Gochujang Sauce

Jeff the Chef
"Gochujang Sauce," from Make It Like a Man!

I don’t know a lot about Korean food – except how much I love to eat it. But I do know my way around a kitchen. I have modeled this sauce on some reputable recipes, and it kicks ass.

Gochujang Sauce
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Gochujang Sauce

Makes

1.5

cups

Ingredients

  • 4 scallions, cut into 1-inch pieces

  • 10 garlic cloves, peeled.

  • 1 three-inch piece (peeled) ginger, very coarsely chopped

  • 2 Tbs safflower (or vegetable) oil

  • ¾ cup gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)

  • ½ cup ketchup

  • ⅓ cup fresh lime juice, or 2 cups OJ (from 3 large oranges)

  • 2 Tbs light brown sugar

  • 3 Tbs plum sauce

  • 1 Tbs fish sauce

  • 1 Tbs soy sauce

  • 1-3 Tbs rice vinegar

  • Salt, optional

  • 1 Tbs sesame oil, optional

Directions

  • Pulse scallions, garlic, and ginger in a food processor until finely chopped.
  • Heat safflower oil in a large skillet over a medium-high flame (setting 5 of 9). Add contents of processor and cook, stirring often, until softened, golden, and seriously sticking to bottom of pan, about 4 minutes. Add 1/4-cup water and deglaze pan. Reduce heat to lowest setting and add gochujang, ketchup, lime juice, sugar, plum sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, and 1 Tbs vinegar, and stir until smooth. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often at first, and constantly toward the end, to prevent scorching. Cook until satiny and thick as a very hearty gravy, 5–10 minutes. Off heat. The sauce will thicken further as it cools.
  • Season with salt (perhaps 1/4 tsp) and more rice vinegar, if needed. If the sauce it too intense, sesame oil will tame it somewhat.

Notes

  • I don’t feel it’s necessary to peel the ginger, but do it if you like.
"Gochujang Sauce," from Make It Like a Man!

This is a powerfully tasty, versatile sauce. Intense. Maybe not for everyone, because it’s a bit of a taste explosion. But if you’re a foodie, and you really love amazing flavors, you’ll do backflips over this sauce. Use it to barbecue, or use it as a condiment. Stir it into white rice. I love to garnish chicken salad with it.

Whether you use lime or orange juice will make a big difference. If intensity is what you love, lime is for you. You can tone it down as described in Step 3. The orange juice might leave you needing more salt and vinegar.

Unless Korean cooking is squarely in your wheelhouse, you’re going to have to quest to find gochujang. It will help if you conjur up images of it with your cellphone, so you can see what the packaging looks like. It will also help you to know that it’s a “pepper paste.” If you show the barcode of something you suspect to be gochujang to Alexa, she’ll know if it is or not.

"Gochujang Sauce," from Make It Like a Man!
Gochujang Sauce

Credit for images on this page: Make It Like a Man!, unless otherwise indicated. Thank you, Kesor and Proper Circle. This content was not solicited by anyone, nor was it written in exchange for anything. References: Bon Appetit, Epicurious, Martha Stewart. 

Ranked by Feedspot as #14 in the Top 30 Men’s Cooking Blogs, and rising! Eleven intriguingly mysterious notches above Alton Brown. It must’ve been the pierogi.

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49 thoughts on “Gochujang Sauce”

  1. The boys love bibimbap, always wanted to know how to make this sauce, definitely trying this – it sounds delicious and like an umami bomb!

    Reply

    • Oh! I should make you some, then. Next time you come over, we’ll have it.

      Reply

  3. I LOVE gochujang sauce. I use it on rice and chicken. I will be trying it on BBQ this summer. I bet that will be amazing.
    Thanks for sharing!!
    Lori recently posted…My Weekly W’s

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  6. Interesting! I didn’t know Alexa could help me identify bar codes – does she have no limit!? In other news, I’m like you with Korean food. I do enjoy it, but I don’t have a lot of experience cooking it. I should try this one out as I always enjoy playing around with new ingredients and cooking styles!
    David @ Spiced recently posted…Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread

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    • My favorite thing to do with this sauce so far was to make gochujang fried rice. It was amazing. I’ll post about it soon.

      Reply

    • I’m sure you’ll find some really creative uses for this sauce. I spread a little on a chicken salad wrap, and loved that. My favorite thing so far has been to use it to create a fried rice that I just couldn’t get enough of.

      Reply

  8. Jeff,
    The vibrant colours of this sauce are truly going to manifest my wish of eating Korean come true. Love how you have manoeuvred the entire recipe so well.

    Reply

  9. Wow! I just came from Eva’s Kitchen Inspirations where she made her own soy sauce. Now this. Are you guys starting a restaurant without me? GREG

    Reply

  14. My son got me a Bibimbap pot a couple of years ago so I make variations of it often. Clearly this is the sauce that should go with it. I’ll fill a jar with it very soon. Love Korean food. Awesome recipe, Jeff! 🙂 ~Valentina

    Reply

  15. I’ve never had Gochujang Sauce Jeff, but I love all the flavors here! This sounds like the type of sauce my husband and I get addicted to, and proceed to put on just about anything. 😋. Excited to try it!
    shannon recently posted…Easy Tortilla Pizzas

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  16. I’m a huge fan of gochujang paste, and was able to find a brand that doesn’t have garlic. You have to realize how hard that is… Obviously, I will skip the 10 cloves garlic in this recipe (Ha ha!) but the sauce seems like a really good condiment have in the refrigerator.

    Reply

  17. Yum. This sauce looks amazing and there is nothing like a good sauce to enhance a meal. I’ve never tasted Gochujang sauce, but I’m gonna give your recipe a try.

    Reply

  18. I am a Gochujang sauce addict. Love it and how excited to see a recipe for it. Love making my own condiments because you can adjust to your own personal tastes and diet restrictions. You recipe looks awesome! Thanks for sharing.
    mjskitchen recently posted…Green Chile, Leek and Potato Soup

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  22. I just love the complexity of Asian sauces, they are nothing like I’ve ever tasted! I’ll probably have to reduce the hot pepper paste, just can’t do hot sauces anymore, sadly. The colour of this sauce is incredible! I’m definitely going to look into it.
    Eva Taylor recently posted…Herbaceous Mint Sauce

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