What is gochujang and what can you do with it?
We love, no wait: LOVE Korean cuisine. From that tender bulgogi in a lettuce leaf (ssam) and the tastiest Korean Fried Chicken; delicious! Want to cook Korean food at home? Then gochujang should not be missing from your Korean pantry.
When people think of Korean cuisine, they often think of kimchi, bulgogi, real KFC and soju – the best-selling spirit in the world! But there is so much more. And gochujang is used in many dishes.
What is gochujang?
Gochujang is Korean fermented chili pepper paste. It is used to make dishes spicier and sweeter. And as for the heat; in terms of spiciness, gochujang is just below sriracha sauce. Gochujang has binding properties, making it ideal not only as a dipping sauce, but also for making sauces and marinades. It makes meat and vegetables incredibly delicious. I often marinate my chicken breast in a mixture of gochujang, soy sauce, onion, sugar and garlic. Delicious!
Much to my son’s annoyance, I never stick to standard measurements and never use the same ingredients, which means I also never know exactly what was in that delicious marinade the last time. I do everything by feel, because cooking is freestyling, as far as I’m concerned. But gochujang is a constant in my marinades.
Cooking with gochujang
The versatile pepper paste is also indispensable for Korean fried chicken. And a little gochujang is definitely a must in bibimbap. And do you love the combination of sweet, spicy and fatty? Then marinate your pork belly slices in a marinade starring gochujang.
Ssamjang
And finally, with gochujang you can make the delicious ssamjang. Ssanjang is very suitable as a dipping sauce for vegetables, but especially delicious with bulgogi. Made with gochujang and doenjang (fermented soybean paste). Ssam means something like ‘wrapped food’ (rice wrapped in a lettuce leaf, for example), while jang refers to sauces that are fermented. You can simply buy ssamjang ready-made at the Asian supermarket, just like doenjang and gochujang.
You can buy gochujang at most supermarkets.
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