Vegan Jjajang Rice Cake (Tteokbokki)
This dish is inspired by traditional Korean Jjajang Rice Cake (Tteokbokki), but it's made oil-free and vegan with just a few ingredient changes. ENJOY!
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1 block firm or extra-firm tofu pressed and drained and cut into bite-sized cubes
- 1 small onion diced finely
- 5 green onions white part and only a small amount of the green part, chopped finely
- 2 cloves of garlic crushed
- 1 large zucchini diced into tiny pieces (1/4” cubes)
- 5 dashes liquid smoke
- 3 T black bean paste find at an Asian store
- 2 T rice wine or soju I used Mirin
- 2 T low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 T vegan/vegetarian oyster sauce find at an Asian store
- 2 T coconut sugar or other raw sugar
- 2 cups water
- a few dashes of black pepper
- 500 grams of rice cake find at an Asian store
- 2 T arrowroot powder or potato starch + 6 T cold water
- toasted sesame seeds to garnish
- chopped green onions to garnish
- vegan kimchi on the side
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place cubes of tofu on nonstick baking pan and bake for 20 minutes.
- While tofu is baking, add onion, garlic, zucchini, and chopped green onions to a large skillet with ¼ cup water. Cook over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add liquid smoke, black bean paste, rice wine, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, water, and black pepper. Stir together well, bring to a boil, and cook another 3 minutes, or until the onions and zucchini are tender.
- Add the baked tofu and rice cake into the sauce and stir for about 3-4 minutes to cook the rice cake. The texture of the rice cake should be spongy/slightly chewy.
- Mix the arrowroot powder with cold water, then add into the sauce. It should thicken in about 1 minute.
- Serve Vegan Jjajang Rice Cake (Tteokbokki) in bowls topped with toasted sesame seeds, chopped green onions, and vegan kimchi, if desired.