Korean Gochujang Dipping Sauce
on Apr 13, 2021, Updated Jan 05, 2024
This sweet, spicy, and savory Korean Gochujang Dipping Sauce comes together in 5 minutes using 5 ingredients. Use this versatile sauce as a dip or salad dressing, or drizzle it over roasted veggies or avocado toast for an umami treat (vegetarian).
Table of Contents
About Gochujang Sauce
Gochujang Dipping Sauce is a sweet, spicy, and savory Korean sauce popular in Korean cuisine. It is traditionally called Chogochujang, sometimes shortened to Chojang, and has Gochujang (Korean chili paste) as one of its main ingredients.
Gochujang Sauce is almost always served with any Korean-style meal. It is so irresistible that you will start to drizzle it over everything you eat once you taste it.
This Korean hot sauce is often used in mixed rice dishes such as bibimbap and hew dup bap, but you can go ahead and add it to your favorite Korean or non-Korean recipes to add that sweet and spicy flavor. One of my favorite ways to use it on wings, especially Korean fried chicken wings. Yum!
This recipe is vegetarian and can be easily made vegan and gluten-free. You can double or triple it too.
If you love homemade sauce recipes, I have some more for you
- Seasoned Sour Cream
- Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce
- Harissa Sauce
- Peri Peri Sauce
- Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce
- Green Chilli Sauce
- Chinese Schezwan Sauce
- Creamy Garlic Parmesan Sauce
- Thai Peanut Sauce
- Lemon Herb Tahini
Ingredients
Gochujang – Gochujang paste is a popular Korean red chili paste made with glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, salt, Korean chili powder, and sometimes sweeteners. It needs fermentation for over a month.
Brick red in color, it is a thick and sticky paste that has a spicy, concentrated, and pungent flavor. A small amount of Gochujang paste adds an intense flavor and a spicy kick to your recipes, making them even more delicious.
It also comes in five levels of spiciness – mild hot, slightly hot, medium hot, very hot, and extremely hot. You can select one of them, depending on how spicy you want the sauce to be.
You can get gochujang in the Asian food aisle of any grocery store or Korean grocery store or order it online.
Use a gluten-free gochujang paste to make a gluten-free recipe.
Brown Sugar and Honey – To balance the heat of gochujang, sugar and honey are added to this Korean Gochujang sauce.
Replace honey with maple syrup or agave nectar to make the recipe vegan.
Garlic is one of my favorite ingredients that adds flavor to the sauce.
Rice Vinegar adds a nice tangy taste and will complement the sweet-spicy flavor of the other ingredients.
A little bit of sesame oil adds a rich, nutty, toasty taste. So do not miss this one.
Add ½ teaspoon of Xanthan gum to this recipe to stabilize the sauce. It is a natural ingredient with no harmful effects on the body.
How To Make Gochujang Dipping Sauce
Add
- 4 tablespoon Gochujang paste
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
to a medium-sized mixing bowl and mix well using a small wire whisk.
Note – Thin the sauce using warm water if it is too thick.
Transfer the sauce to a glass container and refrigerator for up to a month. Use as desired.
Pro Tips By Neha
Gochujang comes in five-spice levels. So select it depending on how spicy you want the dipping sauce.
Gochujang has a pungent fermented flavor. Therefore, there is no substitute for it. But if you do not get it, you can make a paste of red pepper flakes, soy sauce, and sugar.
You can substitute rice vinegar with white vinegar or white wine vinegar, too.
To thin the sauce, use warm water and mix it properly. Also, if you want to make it thicker, use less rice vinegar.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, they are not the same. Gochujang paste is a thick and spicy Korean condiment made from red chili powder, rice flour, fermented soybeans, and other ingredients. On the other hand, Gochujang sauce is a sauce with Gochujang paste as one of its main ingredients. Both versions of gochujang are popular in Korean cuisine and can be found in grocery stores and specialty Asian markets.
Some possible additions to gochujang sauce include other seasonings and herbs, such as black pepper, fresh ginger, jalapeno, scallions (green onions), or cilantro. Make it citrusy by adding some freshly squeezed lime juice. Some people also add fish sauce and sesame seeds to their recipes.
Usage Suggestions
This Korean dipping sauce is a versatile dipping sauce that can be used as a dip or salad dressing. It has a great umami flavor and will make your boring salads delicious.
It is added to mixed rice recipes, popularly in bibimbap and hews dup bap.
You can use it to marinate meat and seafood.
This spicy sauce can be served as a dip along with Egg Rolls, Oven Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges, chicken wings, roasted vegetables, roasted or grilled chicken, and grilled seafood.
Drizzle this spicy dipping sauce on avocado toast, sandwiches, or burgers to add a nice spicy flavor.
I also like to add Gochujang sauce to my soups and stews. It instantly adds such beautiful flavors that make everything taste so good.
You can also serve it on the side with your rice bowls or Buddha bowls.
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Korean Gochujang Dipping Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons Gochujang paste (use a gluten-free paste for a gluten-free recipe)
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey (replace with maple syrup or agave nectar for a vegan recipe)
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
Instructions
- Add Gochujang, brown sugar, honey, rice wine vinegar, garlic, and sesame oil to a medium-size mixing bowl and mix well using a small wire whisk.
- Note – Thin the sauce using warm water if it is too thick.
- Transfer the Gochujang sauce to a glass container and refrigerator for up to a month. Use as desired.
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