Should you’ve ever dug right into a bowl of vegetarian bibimbap and observed a sticky, vibrantly pink sauce drizzling over the white rice and steaming greens, you then’ve most likely tried gochujang. Candy and spicy, the beloved Korean paste combines fermented chiles and soybean powder with barley malt and glutinous rice. Whereas gochujang shines in a large number of Korean recipes — like stewed, spicy rice muffins often called tteokbokki — its versatility stretches far and vast.
The chili paste has additionally made waves by starring in pasta recipes, and we’re not complaining. House cooks and recipe builders have paired gochujang with elements starting from heavy cream to tomato paste earlier than tossing the slick, shiny sauce with a brief Italian pasta, like rigatoni, paccheri or cavatappi. With a beneficiant dusting of grated Parmesan and a sprinkling of contemporary parsley, the result’s a deeply flavored dish that mixes the thrill of each Korean and Italian flavors.
Dilute your gochujang for a well-balanced taste
Sometimes fermented for months (or longer), gochujang packs a robust punch of condensed taste. To include the paste into your subsequent pasta sauce, understand that a small spoonful goes a good distance. Strive caramelizing a scoop of gochujang in a pan generously crammed with olive oil, additional deepening and sweetening the flavour of the chili paste.
From there, the sky is the restrict. Contemplate toasting aromatics like garlic or shallots so as to add into your pasta sauce, or soften a slab of butter for subsequent degree richness. To offer one other layer of candy acidity, strive including a touch of tomato paste. Should you’re craving an extra-spicy kick, sprinkle in some gochugaru — finely floor Korean pink pepper flakes. Season with salt to style as you additional develop your sauce, and make sure to dilute the gochujang with some reserved pasta water. Not solely will this methodology mellow out the robust gochujang taste, it is going to additionally add extra gluten to the sauce, permitting it to cling pleasantly to your pasta when you serve it.
