Korean Beef and Rice Cakes (Tteokbokki)

Ingredients

• 750g beef mince
• 500g Korean rice cakes (tteok)
• 1 cup kimchi
• 1 medium carrot
• 5 spring onions
• 1 1/2 Tbsp gochujang
• 1 1/2 Tbsp crushed garlic
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tsp sugar — staple
• 3-5 Tbsp reserved rice-cake water — staple
• 1/2 Tbsp neutral oil — staple
• Salt, pepper, sesame seeds to serve — staple
• 2 heads bok choy, halved lengthways
• 1 head broccoli, cut into florets
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced

Method

1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil.
2. While it heats, peel the carrot into ribbons, slice the spring onions thinly (keep whites and greens separate), mince the garlic and measure out the kimchi.
3. Boil the rice cakes for the time on the packet — they are ready when floating and easily pierced. Drain, reserving a mug of the starchy water, and hold the rice cakes in cold water.
4. Heat a large wok or skillet over medium-high, add the oil and the beef mince. Season with salt and brown, breaking it up.
5. At about 80% cooked, push the beef aside so the rendered fat pools in the centre. Add the spring onion whites, garlic and kimchi and fry 1-2 minutes until fragrant, then stir through the carrot ribbons.
6. Build the sauce in the pan: gochujang, soy sauce, sugar and 2-3 Tbsp of the starchy water. Drain the rice cakes and tip them in.
7. Toss over the heat until the sauce thickens and coats everything, adding more starchy water if it tightens too much.
8. Asian greens: in a second pan heat a splash of oil, add the sliced garlic, then the broccoli florets and bok choy with 2 Tbsp water; toss with a lid on 3-4 minutes until bright green and just tender.
9. Taste and adjust with salt, pepper or a little more sugar. Top with spring onion greens and sesame seeds, greens alongside.

Notes

- Protein-first portioning: meat set to 750g per 4 serves to land ~44g protein/serve (house rule). - Mince is up 50% on the source, so the sauce (gochujang, soy, sugar, garlic) is scaled ~1.5x to keep everything coated; the rice cakes and kimchi stay put. - Gochujang replaces any branded tteokbokki sauce sachet — a jar/tub from the Asian aisle keeps for months. - Rice cakes are usually in the chilled or frozen Asian section; frozen ones need a few extra minutes in the boil. - Kimchi brings the salt, so season at the end rather than the start. - Veg sweep: one carrot plus kimchi came to well under target, so the house Asian greens side (bok choy + broccoli, garlic pan-tossed) is now a required component, ~180g veg/serve; calories +50 and protein +2. Crushed garlic and soy sauce lost their staple markers and gained search hints.