Spicy Shrimp Rabokki

Today, I’m sharing what might be the best recipe I’ve ever posted on this blog: Spicy Shrimp Rabokki. I mean it when I say that this dish, inspired by Korean street food, is absolutely delicious. It features springy ramen noodles, stir-fried shrimp, and a special ingredient most Americans haven’t even heard of. I am so impressed at how authentic and takeout-like this recipe tastes with only a few simple ingredients! If you’re someone who loves trying new flavors, then my Spicy Shrimp Rabokki is for you.

First, let me explain what rabokki is. This delicacy is a variant of the popular Korean street food tteokbokki (pronounced tok-bokki), which is comprised of a gochujang sauce, fish cakes, and stir-fried rice cakes called garaetteok (gah-ree-dock). And no, not the kind you eat on a diet. Traditional Asian rice cakes are glutinous, chewy little cylinders. They’re not comparable to anything else I’ve eaten before, and everybody should try them at least once!

What sets rabokki apart is the addition of instant ramen noodles (known as ramyeon in Korea). Doing this gives substance to what is normally just a snack food, and even though it’s less popular than its predecessor, rabokki is a totally awesome fusion of flavors.

As these videos became trendy, I noticed that a ton of the clips starred a certain dish: tteokbokki. I had to try it. It looked so good! Intrigued, I ordered a pack of garaetteok online and started researching recipes. It wasn’t long before I discovered rabokki and became obsessed with the idea. Everything’s better with noodles, right? Right. So, that’s my inspiration for this rabokki recipe. Now here’s how I designed it.

• Gochujang: The gochujang paste is what gives this recipe such a tasty flavor. I seriously never thought I could have such delicious, takeout-like food at home⏤ sure, we’ve all tried to recreate it, but is it ever as good? No. Not until now, anyway. But yes, gochujang is what gives this Spicy Shrimp Rabokki such an authentic flavor. This is the kind that I used, along with the other sauce ingredients.

• Raw Sugar: The raw sugar is also an unsung hero of this dish. It’s what makes the sauce so sticky, rich, and tangy. It gets mixed with the gochujang paste, soy sauce, and garlic, which then gets dissolved into the stock base. The effect of the sugar won’t be obvious at first, but once the liquid of the broth boils down, you’ll notice the way it melts down and makes the sauce coat the noodles perfectly. So, so good.

• Seafood Stock: Ideally, you would use Korean dashi stock to make this recipe as accurate as possible. However, that’s something that’s just not accessible to everyone, and kinda defeats the purpose of making this Spicy Shrimp Rabokki as a quick, yet interesting, weeknight meal. I use seafood stock for this recipe every time and it complements the flavors perfectly. You may need extra in case your sauce thickens too much.

Korean Rice Cakes: The star ingredient! The rice cakes are certainly the most fun part of this meal. I used this brand (Yuki Toppogi) which I just picked up off Amazon. It even comes in multipacks. The cakes are dehydrated before they’re shipped, so you have to soak them in water for a bit before cooking, but it’s so worth it. I’d definitely recommend this brand for all of your rabokki needs⏤ apparently, it’s even organic. Check them out here.

• Instant Ramen Noodles: Lol. I know how weird it sounds to actually require crappy ramen in a recipe, instead of like, fresh udon noodles or something, but as far as I know, it’s how real Korean rabokki is made, so I’m sticking with it! I’ve just been using bricks of Top Ramen (without the seasoning packet, of course), so anything along those lines would work. I also tried this recipe with shirataki, aka ‘miracle’ noodles, and that was pretty good as well. Just don’t try to use spaghetti or something. Ew.

• Shrimp: You can use frozen shrimp for this, just make sure it’s properly cleaned and deveined. Double ew.

I think that’s everything for ingredients and technique; this really is a simple recipe. Here’s how you can make these restaurant-quality noodles at home!

prep

The very first thing you’ll do for this Spicy Shrimp Rabokki is prep. Start by placing the rice cakes in a bowl and soaking them with warm water. This will make them softer and easier to cook. During this time, you can also create the sauce base. Do this by whisking the gochujang paste, soy sauce, and sugar together. Then, mince the garlic and toss that in as well. And, that’s it! Super easy.

soup

Next up is starting the broth part. Heat the seafood stock on high in a large saucepan. Once it reaches a rolling boil, stir in the gochujang/sugar sauce base until it is completely dissolved. While you’re waiting, thinly slice the shallot (I like bigger chunks so that it cooks down nicely) and sliver the green onion. The shallot adds a depth of umami flavor to the dish, while the onion is for garnish. 🙂

things are happening!!!

Finally, the carbs. Add the softened rice cakes and instant ramen noodle bricks to the sauce (DON’T break them up⏤ they will be impossible to grip with chopsticks!). Place the lid on the pan and cook on medium heat until the noodles are steamed enough to ‘unwind’, for lack of a better word. Be sure not to overcook the garaetteok either.

shrimp ❏

Shrimp time! After the noodles & cakes are a bit softer, throw in the shrimp. Let them cook in the pan without stirring for the first 2 minutes; then incorporate them into the noodles & sauce so they can get fully steamed through. You certainly don’t want undercooked shrimp, so trust me on this! You’ll know they’re ready when they’re fully opaque and feel more ‘firm’ to the touch. I also opted to add some more stock at this point because my sauce was a bit too thick for the stage I was at in the cooking process. Anyway, the shrimp should look like the bottom photo when they’re all done.

finishing touches

And with that, your Spicy Shrimp Rabokki is pretty much finished. Just put the lid back on the pot and simmer for a few minutes, until the sauce is thick and silky (see photo) and the rice cakes are soft. This is a truly unique recipe and I really hope you enjoy it because it’s quickly became one of my favorites! 🙂