What is the difference between 'Ddeok' and 'Nian Gao'? 'Ddeok' is of Korean origin and 'Nian Gao' is chinese(Shanghainese). The only similarity is that they are both Rice Cake, the shapes might defer but the texture of the cake is the same - bland and chewy. You might be surprised to hear that ddeokbokki (Korean) originated from the royal palace in the Chosun dynasty. At that time they used soya sauce instead of gochujang paste, and the King had this Gungjung Ddeokbokki on New Year's day. Gungjung means “palace” in English. The chinese too serve this 'Nian Gao' on New Year's day, is this coincidental or what?????. There you go!
This Ddeokbokki that i am sharing will probably taste a bit different from the ones you may have tasted before but you should definitely give this a try. It has a very clean, spicy and sweet taste that’s quite addictive. Be prepared to have alot of jaw exercise and my apologies to all who have partials.
