Get ready for an explosion of flavour. Spice up your weeknight meals with this quick and easy Saucy Korean Gochujang Noodles recipe! You will love these fiery noodles…
What Is Gochujang?
Gochujang Paste is a traditional Korean fermented red chilli paste made from chilli, soybeans, and glutinous rice. With a concentrated smokey and spicy flavour, it is used in marinades and sauces. Rich, thick and sticky it can transform the flavour of a dish and add a spicy kick. I love spicy food and love using Gochujang in my cooking. This paste can vary in heat levels from brand to brand so be mindful of this when buying and check the label.
How To Use Gochujang
The paste itself is very thick so it needs to be used as the base of a good sauce or to incorporate into a dish like in stews or spicy soups. A small amount goes a long way and it is perfect for use in spicy marinades
Udon Noodles – Fresh vs Dried
In this recipe I have opted to use thick fresh udon noodles. I like to have a bit of chew and texture in my saucy gochujang noodles. I wanted to make this recipe quite quick and straight forward so opted not to use dried udon. Dried noodles take longer to cook.
How To Make Gochujang Noodles
This dish is super quick to make and is low on technique…
- Saute the mushrooms – the first step is to saute the mushrooms to develop some good flavour on them and get rid of the water they contain. Once golden they are ready!
- Combine all your ingredients for your sauce and combine until well mixed
- Saute the red pepper until softened and slightly caramelized
- Add the sauce and noodles and toss until thoroughly combined – easy as that!
Watch How to Make
FAQ’s
They are not the same thing. The paste is used as the base of the sauce and needs to be diluted with other additions to make your preferred sauce, such as vinegars and oils.
Gochujang is lovely and smoky yet spicy and slightly sweet. It’s like a mix of sriracha and miso in flavour.
This will depend on the brand you use as it can vary and be very spicy in some brands. I used this brand of Gochujang in my recipe.
Try My Other Recipes
Saucy Korean Gochujang Noodles
Ingredients
- 300 g Fresh Udon Noodles
- 2 garlic cloves
- 100 g Shitake mushrooms
- 1 Red Pepper sliced into thin battons
- 1 tsp white roasted sesame seeds
- Sauce
- 2 tsp tahini
- 2 tsp gochujang paste
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp water more if needed
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 spring onion sliced for garnish
Instructions
- Begin by mixing all the wet ingredients togethor to make your sauce then set aside
- Slice the red pepper, spring onions, mushrooms and. Chop your garlic. Remove the stems from the shiitake as they are chewy.
- Bring a pot of salted water to the boil for the noodles
- Add some neutral oil to a pan with some butter and turn the heat to medium- high
- Add the sliced mushrooms and saute
- Once they start to turn golden, add the sliced pepper and saute for 2 minutes
- Add the noodles to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes then drain
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute
- Add the drained noodles and sauce to the pan and toss to thoroughly combine
- Plate the noodles and garnish with spring onions, roasted sesame seeds and lime wedges
