Gochujang-Pork Lettuce Wraps

The Korean red pepper paste called gochujang adds spicy, savory, pleasantly pungent flavor to sauces and marinades for meats, stir-fries, barbecue—wherever you want that touch of umami that says mmmmm. Its base ingredients are ground rice and soybeans, along with varieties of red pepper. Find it in any general Asian market or supermarkets with good international aisles.

Here, I used it to spruce up—really spruce up—simple ground pork lettuce wraps. Very quick, very easy, and very good.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp gochujang
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp unseasoned rice vinegar
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp peanut oil
• 1 lb ground pork
• 2 Thai chiles, finely chopped
• 1/2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 2 tsp finely chopped garlic
• 8 large lettuce leaves, such as green leaf or Boston
• thinly sliced radishes and chopped cucumber, for serving

Prepared Ingredients

Preparation

1. Combine the gochujang, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar in a bowl, stirring until well blended. Set aside.

Gochujang Sauce

1. Heat a skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Add the pork, chiles, ginger, onion, and garlic and cook until the onion has softened and the pork is cooked through with most of the liquid absorbed, about 10 minutes.
2. Stir in the gochujang mixture and cook until well combined and the sauce begins to thicken, 5-6 minutes.

Beginning to Cook

Cooked Pork Mixture

Sauce Stirred In

Transfer the pork filling to a bowl and serve with lettuce leaves, and radishes and cucumber for topping.

Gochujang Pork Lettuce Wraps