This article was updated on 5th September 2023 for freshness and to add more storage information.
If you’ve recently made more tteokbokki than you can handle, you’re probably wondering how to store it to reheat later without the rice cakes drying out.
Well, you’re in luck, because I have the answers!
The best way to reheat tteokbokki is on the stove. Place the tteokbokki in a pan, separating the pieces as much as possible. Next, add just enough liquid (water, broth, or leftover sauce) to cover the rice cakes. Reheat the tteokbokki on a medium-low heat until they’re soft.
A note on my experiment
I cooked up a delicious batch of tteokbokki and kept it in the fridge overnight. The next day I tested two methods of reheating it:
- Warming it up in a pan with some broth: My favorite method.
- Microwaving it: Avoid if you can!
Tteokbokki reheating tips
Overnight, your tteokbokki will become hard and dry. To make the rice cakes soft and chewy again, they needed extra moisture, so whatever way to choose to reheat them, add lots of sauce or broth!
Tteokbokki reheats best if you have extra sauce, so always leave some spare if you think you’re going to have leftovers.
Reheating tteokbokki on the stove
- Put your tteokbokki into a pan, separating them as much as you can.
- Add just enough liquid (broth or water) to cover the rice cakes.
- Add in extra flavorings (e.g. gochujang sauce) or any leftover sauce (optional).
- Heat the mixture on a medium-low heat.
- Stir frequently to prevent sticking and incorporate the broth into the sauce.
- Once the sauce has thickened and the rice cakes are soft, it’s ready (around 5 minutes).
What liquid you add is up to you. Water is okay but won’t add much flavor. I prefer to use some sort of broth. Anchovy, kombu, dashi, or just plain old chicken (or vegetable) broth all work well.
Be careful not to add too much liquid or the resulting dish will be more like a soup.
Low and slow is preferable for reheating tteokbokki because it allows ample time for the rice cakes to absorb the liquid and soften. Boiling the water first is more of a harsh method and doesn’t recover the texture as well.
Psst… if you don’t have any extra gochujang sauce, here are some good gochujang substitutes you can try.
Results: The tteok was a tiny bit more mushy than the day before, but you should always expect to lose some quality when reheating. Overall it was tasty and still fluffy. The reheating process was quick and easy too.
Reheating tteokbokki in the microwave
I didn’t hold out much hope for the microwave but I had to try it because you can’t heat tteokbokki in a pan if you’re on-the-go.
I put the tteokbokki in a microwave safe bowl, sprinkled a decent amount of water over it (use extra sauce if you have it), and covered the bowl. Then I microwaved it for 3 x 10-second intervals, checking on it regularly to make sure it wasn’t overheating. Once the rice cakes are soft(ish) to the touch, they’re done.
Note, you need to eat the tteokbokki sharpish once it comes out of the microwave. Because as it cools down, the rice cakes will get very hard very quickly.
Results: I don’t recommend using the microwave to reheat tteokbokki. The tteokbokki was just about edible – but it wasn’t anywhere near as soft as the stuff from the pan.
How to store tteokbokki
To store leftover cooked tteokbokki, place it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. The tteokbokki will get hard as it cools down, but you can soften it up again when you reheat it.
As with most foods, the quicker you eat your tteokbokki the better. Tteokbokki continues to absorb the sauce it’s stored in the fridge, and eventually, the tteok (rice cakes) will fall apart – similar to what happens to pasta.
If you want to avoid this happening, aim to store the tteok and any extra sauce separately.
To store uncooked tteok, place them in an airtight container in the fridge or wrap the tteok in plastic wrap. Wrapping them in plastic wrap will keep them fresher for longer, but you should still aim to eat them within 3 days.
If you have really tall tteok, you can even store them in a glass jar with a lid.
Can you freeze tteokbokki?
Cooked tteokbokki doesn’t freeze well and you should avoid doing it. The texture will suffer as they absorb moisture and you won’t ever get the soft chewy dish you’re expecting.
You can however freeze uncooked rice cakes.
Portion the rice cakes out (they will stick together) and keep them in freezer bags. Suck/squeeze as much air out of the freezer bag as you can to protect the rice cakes from freezer burn. The rice cakes will last for up to 3 months in the freezer.
If you have access to a home vacuum packing machine, this will give your rice cakes the best chance of survival in the freezer. Vacuum packing the rice cakes will ensure that absolutely no air can reach them and will preserve their texture. Vacuum-sealed rice cakes can last 3-5 times longer in the freezer than rice cakes in a simple freezer bag.
There’s no need to flash freeze the rice cakes first because they’re so dense there’s no risk of them being squished by the vacuum machine. Simply portion them out and seal.
Related:
Can You Freeze Mochi?
Can You Freeze Japchae?
How to prepare and cook frozen tteok
The rice cakes (tteok) will be hard and stuck together when you get them out of the freezer.
You can either leave them in the fridge overnight to defrost, or you can soak them in room temperature water to separate, defrost, and soften them. I tend to soak my rice cakes for around an hour, but the soaking time will vary depending on the size and shape of your tteok as well as your desired texture.
Some people only soak their tteok for 10-15 minutes to separate them, while others will leave them soaking for several hours.
Once you’ve soaked your tteok, you can continue to make your dish as normal.
How To Reheat Tteokbokki [Tested Methods]
Equipment
- Pan
Ingredients
- 1 portion tteokbokki
- 1 dash water or broth
Instructions
- Put your tteokbokki into a pan, separating them as much as you can.
- Add just enough liquid (broth or water) to half cover the bottom of the pan.
- Add in extra flavorings (e.g. gochujang sauce) or any leftover sauce (optional).
- Heat the mixture on a low heat.
- Stir the mixture frequently to prevent sticking and incorporate the new liquid into the sauce.
- Once the mixture has warmed through, serve immediately.
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