Gochujang Fried Rice – Bokkeumbap

Last Updated on 17/04/2020

Gochujang fried rice or Korean Bokkeumbap with kimchi, this spicy rice is addictive!

Bokkeumbap Recipe with Kimchi

Easy bokkeumbap or Korean fried rice with gochujang paste and kimchi.

 

 

I am so much into Korean (and Japanese) food lately, I cannot get enough of it. When it comes to Korean food, it all started with a rather large container of gochujang paste. I bought it to make some Korean oven-baked chicken wings and I was hooked.

I’ve made those particular chicken wings several times already, I used it to marinate chicken drumsticks and to make an amazing Korean chicken stew.

And then there is the kimchi… So good! I buy the kimchi in a Russian supermarket and I have to say I can eat it with pretty much anything: as an accompaniment to a hearty stew (even if I cooked a Romanian or German stew that has no hint of anything Korean or Asian in it), I eat kimchi with bread and cheese, with polenta dishes or with meatballs… Whatever!

But real, Korean kimchi is even better than, and lately I keep making it, I always seem to have a huge jar of it in the fridge. It is so easy to make!

What is gochujang?

• Gochujang paste is a Korean fermented condiment containing chili powder, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, and salt.
• It comes in several heat degrees, pay attention to that when purchasing gochujang paste.
• My medium gochujang paste is really hot, I always use slightly less than instructed in a recipe.

What is kimchi?

• Kimchi is a Korean dish of pickled vegetables. The best-known kind of kimchi in our parts of the world is made with napa cabbage.
• But otherwise, there are dozens and dozens of different kinds of kimchi. You could make it with other vegetables like white cabbage, different sorts of radishes, carrots, cucumber and so on. The kimchi I buy is usually made with white cabbage.
• In order to make kimchi, the vegetables are fermented with lactic acid bacteria and spiced with Korean red pepper gochugaru.
• Korean kimchi is full of nutrients and healthy microbes.
• The fermentation with the lactic acid bacteria is a natural process in which the bacteria feed on the sugar and starch in the food, creating the lactic acid and thus preserving the food.
• This natural fermentation preserves the nutrients in the vegetables and also makes them more digestible. The probiotics (good live bacteria and yeasts) are also formed during the fermentation process. This good bacteria helps improve digestion, it boosts immunity and helps us maintain a healthy weight.

 

How to make gochujang fried rice?

This is a very easy Korean bokkeumbap recipe using cheap and healthy ingredients.

Rice:

• The best kind of rice to use for gochujang fried rice is short-grain white rice.
• The rice needs to be cooked in advance, ideally the day before, but you could also cook it on the day you are cooking the recipe and leave it until completely cool.
• Rice leftovers can be used instead. As mentioned above, the best kind of rice to use for Korean rice is short-grain, but if I happen to have basmati or regular rice leftovers I would use those as well. The consistency will be a bit different, but the bokkeumbap will be equally delicious.

Kimchi:

• You will also need kimchi and some of its juices to cook bokkeumbap.
  
• I used about 250 g/ 8.8 oz kimchi, but a bit more or less is OK.

Gochujang paste:

• Use gochujang paste to taste, I have seen recipes using 2 or 3 tablespoons of the paste, but that is definitely too hot for us.
• I added one tablespoon gochujang sauce to our kimchi fried rice and found that perfect.
• You could start with about ¾ tablespoon and add more to taste.

Step by step:

• Chop the kimchi, leek and green bell pepper.

• Chop the whites of the spring onions and leave the greens for garnishing the dish.

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large pan over high heat. Add the kimchi, leeks, green pepper, and scallion whites and stir-fry for about 3 minutes.

• Whisk the kimchi juice, soy sauce and gochujang paste together.

• Add to the pan together with the cooked rice. Mix well to combine and fry on medium-low heat for about 3-5 minutes or until the rice is hot. Stir in the sesame seed oil and remove from the heat.

 

How to serve?

• I serve the Korean kimchi fried rice with some fried eggs on top, one or two per person, you can decide that.
• You can fry the eggs to your liking, the yolk can be runny or set.
• The egg yolks in the pictures are rather set (kids don’t like them runny), but personally I would always go for a runny yolk, I should have taken mine out of the frying pan one minute earlier…

 

More gochujang recipes?

Spicy Korean Chicken in Gochujang Sauce – A healthy and easy way of enjoying chicken Korean style.

Korean Chicken Wings in the Oven – These oven-baked chicken wings are just amazing. A Korean chicken recipe with gochujang sauce. 

Spicy Chicken Stew – How to make spicy Korean chicken stew with potatoes, tender chicken pieces and potatoes coated in a spicy sauce made with Gochujang paste.

Oven-Baked Chicken Drumsticks – Glazed with honey and gochujang paste, a spicy chicken recipe easy to make and thoroughly delicious.

Bokkeumbap - Gochujang Fried Rice

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Korean Bokkeumbap or Gochujang fried rice with kimchi, this spicy rice is addictive!

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Ingredients

• 300 g/ 10.6 oz/ 1 1/3 cups uncooked short-grain rice or 600 g/ 1.3 lbs/ about 4 cups cooked rice (See note 1)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 250 g/ 8.8 oz/ about 2 ½ cups kimchi
• 1 small leek, about 150 g/ 5.3 oz
• ½ green bell pepper
• 3 spring onions/scallions
• 4 tablespoons kimchi juice
• 1 tablespoon gochujang paste (See note 2)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seed oil
• 1 teaspoon roasted sesame seeds
• 4 eggs

Instructions

1. Chop the kimchi, leek and green bell pepper. Chop the whites of the spring onions and leave the greens for garnishing the dish.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large cast-iron skillet or nonstick pan over high heat. Add the kimchi, leeks, green pepper, and scallion whites and stir-fry for about 3 minutes.
3. Whisk together the kimchi juice, gochujang paste and soy sauce in a small bowl. Add the mixture to the skillet together with the cooked rice. Mix well to combine and fry on medium-low heat for about 3-5 minutes or until the rice is hot. Stir in the sesame seed oil and remove from the heat.
4. Heat the remaining tablespoon vegetable oil in a large pan. Fry the eggs to your liking.
5. Sprinkle the kimchi fried rice with the chopped scallion greens and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately with the fried eggs.
   

Notes

1. Ideally, the rice should be cooked one day in advance. If cooking the rice on the same day, make sure it is completely cool before making the kimchi fried rice. 300 g/ 10.6 oz / 1 1/3 cups uncooked rice yield more or less 600 g/ 1.3 lbs/ about 4 cups cooked rice.
2. Start with ¾ tablespoon gochujang paste and increase the amount (up to 3 tablespoons – very hot!) according to your heat tolerance.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1/4 of the dish
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 354Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 186mgSodium: 1051mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 12g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.