Spicy Gochujang Noodles
These amazing, beefy noodles are spicy-sweet and jam-packed with flavor thanks to Korean gochujang, soy sauce, sesame oil, and garlic. Super easy to prepare and ready in minutes, these slick noodles will rock your world!
What is gochujang? Used as a staple in Korean cooking (and as a condiment), gochujang is a thick, sticky, red chili paste made with fermented soybeans, glutinous rice, salt, and sometimes sweeteners. It’s super concentrated, pretty spicy (depending on who you ask), and quite pungent. A little goes a long way! It lends the most amazing flavor to these fiery noodles.
There are many varieties of gochujang, so what should you choose? For this recipe, I used Rhei-Maid gochujang because it’s an all-natural, non-GMO, gluten-free product that contains nothing artificial – meaning no preservatives, no artificial colors or flavors, and no high fructose corn syrup. Plus, Rhei-Maid honors the traditional, natural method of crafting gochujang – which means their chili paste is fermented for a minimum of 6 months! One little taste of this product and you can tell there’s a clear difference. Rhei-Maid is a small, women-owned business, so give them a try (I’m not sponsored, just a fan).
I used packets of ramen noodles, but any noodle works. For this recipe, used two 3-ounce packets of ramen noodle soup and discarded the seasoning packets. You can do that, or choose your favorite Asian noodle instead. You can even use spaghetti! Note: this recipe makes enough sauce for 6 to 8 ounces of noodles (and we reserve some of the pasta cooking water, which means we can stretch the sauce a bit).
I added ground beef but ground pork, chicken and turkey work too. Simply substitute your favorite ground meat for the beef and keep everything else the same. For a vegetarian meal, simply leave the beef out!
Is this dish incredibly spicy? As I mentioned above, that depends who you ask! I think it’s spicy, but my kids don’t. I suggest you start with the recipe as instructed and, if you need more heat, add more gochujang and/or gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) when serving.
Spicy Gochujang Noodles
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons gochujang
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil, or vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/2 pound lean ground beef
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 3-oz packages ramen noodles, seasoning packets discarded
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 green onions, chopped
For Serving
- Gochugaru
- Toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the gochujang, peanut oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, mirin, and water. Set aside.
- Brown the beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the gochujang mixture and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook the ramen noodles according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water, and transfer the noodles to the skillet with the beef. If you want a thinner sauce, add some of the cooking water.
- Add the green onions and toss to combine.
- If desired, top with sesame seeds and gochugaru and serve.