Homemade Gochujang for Bibimbap

Name: Homemade Gochujang for Bibimbap
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 150 grams Barley miso; 50 grams Koji miso; 5 tbsp Light brown sugar (or white sugar); 3 tbsp Mirin; 2 tbsp Sake; 2 tbsp Soy sauce; 150 grams Mizuame (Japanese); 5 tbsp Coarse powdered chili (Korean); 5 tbsp Fine powdered chili powder (Korean); 3 tbsp Paprika powder (Korean)

cookpad.japan @cookpad_jp

Gochujang is originally a fermented miso using koji and chilli, similar to Japanese miso. If you try to make it from scratch, it will take a lot of time and labour. When she used to run a shop, my late grandmother asked a Korean BBQ restaurant owner to give her their recipe for gochujang. I changed it to suit my taste.

This is my own recipe, so adjust the amount of the ingredients to taste. You can store this in the fridge for a long time. When you have time, make it in batches. By adding a little gochujang to stews, braised fish, and dressings, you can easily enjoy a Korean flavour in your dishes. Recipe by Heartful Kitchen Rei

cookpad.japan @cookpad_jp

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Ingredients

150 gramsBarley miso
50 gramsKoji miso
5 tbspLight brown sugar (or white sugar)
3 tbspMirin
2 tbspSake
2 tbspSoy sauce
150 gramsMizuame (Japanese)
5 tbspCoarse powdered chili (Korean)
5 tbspFine powdered chili powder (Korean)
3 tbspPaprika powder (Korean)

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Steps

1

[For the miso:] The ideal ratio should be 3 parts barley miso to 1 part koji miso. You can use your usual miso. Make sure that the miso does not have added dashi!
2

[For the sugar:] You can use your usual sugar. I don't recommend any specific type. A small amount of muscovado or cane sugar will give a rich flavour.
3

[For the mizuame:] If you use Korean mizuame, it is very runny, so omit the mirin in the ingredients and substitute that amount with sugar.
4

[For the powdered chili:] Make sure that the powdered chili is Korean. If you use Japanese chili powder, it will be too hot and not suitable for gochujang.
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[For the Korean powdered chili:] Grinding chili in different ways produces varying degrees of spiciness and flavours. Coarsely powdered chili is ground with seeds, so it is very hot.
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By grinding only the flesh of the chili, fine chili powder is obtained. It has a beautiful orange colour and a mild flavour. Blend different kinds of chili powder...
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You will have a deep and complex flavour in the resultant gochujang. If you want to make this chili paste, this is a good occasion to buy different kinds of chili powder.
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[For the paprika powder:] This is optional, but it gives a vivid red colour and good flavour to gochujang. I recommend it.
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After you prepare all the ingredients, mix them together! Make sure that your bowl and spatula are very dry.
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Mix until very smooth. If you find the mixture too stiff and difficult to combine, place the bowl on a bain-marie. If you place the mixture over direct heat, you will lose the miso flavour.
11

Just continue to mix. Adjust the consistency with sake or mirin. If it is too stiff, it may be difficult to handle when used. It shouldn't be too runny, either.
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Once the mixture is smooth, transfer into a clean bottle or any container with a lid. Keep in the fridge. The gochujang should become more translucent and vivid in colour after several days.
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14

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15

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16

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