What is Gochujang? 13 Gochujang Recipes You Need to Try (2024)

FAQs

What do I use gochujang for? ›

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.

Gochujang (Korean: 고추장; Korean pronunciation: [kotɕʰudʑɑŋ]) or red chili paste is a savory, sweet, and spicy fermented condiment popular in Korean cooking. It is made from gochu-garu (chili powder), glutinous rice, meju (fermented soybean) powder, yeotgireum (barley malt powder), and salt.

While gochujang boasts loud flavors of chiles, sweet rice, and a slight tang, it also contains something deeper that makes it so irresistible — the umami that comes from fermentation. Umami is the fifth taste, along with sweet, salty, bitter, and sour.

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.

You can add spicy ingredients like Gochujang paste, red pepper/chili flakes, or hot sauce, and then mix it into your cooked noodles for a fiery kick. Just be aware of how it might change the texture of your ramen noodles. For instance, red pepper flakes or chilli powder won't usually change the textures of dishes.

Gochujang Health Benefits

Korean red pepper paste is even registered with the Codex Alimentarius Commission, which is an organization that promotes international food quality. It is now widely accepted that gochujang can be instrumental in weight loss and the treatment of diabetes.

Like miso, another fermented product, gochujang needs to be sealed and refrigerated after opening the package.

What does gochujang taste like? Sure, gochujang has heat — depending on the brand, it can be extraordinarily spicy — but it also has a salty, almost meaty depth and a slight sweetness. In other words, it's not a one-note hot sauce that you add to a dish after the fact.

Recipe FAQs

Gochujang and tomato paste, though they look similar, are not even remotely the same thing! Tomato paste is reduced tomato concentrate, while gochujang has no tomato in it and is a fermented chili paste.

Long Shelf Life: Thanks to its fermentation process and high salt content, Gochujang boasts a long shelf life. Stored properly in a cool, dark place, it can last for months, if not years. This makes it a convenient pantry staple for adding instant flavor to dishes.

What are the side effects of Gochujang sauce? ›

Risks and Side Effects

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.

At Mother-in-Law's, our gochujang is made using traditional ingredients like malt syrup, rice flour, non-gmo soybeans, and non-gmo chile peppers. We never use MSG in our products so that the flavor you get is the true, natural flavor of fermentation.

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.

It's like sriracha but has a deeper flavor profile with less vinegar and more sweetness. Gochujang is also less spicy than sriracha, so if you like sweet-spicy combinations then gochujang will be the perfect addition to your kitchen pantry.

Gochujang is a spicy-sweet sauce that's a great marinade for plant-based proteins like tofu, seitan, and tempeh. It's also great with veggies like cauliflower or eggplant! Can you eat gochujang paste raw? It's safe to eat gochujang paste raw, but I don't recommend it.

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.

Sure, gochujang has heat – depending on the brand, it can be extraordinarily spicy – but it also has a salty, almost meaty depth and a slight sweetness. In other words, it's not a one-note hot sauce that you add to a dish after the fact. If you want to see Korean chefs bristle, tout gochujang as the "next Sriracha".

Gochujang is a bright red chili paste similar to gochugaru, the Korean chili powder—both come from the taeyangcho pepper but undergo entirely different production processes. Gochujang is a thick, fermented condiment that's spicy, sweet, and often appears in Korean cooking.

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.