As Americans continue to crave all things spicy, the old-school ingredient finds its way to the grocery store and local Asian fusion menus.
Thick, spicy-sweet, and vibrant red, gochujang is a chili paste made from fermented soybeans, chili powder, malt, salt, and glutinous rice. It’s not quite a sauce: The condiment is classified as a “jang,” one of the foundational ingredients of Korean cuisine. According to The Journal of Ethnic Foods, jangs are often used in place of salt in Korean cooking. Gochujang adds a spicy, slightly sweet, umami flavor to dishes—from soups and stews to rice and noodle bowls, dipping sauces, and more.
Courtesy of Mother in Law’s Gochujang
Gochujang has been used for hundreds of years, with some records dating the jang back to 9th-century Korea. Traditionally, it’s slowly fermented in an earthenware pot (called a jangdok) which transforms the rice starch into a sugar, giving it a subtle sweetness.
According to Google Trends, the popularity of gochujang as a search term has increased steadily over the past five years in the U.S. Statista, an international statistics portal, estimates the global market value for fermented goods will reach nearly $990 billion by 2032, up from $575.6 billion in 2022—and the trendcasters at Whole Foods predicted that 2024 would be the year of “complex heat.”
The condiment, which is typically packaged in red tubs or jars, is easy to find in the international aisle; popular brands include Mother in Law’s, Bibigo, Sempio, O’Food, and Haechandle.
Photo courtesy of Bibigo
Don’t feel like trying it at home? You can sample gochujang-forward dishes at several spots across the Valley. Good Night in Woodstock uses the condiment with butter and pickled daikon in their fried chicken drumette and wing small plate; Beacon-based Eat Church food truck frequently serves up Korean chicken wings topped with gochujang; and Korean tacos—filled with a choice of protein, kimchi, and gochujang mayo—are on the menu at Yum Yum Noodle Bar (in Kingston, Red Hook, and Woodstock).
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