What Is Gochujang? What It Tastes Like and How to Use It

You buy a tub of gochujang for one recipe.

You use a spoonful.

Then the rest of the tub sits there while you wonder what else you're supposed to do with it.

If that sounds familiar, this guide is for you.

Gochujang is one of the most useful ingredients in Korean cooking once you understand what it brings to food. It can add heat, sweetness, savoury depth and a richer flavour to everything from rice bowls and marinades to noodles and sauces.

The good news is that you don't need to cook complicated Korean recipes to make use of it.

So, what exactly is gochujang?

Gochujang is a thick Korean red pepper paste with a spicy, sweet and savoury flavour.

Traditional gochujang is a fermented condiment made using red chilli pepper, a starch such as glutinous rice, fermented soybean ingredients and salt. Recipes and ingredients vary between manufacturers, so it is always worth checking the label of the product you are buying.

Unlike a normal chilli sauce, gochujang has a dense, paste-like texture.

You normally use it by the spoonful rather than pouring it over food.

That is an important distinction because a little can change the flavour of an entire sauce or dish.

What does gochujang taste like?

Calling gochujang simply "spicy" doesn't really explain it.

A good way to think about the flavour is:

spicy + savoury + slightly sweet + fermented depth

The chilli gives it heat, but there is more happening underneath.

That deeper savoury character is why gochujang works so well in marinades, stews and sauces rather than behaving like an ordinary hot sauce.

The CJ Haechandle Gochujang we stock at Asian Larder has a thick texture and a savoury, sweet and spicy flavour profile. Its ingredients include red pepper paste, rice ingredients, soybean and koji, among other ingredients.

Is gochujang very spicy?

It can be spicy, but don't assume every gochujang has exactly the same heat level.

The intensity varies between products, and people's chilli tolerance varies even more.

Gochujang also tends to feel different from a thin chilli sauce because its heat comes alongside sweetness and savoury flavour.

If you're new to it, the easiest rule is:

Start with less than you think you need.

Try half a teaspoon or a teaspoon in your sauce, taste it, and then add more.

You can always add another spoonful.

Taking one back out is rather more difficult.

Do you eat gochujang straight from the tub?

You can use gochujang in uncooked sauces and dips, but it is usually mixed with other ingredients rather than eaten by itself in large amounts.

For example, it can be mixed with ingredients such as:

• sesame oil
• soy sauce
• rice vinegar
• sugar or honey
• garlic
• mayonnaise
• a little water

The exact combination depends on what you're making.

This is also why someone who tastes a spoonful straight from the tub may think:

"That's quite strong."

Then they use it properly in a sauce and get a completely different impression.

What can you actually make with gochujang?

This is where the tub becomes useful.

1. Tteokbokki

If you've eaten Korean spicy rice cakes, you've probably already seen one of gochujang's most familiar uses.

Gochujang forms part of the rich, red sauce that coats the chewy rice cakes.

If you want to make it yourself, our How to Make Tteokbokki at Home guide includes an easy from-scratch version using gochujang.

Good for: anyone who bought gochujang specifically to start making Korean food at home.

2. A simple rice bowl sauce

This might be one of the easiest ways to use leftover gochujang.

Start with a small amount of gochujang and mix it with a little sesame oil, soy sauce and something sweet such as sugar or honey.

Add a splash of water if you want a thinner consistency.

Spoon a little over rice with vegetables, egg or your preferred protein.

Don't drown the bowl in sauce immediately. Add some, taste it, then decide whether you want more.

3. Gochujang mayo

This barely counts as cooking.

Mix:

2 tablespoons mayonnaise
with
about 1 teaspoon gochujang

Taste it.

Want more heat? Add a little more gochujang.

It works well as a dip or as a sauce for burgers, wraps, chips and fried foods.

It is also a useful introduction for someone who finds straight gochujang too intense.

4. Stir-fried noodles

You don't need a specialist noodle recipe every time.

A small spoonful of gochujang can be added to a stir-fry sauce with ingredients such as soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and a little sweetness.

Add your cooked noodles and vegetables, toss everything together and adjust to taste.

The important part is not to treat gochujang as though it were tomato ketchup.

A little goes a long way.

5. Marinades

Gochujang works particularly well when you want a marinade with heat and savoury depth.

Try combining it with:

• soy sauce
• sesame oil
• garlic
• a little sugar or honey

Then adjust the balance depending on what you're cooking.

It can be used with meat, tofu or vegetables.

Because gochujang and soy sauce can both contribute saltiness, taste your mixture before adding extra salt.

6. Soups and stews

A spoonful of gochujang can also add colour, chilli heat and depth to soups and stews.

This is particularly useful when you have made something that tastes a little flat and want more than simply adding chilli powder.

Add a small amount first, dissolve it into the broth and taste before adding more.

7. Fried rice

Leftover rice, vegetables, an egg and a little gochujang can become a very easy meal.

Instead of adding a large spoonful directly into the pan, start small and mix it through thoroughly.

You want it coating the rice rather than sitting in one very spicy patch.

Gochujang vs sriracha: are they the same thing?

No.

Both contain chilli, but they behave very differently.

Sriracha is normally a thinner, pourable chilli sauce.

Gochujang is a thick fermented Korean pepper paste.

That means they do different jobs in cooking.

If a recipe relies on gochujang for body, sweetness and fermented savoury flavour, replacing it with a squirt of ordinary chilli sauce will change more than just the heat.

Likewise, if you simply want something you can drizzle straight over a meal, gochujang may need to be mixed into a sauce first.

So rather than thinking of gochujang as "Korean sriracha", think of it as a cooking ingredient and sauce base of its own.

Is gochujang the same as gochugaru?

Another easy one to mix up.

They are not the same.

Gochujang is a thick fermented red pepper paste.

Gochugaru is Korean red chilli pepper in flake or powder form.

They can appear in some of the same dishes, but you shouldn't assume you can swap one for the other in equal amounts.

One is a dry chilli ingredient.

The other is a seasoned paste with its own sweetness, saltiness and fermented flavour.

How much gochujang should you use?

There isn't one measurement that works for every recipe.

For someone trying it for the first time, though, we would rather see you start cautiously than ruin dinner with four tablespoons of something you've never tasted before.

For a small sauce or individual portion:

start around half a teaspoon to one teaspoon.

Taste it.

Then increase it if you want more chilli and gochujang flavour.

For a larger recipe, follow the recipe first and adjust next time based on your own taste.

What if your food becomes too spicy?

Don't immediately throw it away.

Depending on the dish, you may be able to balance it by increasing the other ingredients.

For a sauce, that might mean more mayonnaise, sweetness or another neutral ingredient.

For noodles or rice, adding more of the unsauced base can spread the heat across a larger portion.

For some dishes, dairy or a creamy ingredient may also soften the overall impression of chilli.

The exact fix depends on what you're cooking, so prevention is easier.

Again, start small.

Does gochujang need to be cooked?

Not necessarily.

Gochujang can be used in both cooked dishes and uncooked mixtures.

You might simmer it into tteokbokki sauce or a stew.

But you can also mix a small amount into mayonnaise, a dipping sauce or another cold condiment.

The question is less about whether it must be cooked and more about what you're trying to make.

How should you store gochujang after opening?

Always check the instructions on the tub you actually bought.

Storage directions can differ between products and markets, and packaging information should take priority over a general internet rule.

For the CJ Haechandle Gochujang 500g currently sold by Asian Larder, our product information advises storing it in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight before opening and following the storage instructions printed on the packaging after opening.

The same principle applies to shelf life.

Follow the date and storage guidance on your individual pack rather than relying on a generic timeframe from a recipe website.

Is a 500g tub too much for a beginner?

It can look like a lot when you've only bought it for one recipe.

But that's exactly why learning a few everyday uses matters.

You don't need to make tteokbokki every week just to finish your gochujang.

Use a little in:

Monday's rice bowl.

A spoonful in a midweek noodle sauce.

Mix some into mayo at the weekend.

Use it in a marinade the following week.

Once you stop treating gochujang as an ingredient for one specific Korean recipe, the tub starts making much more sense.

A good first way to try gochujang

If you've never cooked with it before, don't make your first experiment complicated.

Make some rice.

Cook an egg and whatever vegetables you already like.

Then mix a small amount of gochujang with sesame oil, soy sauce, a touch of sweetness and enough water to loosen it.

Add a little to your bowl.

Taste.

Add more if you want it.

That's enough to understand what gochujang brings to food without buying ten other ingredients first.

So, is gochujang worth keeping in the kitchen?

If you enjoy Korean food, spicy-savoury flavours or experimenting with sauces, it can be an extremely useful ingredient.

But you don't need to start using it in everything.

Start with one dish.

Learn what it tastes like.

Then try it in something familiar.

That's usually a better way to discover a new ingredient than buying it because somebody told you it is a "must-have pantry essential".

At Asian Larder, we currently stock CJ Haechandle Gochujang Hot Pepper Paste 500g, a Korean red pepper paste suitable for dishes such as bibimbap, marinades, sauces, stews and stir-fries.

And if tteokbokki is the reason you came looking for gochujang in the first place, our How to Make Tteokbokki at Home guide will take you through the next step.

Ingredients, allergens, recipes and storage instructions can change between products. Always check the information printed on your individual packaging before use.