Sautéed Rice Cakes

Tteokbokki is quintessential Korean street food, as well known as it is easy to make. Thick, chewy tteok, or rice cakes, are simmered in a sweet-spicy gochujang sauce, their ample starches melting into the pot, making the dish thick and silky. When I was growing up in Korea in the 1970s, cheap and fast little tteokbokki places were just starting to pop up, thanks to one lady in particular who ran a popular stand in the neighborhood of Shin Da