15delicious dishes that get a salty, savory, sweet, and spicy taste from gochujang!
Are you wondering what to do with that big red tub of gochujang in your fridge? Or, do you simply love gochujang and want to cook more with it? You’ve come to the right place. I’ve put together a collection of delicious Korean dishes that use gochujang as a significant ingredient.
What is gochujang?
Gochujang (고추장), Korean fermented chili pepper paste, is one of the primary Korean seasoning and flavoring ingredients. The red thick paste is deeply savory, peppery, pungent, slightly sweet and spicy! No wonder everything tastes better with gochujang!
Traditionally homemade, gochujang is made of gochugaru (Korean red chili peppers), sweet syrupy liquid made with yeotgireum (엿기름, malt barley), meju garu (fermented soybean powder), sweet rice or other grain powder, and salt. These ingredients are mixed well to a thick paste and placed in earthenware pots to ferment for months. Check out my How to Make Gochujang post.
Gochujang usually is not eaten as is. Rather, it’s used as an ingredient to season and flavor a wide range of dishes or made into various sauces.Read more about gochujang in my Korean Pantry Seasoning Ingredientspost.
Gochujang jjigae is a stew primarily seasoned and flavored with gochujang. It adds lots of spicy, robust flavors to this simple stew made with zucchini and potatoes.
For this spicy version, I adjusted the braising liquid used for my slow cooker galbijjim to incorporate gochugaru and gochujang. Also try slow cooker spicy braised pork ribs.
These chicken wings are finger-licking delicious! The key ingredient of the sticky, sweet, and spicy marinade is gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste). Also try yangnyeom chicken and dakgangjeong.
Ssamjang is typically made with a combination of doenjang and/or gochujang along with some other ingredients for additional flavoring and texture. It’s a must for Korean BBQ!
This Instant Pot adaptation of a classic Korean chicken dish is so quick and easy! It’s packed with so much flavors! Also try the stove top dakdoritang.
Simply blanch (or steam) the asparagus and dress with a sweet and vinegary gochujang sauce, called cho-gochujang (초고추장). Also try it with blanched broccoli.
The squid is cut into bite-sized pieces and stir-fried in a slightly sweet gochujang based sauce along with some vegetables. The red spicy sauce adds a burst of spicy flavor to the crisp vegetables and tender squid!
The eggplants are stir fried with simple seasonings, including gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste). It adds a nice kick to the tender eggplants. If you like it spicier, add some gochugaru (Korean red chili pepper flakes).
These savory pancakes made with garlic chives are seasoned with gochujang. You can simply add gochujang, doenjang or a combination. In this recipe, I just used gochujang. It adds a nice spicy kick to the pancakes.
Try it as a baste on chicken wings or pork ribs, or added to soup broths like in my Spicy Pork Miso Noodle Soup. Gochujang can also be used in marinades for meat dishes like Korean bulgogi, stirred into dipping sauces, or used to punch up stews.
Before opening, gochujang and gochujang sauce do not need to be refrigerated. Once opened, a lot of people recommend keeping the sauce and the paste in the fridge to help them retain freshness.
Unlike a lot of hot sauces, which are made mainly with chilies and vinegar, gochujang also contains — along with gochu (Korean hot peppers) — sticky glutinous rice, fermented soy beans and salt, which is what gives it that addictive, umami taste.
Uses. Gochujang is used in various dishes such as bibimbap and tteokbokki, and in salads, stews, soups, and marinated meat dishes. Gochujang may make dishes spicier (depending on the capsaicin in the base chili), but also can make dishes sweeter and smokier.
Gochujang, a fundamental ingredient in Korean cooking, is a thick and spicy-sweet crimson paste made from red chile pepper flakes, glutinous rice (also known as sticky rice), fermented soybeans, and salt.
Gochujang maintains the health benefits of red chili peppers, containing an abundance of beta-carotene and vitamin C that have antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic effects.
Once opened, it is best to consume it within 1 year. Keeping it in the refrigerator will help maximize its shelf life. If frozen, gochujang base can be extended by another 6 months to a year. However, freezing is not often necessary because of its already long shelf life.
Although it is rarely, if ever, used as a finishing sauce, gochujang can be used straight from the tub. In fact, many Koreans will eat it as is as an accompaniment to raw vegetables (like crudité) and dried anchovies.
If the product emits an off smell or the taste is strange and not typical of the fermented condiment, it may have gone bad. Spoilage Signs: Presence of Mold: This is a clear indication that the gochujang should not be consumed. Off Smell: Any sour or unfamiliar odors can signal spoilage.
Capsaicin, one of the active components in chili peppers used in making gochujang plays an important role in increasing metabolism and energy expenditure, helping you to lose weight faster.
In conclusion, Gochujang showed anti-hepatic inflammation effects via reduced lipid accumulation, hepatic injury, and inflammatory response together with reorganization of gut microbiota dysbiosis regardless of salt content and the difference of micro bacteria composition.
You should avoid gochujang if you are allergic or have a sensitivity to any of its ingredients. If you experience any symptoms like hives, itching or swelling after consumption, discontinue use immediately and consult with your doctor. The amount of capsaicin present is generally safe to consume.
The most authentic gochujang replacement combines miso paste and sriracha with a little pinch of sugar. If you try to just swap in another Asian sauce like sriracha or sambal oelek as a 1:1 gochujang substitute, your dish will be spicier and more acidic than intended. Hot sauces contain vinegar, and gochujang does not.
Meet gochujang, the savory Korean sauce that, like sriracha, is made from fermented red peppers, but has a more savory, salty, deep flavor. “It's like hot sauce-meets-umami flavor,” chef Edward Lee, owner of 610 Magnolia & Milkwood in Louisville, Kentucky, told ABC News.
Take a culinary journey with the Gochujang Ramen with Beef, a dish that brings the spiciness and robust flavors of Gochujang chili sauce to a satisfying bowl of ramen. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the brown rice millet noodles for about 4 minutes or until tender.
Gochujang flavor is different from Sriracha, Sambal, or any other global red chili powder-based sauces. It is unique and has its own distinct flavor. It can sure be spicy depending on the brand; it is also slightly sweet, a little salty, and has some rich meaty flavor from the fermented soybeans.
Introduction: My name is Eusebia Nader, I am a encouraging, brainy, lively, nice, famous, healthy, clever person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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