GoChuJang is one of the most important Korean ingredients. If you are into Korean food, you will need this for your Korean cooking. There are many different brands on the market, but “SoonChang (순창) Gochujang” is known as a very good brand in Korea.
- Use:
Side Dishes, Main Dishes, Soups, Dipping Sauces- Storage:
Once the container is opened, keep it in the refrigerator.- Short Korean lesson: *^^*
GoChuJang (고추장) = Red Pepper Paste
HI PLEASE HELP ME!! I’ve got a vinegared gochujang that expired 10 days ago. The vinegar taste is very strong. There’s no chili taste anymore. Can i still use it?
Hi Aeri!
I bought a packet of Hanil Red Pepper Powder to make kimchi, but I noticed that the colour in not red. It was pale/light yellow and it seemed that the red pepper didn’t mix well the the cabbage and brine (water). The colour of the Hanil red pepper is also darker than Bidan Red Pepper Powder ( I normally use). Pls help, because I can’t read Korean…. Thank you so much.
hi Ping,
It seems like.. the hot pepper powder can change the color when it become old.. especially if its poor quality ones.. I guess that’s why ? especially if you got Korean brand ..but didn’t work well for your kimchi.. thanks
Hello! i was just curious, a korean friend of mine told me its ok to use Gochujang after it expires but how much long after? a month? i know you should just throw it away after it expires but i have a lot and am too lazy to buy more lol.
hi Steph,
Yes, if you kept gochujang in the refrigerator once it’s opened.. it will be okay.. you can use it unless it gets mold or bad spot.. thanks
hi Aeri
i’m from msia….n here,we also have this some kind of pepper paste but idk if its the same as gochujang…its 100% chili pepper though..so can i use it??? i really3 wanna try to make tteokbokki
hi mai,
Gochujang is.. fermented pepper paste..that has sweet rice flour…salt.. some other ingredient… so not sure if it will be close enough with your pepper paste to use for tteokbooki..
Hi Aeri.
I’ve bought myself a topokki stir fry sauce recently. Its a Chung Jung One brand.
Really curious if it does contain alcohol? Because in the ingredients SPIRIT is listed as one of the ingredient.
Please help as I’m a Muslim and my religion prohibit alcohol consumption. Thanks!
hi Nourie,
Sorry.. I can’t tell you if they have alcohol in it..because I never used it before..and i don’t have that package now. You said.. spirit.. what is that..and that’s all ingredient that you doubt ?? any other names ? maybe you can tell me all the written ingredients on it.. so I can tell you better.. thanks
Hi, I’m sorry for the delay in responding. Spirit is alcohol. That said, when alcohol is cooked, it evaporates out of the food. There is division in the Muslim religion about using alcohol in cooking. Some Muslims think it is okay, others do not. It would be best to ask a religious leader at your house of worship.
@Jason,thanks for your response. To clarify a bit,for alcohol in food or cooking,it’s a definite no,no matter in whatever division in Islam. Maybe by mistake u got it mixed up with the usage of alcohol in perfume.
@Aeri Lee,this is really a great place to get to know Korean delicacies. I learnt a lot! I’ll definitely try some of the goodies mentioned here,whichever is allowed for me (in term of my religion). Keep up the good work!
well the ingredients are
rice pastes, corn syrup, red pepper seasoning, hot pepper powder, soybean paste, it contains distilled alcohol ..
not all the ingredients are the same..
this is from a store-brought container..
you can make your own
Hello there. Are there different types of gochujang? If yes, how will I know which is best to use for which recipes? I can only find chalmat here, and I don’t know if that’s a type.
Sorry, I’m so clueless! 
Love your tutorials, btw! 
hi Charmaine,
Thanks for your cute question.
Actually.. you will see few kinds (2 or 3 ) of gochujang..but it’s basically .. depends on how spicy it is.. some can be a little more spicy than others..but not dramatic difference.. and we don’t divide the use for each one.. means.. just how much spicy gochujang you want for your cooking.. ^^ You can use any kind you want. thanks
Hi aeris, I want to make tteokbokki but I don’t know where to buy red pepper paste, if you can, can you make a video how to make red pepper paste.please:)
hi Huyen,
I will add it to my list. but I’m not sure when I can make it.. so I will give a link from Maangchi’s site about how to make it. I don’t know if you already know about her or not..anyway, her Korean cooking site is great. Here is a link for you.
http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/gochujang
Hi Aeri.. I love korean food.. I just bought a Sour Hot Pepper Paste(초고추장). I have a religion that is I cant eat something with alcohol or pork in it. I know that Pepper Paste does not contain pork but it wont contain alcohol too right? I used to make kimchi on my own due to kimchi provided at market makes me suspicious with the ingredient.
So, I can eat the Sour Hot Pepper Paste right? 
Hi Ash,
Yes, Kimchi and korean red pepper paste both don’t contain alcohol. So no worries to try them.
Okay then.. thank you.. What else can i eat the saucse with? other than bbg meat.. any simple recipe?
hi Ash,
I have many recipes using hot pepper paste.. please search it..then you will get the recipes.
annyeong Aeri..
it’s really useful post.. can i know.. what ingredient in this gochujang? there is like alcohol or oil from pork? because i am a muslim, and as you know we are prohibited to eat certain ingredient.. so can you tell me?
kamsahamnida!
hi akirabita,
Gochujang doesn’t have alcohol and pork in it.. it is basically red pepper powder…. sweet rice flour.. salt.. and something else..but not alcohol and pork.. so you can try it. thanks
Hi Aeri,
Thank you for posting so many wonderful recipes. I’m especially interested in tteokbokki. The problem is that there’s only one store that has any of the ingredients within an hours drive from me. Your video on how to make tteok really helped me out. I was hoping you had a similar solution for gochujang?
hi Angela,
I will add it to my list..but not sure when I can post it.. thanks
Hi Aeri,
I just buy the hot pepper paste, so i want to try it, but i don’t know what recipe is using this hot pepper sauce, can u tell me? thx
hi Lestari,
If you type “red pepper paste” in my “Search” box.. the right side bar of this blog.. you can see different recipes using it. thanks
Hi…..am your new fans ..hehehe
in Indonesia, Korean Food is become a popular food here…
Big City, like Jakarta (many Korean Expatriat) have a Korean Store, restaurant, …and i have a stock of Gochujang, my friend who lived in other small city, ask me how to make a Homemade of gochujang …please tell me …
hi nicke,
I will add your request to my list. 
thanks
Nice to meet you. You have a nice blog.
hi aeri.. im from indonesia. i can’t find gochujang here..
do u have any suggestion? should i replace it with any other ingredient? or can u tell me how to make gochujang? bcuz i really wanna try to make tteokbokgi…
hi ichakhy,
Then do you have gochugaru.. (hot pepper powder)? you can use that instead..(you might need a little more sugar that case..).. it’s complex to make gochujang.. it I just can’t explain here with some words.. someday in the future, I will try to make gochujang video… thanks..
Hi Aeri,
I bought a box of this a few months back, but it did not have an exp. date… do these last a long time? how long is the average shelf life of red pepper paste if you keep it in the fridge?
hi kamun51,
Yes, once you open the container you have to keep it in the refrigerator.. you can keep quite long time.. more than year.. just make sure, it doesn’t get any moldy or bad thing..but usually it’s okay.. since it’s fermented food.. thanks
Thanks for showing this Aeri. I saw this on the store shelf at the Korean market but there was no English written on it, so I wasn’t sure what it was. Now that I know, I will pick some up next time I go.
I am starting to learn Korean so I will be able to read Hangul and never have this problem in the future.
hi Justin,
thanks
I will post more Korean lessons from this year.. so please check my Korean lesson posts too..
Hi Aeri
What is the difference bet this and vinegered red pepper paste?
Thnx.
hi ymasea25,
vinegered red pepper paste is premade dipping sauce for some Korean food.. such as… you dip some boiled vegetables or seaweed in that sauce…if you want you can use it for bibimbap sauce also.. the red pepper paste in this post is.. pure red pepper paste doesn’t have other seasoning like vinegar … so the vinegered red pepper paste is made from this normal red pepper paste. ^^ thanks..
Hi aeri,
umm i live in CA in the US but
i live in Fresno, CA and i dont know
where to get this paste because i really want
to try to make the food tteokbukki!!!
i really wish to be able to eat it
so do u know how u can help me??
hi Lilian,
You can buy it from amazon.com.
I will give you a link for it.
http://aeriskitchen.com/2010/10/spicy-spinach-pancakes/
under the recipe.. there is “featured item”
and there is a red pepper paste from amazon. try it.. ^^
Korea Mart
353 E Shaw Ave
Fresno, CA 93726
(559) 447-0262
Outside of Korea Mart
All the Hot Paste you want
Kimchi made fresh in store!
Add Photos
Hours:
Mon-Sat 10 am – 8 pm
Sun 11 am – 6 pm
Don’t know if you know this yet, but this is where I buy the red pepper paste. I was so lucky to find this store in Fresno because I was able to make and try making Korean dishes.
hello aeri
finally i was able to buy this hot pepper paste bec they are alredy available here in our place,since it’s my first time to buy it i don’t know what to expect except that it is spicy,,how do gochujang smell?when i tried making tteokboki it smelled like tamarind but it
hi sheng,
I hope you enjoy your Korean food with gochujang. thanks
Hehe.. welcome to the spicy world.
Hi,nice to meet you..I’m from Malaysia..My country here do not sell this red pepper paste..so we make it by ourselves?If can hoe to make it?
hi Kar Yee,
Nice to meet you too.
Do you have red pepper powder ???
does gochujang or dwaenjang paste ever go bad? is there a way to tell? i had dwaenjang in my refrigerator for a year and wasn’t sure if it was still good to eat.
hi taco,
both of them are fermented food, so it should be okay.. just once you open the package, keep them in the refrigerator. I use mine more than a year.. so unless it has mold or something it’s okay. ^^
안녕하세요~
i have a question. i would like to know the ingredients of this gochujang.
do they used alcohol to produce gochujang. i wanna make tteokbokki and i found gochujang in store near my house but worried its contain alcohol.
hi flowerpot,
Nope gochujang doesn’t have alcohol in it.. so you can eat it without worry.. ^^ Enjoy your tteokbokki..
Hi, i’m really interested in korean cooking and your website and cook book has been a great help to me.
I have a question:
What is the difference between Red Pepper Paste and Hot Pepper paste??
I have the Hot Pepper paste in which i used to make the bibimbap sauce and it does not turn out well.
hi Miranda,
I call Korean gochujang to red pepper paste in English for my recipes..but I’m not sure what you mean.. hot pepper paste..according to what you said.. it seems like it’s different from Korean red pepper paste.. which country brand (ingredient) both of them ..the ones you have ??
red pepper paste (Korean gochujang) is made with red hot pepper powder.. sweet rice flour.. something else.. it’s fermented food.. it has spicy but a little sweet flavor in it.. and the texture is kind of sticky.. thick..
Hi Aeri
What is storage conditions this paste after open the box. Is it in refigerator or keep at room temperature?
hi Kris,
thanks
Once you pen the box, yes keep it in the refrigerator.