Treat yourself to Sotteok Sotteok (or Sotteok), a mouthwatering Korean street food that pairs chewy rice cakes with savory mini sausages. The smoky flavor and enticing texture of these skewers are sure to please your taste buds.
What’s more, it’s coated in a delicious and addictive blend of spicy, sweet, and tangy sauce, you’ll soon find these impossible to stop eating!
What is Sotteok Sotteok
Have you ever heard of ‘Tteokkochi‘? It’s a Korean dish that features skewered rice cakes slathered in a spicy, tangy sauce. Now, let’s take that concept and give it a unique twist with Sotteok Sotteok.
Sotteok Sotteok (소떡소떡) is a popular Korean street snack. Its name is a playful combination of “so” (short for “sausage”) and “tteok” (from the Korean rice cakes known as garae-tteok).
So imagine this: skewered mini cocktail sausages nestled between chewy rice cakes. The sausages add a smoky flavor and juicy texture to the mix, creating a balance of flavors that is simply irresistible. The skewers are then grilled or pan-fried to perfection.
But that’s not all! Each skewer is brushed or dipped in a unique, sweet, and tangy sauce for an added kick. This sauce is a spicy blend based on gochujang, a Korean red chili paste, that adds depth and a zesty spiciness to every bite. Some vendors even offer additional condiments such as mustard and mayonnaise, providing an extra layer of complex flavor.
Finally, the skewer is sprinkled with roasted sesame seeds. This adds a hint of nuttiness and aroma that completes the dish. Can you almost taste it?
While some might refer to it by its shortened name, ‘Sotteok’, most Koreans fondly call it ‘Sotteok Sotteok’. Isn’t ‘Sotteok Sotteok’ just more fun to say anyway?
Where to Get So Tteok So Tteok
You’ll typically stumble upon sotteok sotteok at bustling street food stalls, traditional markets, or even highway rest stops in Korea.
You might also spot it as an appetizer or a snack item on the menu at some trendy Korean bunsik restaurants.
But good news! This Korean delight isn’t just a roadside marvel. It’s super easy and quick to whip up right in your own kitchen. Why not give this a try this weekend?
My Best Cooking Tips
Tteok – For garaetteok (cylinder shaped Korean rice cake), it’s best to use fresh or refrigerated rice cakes. Frozen rice cakes may not work as well because they tend to develop a split texture in the freezer.
If you’re using refrigerated rice cakes, which often have a hard texture, be sure to soften them first by parboiling, as I demonstrated in step 1 of my recipe below. This step is crucial to ensure that the skewers can easily pass through the rice cakes.
Size – For even cooking and a visually appealing presentation, it’s best to pair rice cakes and sausages with similar lengths and thicknesses. Finding the matching size could be challenging, but the results are worth it. I was very pleased when I found mini rice cakes that matched my mini cabana sausages perfectly – the outcome was fantastic!
Skewers – This recipe is designed with 12cm/4.7 inch skewers in mind, so the quantity of ingredients reflects this.
If you choose to use longer skewers, you’ll need to increase the amount of rice cakes and cocktail sausages per skewer to adequately fill them. However, be aware that longer skewers may not fit as easily into your frying pan or grill, which could make the cooking process more challenging.
If you still decide to use longer skewers, don’t hesitate to double up on your ingredients, including the sauce, to ensure there’s enough to go around.
Variation – Cheese Sotteok is a variation of traditional Sotteok Sotteok, where cheese is incorporated into the skewer for added flavor and texture. This can be done by placing a piece of cheese between the rice cake and sausage layers or even using cheese-filled sausages or rice cakes. I know, such a clever invention!
As the skewers are cooked, the cheese melts and creates a gooey, delicious twist to the dish.
Other Korean Rice Cake Recipes You Might Like
Did you know there’s a whole world of delicious Korean rice cake recipes just waiting to be discovered?
Take a look at the ones I’ve shared below and get ready to fall in love with the delicious flavors. Whether you’re a spicy food lover or prefer creamy savory dishes, I’ve got some recipes that are bound to impress you!
- Tteokbokki (Spicy Korean Rice Cakes)
- Rose Tteokbokki (Creamy Rice Cakes)
- Gungjung Tteokbokki (Soy Sauce Rice Cakes)
- Rabokki (Ramen + Tteokbokki)
- Tteokkochi (Rice Cake Skewers)
Ingredients for Sotteok Sotteok
Main
- 48 pieces Korean rice cake (garaetteok) (342g / 12 ounces)
- 32 pieces cocktail sausage (230g / 8.1 ounces)
- Some cooking oil (I used canola oil)
Sotteok Sotteok Sauce
- 1/3 cup raw sugar (or brown)
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce, regular
- 1/2 Tbsp gochujang (Korean chili paste)
Garnish (Optional)
- toasted sesame seeds or other crushed nuts of your choice
- American mustard sauce
- mayonnaise
* 1 Tbsp = 15ml, 1 cup = 250ml
** If you want to learn more about Korean ingredients, check out my comprehensive list of Korean ingredients.
How to Make Sotteok Sotteok
1. Blanch the rice cakes in boiling water for 1-2 minutes to soften them. Then, drain the water and rinse the rice cakes under cold tap water. Set aside. (If your rice cakes are fresh, soft, and the skewer can pass through them without any problems, you can skip this step.)
2. Combine all the sauce ingredients in a saucepan, stirring continuously until the sugar dissolves completely and the sauce thickens. This should take approximately 5 minutes. Be sure to keep stirring to prevent the sauce from burning. Set aside.
3. Thread the rice cakes and sausages onto the skewers, alternating them in a pattern. For a well-balanced size, aim for three rice cakes and two sausages per skewer, assuming you’re using a 12cm (or 4.7-inch) long skewer.
4. Heat the oil in a shallow pan until it reaches boiling point. Gently place the skewers into the hot oil and fry them for about one minute on each side to ensure even cooking. Fry the skewers in batches to prevent overcrowding in the pan. If you prefer not to deep-fry, you can also pan-grill the skewers using less oil. Using tongs, carefully remove the fried skewers from the pan and set them aside on a paper towel. Continue this process until all the skewers have been cooked.
5. Dip the cooked skewers into the sauce, generously coat both sides evenly by brushing the sauce onto them.
6. Optionally, garnish with your preferred nuts or seeds, drizzle with the sauce, and serve immediately.
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Sotteok Sotteok (Rice Cake and Sausage Skewers)
Ingredients
MAIN
- 48 pieces Korean rice cake (garaetteok), (342g / 12 ounces)
- 32 pieces cocktail sausage (230g / 8.1 ounces)
- Some cooking oil (I used canola oil)
SAUCE
GARNISH (OPTIONAL)
- toasted sesame seeds or other crushed nuts
- American mustard sauce
- mayonnaise
Instructions
- Blanch the rice cakes in boiling water for 1-2 minutes to soften them. Then, drain the water and rinse the rice cakes under cold tap water. Set aside. (If your rice cakes are fresh, soft, and the skewer can pass through them without any problems, you can skip this step.)
- Combine all the sauce ingredients in a saucepan, stirring continuously until the sugar dissolves completely and the sauce thickens. This should take approximately 5 minutes. Be sure to keep stirring to prevent the sauce from burning. Set aside.
- Thread the rice cakes and sausages onto the skewers, alternating them in a pattern. For a well-balanced size, aim for three rice cakes and two sausages per skewer, assuming you’re using a 12cm (or 4.7-inch) long skewer.
- Heat the oil in a shallow pan until it reaches boiling point. Gently place the skewers into the hot oil and fry them for about one minute on each side to ensure even cooking. Fry the skewers in batches to prevent overcrowding in the pan. If you prefer not to deep-fry, you can also pan-grill the skewers using less oil. Using tongs, carefully remove the fried skewers from the pan and set them aside on a paper towel. Continue this process until all the skewers have been cooked.
- Dip the cooked skewers into the sauce, generously coat both sides evenly by brushing the sauce onto them.
- Optionally, garnish with your preferred nuts or seeds, drizzle with the sauce, and serve immediately.
Notes
- 1 Tbsp = 15ml, 1 cup = 250ml
- If you want to learn more about Korean ingredients, check out my comprehensive list of Korean ingredients.
Nutrition Info (per serving)
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
