You may not know the name before but you'd find this reddish paste with rich flavour in most Korean dishes such as used to marinate bulgogi, or mixed in bibimbap or tteokbokki to make the food spicier. So what is Gochujang?
It's a Korean condiment made by adding powdered red chili pepper and glutinous rice powder to soy bean paste. Traditionally it's made through years of fermentation process in large earthen pots outdoor, more often on an elevated stone platform called jangdokdae in the backyard.
Gochujang is also used as a base for making other condiments like Chogochujang and Ssamjang. Chogochujang is a variant mixture of gochujang mainly with vinegar and oter seasoning like sugar and sesame seeds. It's usually used as a sauce for hoedeopbap (steamed rice mixed with raw fish, vegetables and sesame oil). Meantime, ssamjang is a mixture of mainly gochujang and doenjang, with chopped onions and other spicy seasonings, and is popular with sangchissahm, which is a lettuce wrap of marinated, grilled meat with sliced garlic and green chili pepper.
Children making Gochujang at Namsan folk village, Seoul
(Photo courtesy of Korea Times)
Gochujang is rich in proteins and the red pepper famous for its anti-bacterial and anti-cancer effects and the hot taste stimulates the skin to speed up the blood circulation. If you wouldn't bother to make your own then it's quite easy to find ready-to-use Gochujang sold in a jar in Asian supermarket.
(Source: Wikipedia)
韩国辣椒酱有点甜，但不够辣。不过我还蛮喜欢的，但是很多能吃辣的中国人会选择更辣的辣椒酱。
ReplyDeleteYes, especially Sichuan food! It burns my mouth and tongue :) but Korean food is hot enough for me.
ReplyDeleteReally?You like spicy food?My hometown's food is very lite,it isn't suit you.I also very like Sichuan food,and hot chafing dish,but every time I ate these food, my face was suffering.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like spicy food back then when I was kid, but now I like it,strange? But still couldn't eat the really hot one. Every time I eat Kimchi or Sichuan Mapo tofu my tongue got burnt! :)
ReplyDeleteI recently bought a jar of gochujang that had a cartoon of a man with fire behind his head and coming from his mouth, it was delicious. I am bald and it makes my head sweat but it is so good. I especially like to use it in a dipping sauce for cucumber slices. Thank you Korean people for making such delicious food!
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