The Red Sauce of the East

With the continuing onslaught of the South Korean culture waves- Hallyu- over the past aughties washing in the latest k-pop, k-drama, k-film, k-fashion, and of course k-cuisine to shores as far and deep as the likes of South Africa and Bolivia, it's inevitable that you'll be hearing and seeing a lot of red in your food (if you haven't already). Red as in goju jang red, not tomato red.

Commonly romanized as goju jang고추장, the Korean red pepper paste is a cornerstone in Korean cuisine. The traditional recipe consists of powdered chili pepper and glutinous rice added to soybean paste, which are then set to ferment under the hot sun. Throughout its three hundred plus years history, nuanced variants have been produced from barley, short grain rice, and other staple grains in South Korea.

Goju jang is used straight from the tub as a condiment and spread to everything from stew, like soft tofu stew soondobu jjigae, to stir fries like vegetable stir fry yachae bokkeum.

The selections of goju-jang in the markets here around New York have gotten better, but of course it drowns in comparison to the stock found in Korea. I must have bought at least 2 dozen variations during my stay there. It was hard not to bite the bait! I’m not talking about just commercially sold brands, but also homemade and small production houses' versions that are sold at open air markets and off pickup trucks in plastic tubs and clay jars.

A sampling of commercial brands I’ve tried are Wang (somewhat mild and bland), CJ (from fiery to mild but consistently delicious), Daesang (comparable to CJ), Choripong (mild, too sweet, and on the lower quality end), Maeil (salty and deep), and Assi (mid-range heat and a tad salty) .


Note: The following recipes’ proportions are what I find ideal to my taste for the Assi Brand goju jang I’m presently using! Each brand’s goju jang has a different taste and heat profile which requires a bit tweaking with the measurements. Some can scrape off the tastebuds while others are palatable for a year old baby (though I relinquish any responsibility for the latter action if you decide to test it out.)

There are also different grades of goju jang under each brand, so it’ll take a few tubs of trial and error to find the ones you like. There are yet to be an accepted consumer friendly rating system for the heat level for hot pepper paste. The Korean government is trying to implement one, but as yet each manufacturer has its own abstruse system.

Another note is I emphasize the country of origin for certain ingredients because the type and variety of raw ingredients used and/or cooking method makes them uniquely differentiable from their counterparts in other regional cuisines, thus, for the most part are not substitutable.

A . BARE GOJU JANG DIP & CONDIMENT

This literally takes me 30 seconds to whip up. It’s a stripped down version of my DRESSED GOJU JANG DIP & CONDIMENT (below). I use it as a dip for steamed broccoli or other veggies and a quick sauce for the dozens of noodle varieties I have in my pantry (yes, even for spaghetti!) When you have an affinity for it, goju jang goes well with too many things!

  

Makes about 3/4 - 1 cup sauce (depending on the liquid ingredients you use)

• 3 tablespoons goju jang paste
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar or 2 tablespoons mirin (sweet sake) or 1½ heaping tablespoon of honey
• ¾ tablespoon sesame seed oil (more according to taste)
• 1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce (preferably a Japanese or Korean brewed brand)
• 1 teaspoon Korean ground red pepper (extra spicy kick and depth but optional)
• 2 teaspoons toasted white sesame seeds
  
  Mix thoroughly. Done and ready!

B. DRESSED GOJU JANG DIP & CONDIMENT
Makes about 1 cup

• 3 tablespoons goju jang paste
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar or 2 tablespoons mirin or 1 ½ tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon sesame seed oil (or more according to taste)
• 1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce (preferably a Japanese or Korean brewed brand) 
• 1 teaspoon Korean ground red pepper (extra spicy kick and depth but optional)
• 2 teaspoons toasted white sesame seeds
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 scallion, thinly sliced; should yield about ¼ cup
• 1 teaspoon soju, sake or vodka

::Directions::
1. Heat the sesame oil and brown sugar (if using the latter for sweetness) in a dry saucepan over low heat.

2. When the sugar starts to melt, add the garlic, and alcohol. When the alcohol has burned off, turn off the fire.

3. Toss in the scallion and the rest of the ingredients (including mirin or honey if this is your sweetener of choice) and give them a whirl. Add more sesame oil and adjust seasoning to taste.

4. Let sauce cool before using. 

Tofu Puffs sauteed in gojujang

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