Move over sriracha, gochujang is having a moment in the American food scene, and I’m really happy about it. These Gochujang Mushroom bowls feature sweet and spicy gochujang marinated mushrooms, quick pickled cucumbers, crunchy carrots, and plenty of jasmine rice make a quick, easy, and super flavorful bowl that’s perfect for meal prep. If you’re ready to breathe some new life into your marinades and stir fries, pick up some gochujang. You won’t be sorry.
What is Gochujang?
Gochujang is a Korean chile paste made from fermented soy beans, red chiles, and rice. It has a flavor that is spicy, sweet, and savory. If you’re a spicy food lover, you’re going to love gochujang’s unique flavor. It’s kind of like miso, but spicy! You can use gochujang in marinades, sauces, soups, as a table condiment, or basically anywhere you want to add a little sweet and spicy kick. It’s extremely versatile and once you start using it, you’ll probably start adding it to everything.
I’ve been seeing gochujang in more and more grocery stores lately, so chances are you may not need to make a special trip to an international market to find it! Scroll down to the step by step photos to see a photo of the brand I bought, which I picked up at Kroger.
Do I have to use Gochujang?
This recipe is designed around gochujang, so swapping it out for another type of hot sauce will change the balance of flavors. Instead, you can try using a different type of sauce, like my Homemade Teriyaki Sauce, or if you want spicy, try the sauce I used in my Pork and Peanut Dragon Noodles.
What if I hate mushrooms?
Well then you’re reading the wrong recipe. HA! J/K. Luckily this marinade also works great for tofu, tempeh, or beef. All three should also cook relatively quickly in the skillet just like the portobellos, so swapping them out should be pretty seamless.
Gochujang Mushroom Bowls
Servings 4Ingredients
Quick Pickled Cucumbers
- 3 Tbsp rice vinegar ($0.36)
- 1 Tbsp sugar ($0.06)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 cucumber (about 7-8″) ($0.59)
Gochujang Mushrooms
- 1 Tbsp gochujang ($0.23)
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.12)
- 1 Tbsp water ($0.00)
- 1.5 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.06)
- 1/2 Tbsp rice vinegar ($0.06)
- 2 portobello mushrooms ($4.31)
- 1 small yellow onion ($0.21)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
Bowls
- 4 cups cooked jasmine rice ($0.70)
- 1 carrot ($0.11)
- 2 green onions ($0.15)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt for the quick pickled cucumbers. Thinly slice the cucumber, add them to the bowl with the vinegar dressing, and toss to coat. Let the cucumbers marinate, stirring occasionally, as you prepare the rest of the dish. They should soften and release water as they marinate.
- Prepare the marinade for the mushrooms. In a medium bowl stir together the gochujang, soy sauce, water, brown sugar, and rice vinegar. Stir until the gochujang and brown sugar are dissolved.
- Clean each portobello mushroom to remove any dirt or debris. Cut each cap in half, then slice crosswise into thin strips. Place the mushroom strips into a shallow dish and pour the gochujang marinade over top. Gently stir the mushrooms to coat in the marinade, taking care not to break them. Let the mushrooms marinade for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While the mushrooms are marinating, shred the carrot using a cheese grater. Thinly slice the yellow onion and slice the green onions.
- Add the cooking oil to a large skillet and heat over medium. Once hot, add the sliced yellow onion and sauté for about two minutes, or just until the onion begins to soften.
- Add the marinade mushrooms and all of the gochujang marinade to the skillet. Continue to cook the mushrooms and onion over medium until the mushrooms have softened and the liquid in the skillet reduces to a slightly thickened sauce (about 8 minutes).
- To build the bowls add about 1 cup cooked rice to each bowl then top with 1/4 of the gochujang mushrooms, 1/4 of the pickled cucumbers, and 1/4 of the shredded carrot. Sprinkle sliced green onions over top, then serve.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!These bowls are actually a loose vegetarian interpretation of a Bulgogi bowl, but I felt I strayed too much from actual bulgogi to call them that. But if you’re a fan of bulgogi bowls, you might like these Gochujang Mushroom Bowls!
How to Make Gochujang Mushroom Bowls – Step by Step Photos
Begin with the quick pickled cucumbers so they have some time to marinate and soften. In a medium bowl, stir together 3 Tbsp rice vinegar, 1 Tbsp sugar, and 1/4 tsp salt. Thinly slice a cucumber then toss the cucumbers in the vinegar dressing. Let them marinate, stirring occasionally, while you prepare the rest of the recipe. They will soften and release water as they marinate.
Next, make the gochujang marinade. Stir together 1 Tbsp gochujang, 3 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp water, 1.5 Tbsp brown sugar, and 1/2 Tbsp rice vinegar until the gochujang and brown sugar are dissolved.
This is the gochujang that I bought and I was able to find this at Kroger. In fact, they had at least three brands, so hopefully you’ll be able to find some at your grocery store as well.
Clean any dirt or debris off of two portobello mushrooms. Cut each one in half, then slice crosswise into thin strips.
Place the mushroom slices in a shallow dish and pour the gochujang marinade over top. Stir carefully to coat the mushrooms in the marinade.
Let them marinate for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
While the mushrooms are marinating, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Shred one carrot (I used a cheese grater), thinly slice one small yellow onion, and slice two green onions.
Heat 1 Tbsp cooking oil in a large skillet over medium. Once hot, add the sliced yellow onion and sauté for about two minutes, or just until the onions begin to soften, then add the marinated mushrooms and ALL of the marinade from the dish.
Continue to cook the mushrooms and onions over medium until the mushrooms are fully softened and the liquid in the skillet has reduced to a slightly thickened sauce (about 8 minutes).
To build the Gochujang Mushroom Bowls, start with 1 cup cooked jasmine rice, then top with 1/4 of the gochujang mushrooms, 1/4 of the quick pickled cucumbers, and 1/4 of the shredded carrots.
Top with a few sliced green onions, then serve!
I have white miso paste on hand but no gochujang. Can I substitute miso? Should I add sriracha or similar for heat?
Thank you!
I’d really need to test it with that substitution to know how much to add or if the sauce needs rebalancing. I’m sure it can be done, but I wouldn’t be able to estimate without testing. :)
Made this tonight and it was a hit. I doubled the marinade and used half on the mushrooms and half on a block of tempeh, sliced in half lengthwise and cubed. I cooked the tempeh first, then the mushrooms. The cucumbers really make this dish. I am going to start keeping a container of pickled cucumber in my fridge and putting them on everything!
I am happily married but we have one significant source of strife: cucumbers. I loooooove them. My husband (thinks he) can’t stand them. So I don’t cook with them and instead choose to stew in my own passive-aggressive cucumberless misery. Last week, I’d had enough and decided to make this recipe. He LOVED it. Including. The. Cucumbers. People, truly.
I modified the recipe by increasing the sauce amount 1.5x and adding ginger. I also fried eggs to add on top and added some tabasco to the cucumbers to give the dish more kick. Our bowls were licked clean. This recipe is good for the body, good for the soul, and good for marital harmony.
Yay! A cucumber convert! Haha! Love it. :)
Fantastic recipe! I’ve never done mushrooms with this style of seasoning, so that was exciting! Definitely would work well with tofu, too.
And think about eggplant–yet another “meaty” feel veg. Although I never met a mushroom recipe I didn’t love, I was out of mushrooms and had a smallish eggplant in the fridge. It turned out glorious! I also used noodles instead of rice for my “bowls.”
Then…go…on..Google…find a nutritional calculator….and do it yourself…it’s sooooo easy…..
Made it with oyster mushrooms instead of portobellos but otherwise followed the recipe. The boyfriend and I both loved it! Another keeper, thanks Beth!
Probably one of my favorite recipes now! Since Iโm cooking for one, I decided to try these as a meal prep. They reheat really well. I just pulled the cucumbers out before sticking in the microwave along with a small cup of water to keep the moisture up.
Oops. Clicked the wrong button and my comment ended up in the wrong place. Oh well. The recipe really was great though.
Yummy. Made it tonight. Used chili garlic sauce instead because it’s what I had on hand. I love anything in a bowl. Delicious. Love your recipes. ๐
Just wanted to point out that the recipe card says “Gochcujang” instead of “Gochujang.” Love the stuff–tried it in a ground lamb stirfry with udon noodles once and it was bomb. I imagine the mushroom or tofu version of this will be great! We’ll have to try it.
Thank you!
So good! I followed recipe as written. I love the portobello mushrooms; they are very “meaty” tasting. I meal prepped, and removed the cucumbers for heating, then added them back in for eating. It’s a winner!
It’s about the same, but less vinegary and more salty and garlicky.
Maybe the mushrooms I had were much smaller than the recipe’s intention. I had 6 portobellos that were about 2 inches across each and those served two , with no leftovers, and I had doubled the marinade. Added some shredded red cabbage with the carrot. Delicious and will make this all summer.
This was so good! I crisped the rice before topping it with the mushrooms, carrots, and scallions, and it did not disappoint.
I just so happen to have some leftover rice in my fridge, I think this is a perfect way to use it up. I think Iโll include an egg too, to get that bibimbap feel, and maybe round it out even more. =D
This was super super yummy! ย A couple years ago I tried to cook korean food. Most of it wasn’t for me. So when this recipe popped up I thought I’d try it. I still had gochujang languishing in the back of my fridge. This is the right amount of heat, it’s spicy but not too spicy. My gochujang is rated at level 3 medium hot. I think the sugar balanced everything out really well. Made it exactly as written other than I forgot to buy green onions so I chopped up some peanuts and threw them in with the mushrooms. I also added sesame seeds on top. Thanks Beth, I love your recipes!
love your site…..but…..there is no nutritional values…….so I can’t make anything that looks sooooo good
You can calculate it! I use MyFitnessPal. It’s free to calculate recipe calories there.
Hi Beth,
Is gochujang comparable in spice level to sriracha?
I find it to be slightly less spicy, but I think that’s because it’s sweeter so the sweetness kind of balances the heat a bit.