice nuttiness
• Seaweed – adds crunch and saltiness

I hope you enjoy! I know what my next meal is…
Rabokki forever, xoxo
steph