Best Kimchi Fried Rice
When you’re craving a little comfort but don’t have more than a few minutes to spend cooking, I can’t think of many recipes that are a better fit than Kimchi Fried rice, or Kimchi Bokkeumbap (볶음밥). It’s a simple dish that’s best made with aged kimchi, but there are a few things you can do to elevate this classic Korean comfort food to the next level.
Table of contents
Why this Recipe Works
- Fried rice should be fluffy and flaky, not dense and mushy. To achieve this, I use leftover rice that’s been in the fridge for at least a day and then coat the rice with sesame oil. This not only infuses it with flavor, but it also separates the individual grains so you can stir-fry the rice.
- Good fried rice should also have some Maillard browning on each grain of rice. Since temperatures in the pan need to get above the boiling point of water to start browning the ingredients, it’s essential to minimize the amount of liquid added. Since kimchi is very juicy, I squeeze the juice out of the kimchi before stir-frying it. This allows you to brown the kimchi and rice before you add the juice back in at the very end to season everything.
- Putting an egg on top makes most dishes better, but for kimchi fried rice, it’s a must. I like topping my kimchi fried rice with a sunny-side up egg with a soft yolk that percolates down into the spicy rice.
Ingredients for Kimchi Fried Rice
- Kimchi – It’s best to use ripe kimchi, which has had a chance to mature and turn sour. This is going to give your fried rice the most flavor and umami.
- Gochujang – Gochujang is a fermented chili bean paste that’s both spicy and sweet. This adds a balancing sweetness to the rice, contrasting to the spicy kimchi and rich egg.
- Soy Sauce – Depending on how salty your kimchi is, you may not need the soy sauce, but my kimchi recipe is relatively low in salt, so I like to add a splash of soy sauce.
- Toasted sesame oil – Coating the rice with toasted sesame oil helps separate the individual grains while infusing them with the nutty flavor of the oil.
- Cooked rice – Kimchi fried rice is made with short-grain rice. I recommend using day-old rice. This allows the starch in the rice to retrograde, which makes it much easier to flake apart.
- Egg – Topping kimchi fried rice with a fried egg not only adds a splash of color, but the rich yolk also mellows out the heat of the kimchi while providing some protein that makes this a complete meal.
- Garnish – I like to garnish my Kimchi Bokkeumbap with a scattering of chopped green onions, but toasted sesame seeds or gim (nori) are both wonderful alternatives.
How to Make Kimchi Fried Rice
The ingredients for this dish are about as simple as it gets, but because Kimchi is loaded with flavor, it doesn’t need much else. The trick to making a fantastic Kimchi Bokkeumbap is all in the technique.
The first thing you want to do is squeeze the juices out of your Kimchi and measure them separately. It may seem a bit superfluous to squeeze out the juices of the Kimchi only to add them back in later, but I have two good reasons for doing this. The first is that we want to further deepen the flavors of the Kimchi by caramelizing it in a frying pan. When Kimchi is sopping wet, you won’t reach the heat that you need to trigger Maillard browning. The second reason is that the amount of liquid in Kimchi is a bit unpredictable, and by measuring it out separately, we get just enough juice to flavor the rice without making it soggy.
The second trick is to drizzle some toasted sesame oil onto the rice and coat each grain with it before you throw it into the pan. This not only imparts the nutty flavor of the oil into the rice, but it also prevents the rice from clumping up and sticking together.
To make the fried rice, I always start by sautéing the squeezed Kimchi until it’s well browned (think of it like onions or garlic). Then the rice goes in and gets heated through before the sauce goes over the rice.
Because the sauce is a large amount of liquid relative to the rice, it’s important to continue tossing and stir-frying the rice until all of the liquid has evaporated. This includes the liquid that’s been absorbed by the rice. You can tell when the rice is ready when it fluffs up and stops being sticky.
I also like to give the rice some time in the pan undisturbed, which causes it to brown, giving it a wonderful toasty flavor (like a good socarrat on the bottom of a good paella).
I’m one of those guys that believe the molten yolk of a sunny-side-up egg will make just about anything taste better, and it’s especially true when you’re talking about a plate of spicy umami-laden rice. If you’re not a fan, you can scramble the egg into the browned Kimchi before adding the rice, or you can leave it out altogether.
Other Kimchi Recipes
FAQ
Kimchi Fried Rice (볶음밥 – Kimchi Bokkeumbap), is a fried rice dish made by stir-frying Kimchi and rice together with some seasonings. It’s a classic Korean comfort food that’s made in households across the country to use up leftover rice and overripe Kimchi.
If you’ve ever been to a Korean market, you know there are dozens of different types of Kimchi, but this dish works best with Baechu-kimchi (배추김치), which is the kind made with napa cabbage. You can get my kimchi recipe here.
As with a good kimchi jjigae, the secret to good Kimchi fried rice is to use mature Kimchi along with its juices. As it matures, Kimchi undergoes lactic acid fermentation, which converts the sugars in the cabbage into lactic acid. This not only makes the Kimchi taste sour, but it also increases the amount of glutamic acids (the compounds that create the taste of umami) as well as the depth of flavor in the Kimchi.
If you don’t top it with an egg, Kimchi fried rice can be made plant-based. The one thing you need to watch out for is the Kimchi itself, which can sometimes contain seafood products such as brine shrimp or fish sauce. If you’re buying your Kimchi, be sure to read the label carefully to ensure you end up with vegan-friendly Kimchi.
Like most fried rice, Kimchi Bokkeumbap can be fixed up with other ingredients. Some ideas include adding some meat or fish, chopped up sausage or bacon, or crumbled firm tofu. I often improvise based on the leftovers I need to use up in the fridge, but to be honest, I like this basic version with an egg on top the most.
Kimchi fried rice makes for a satisfying main dish (especially with an egg on top), but if you decide to serve it as a side dish, it goes great with meat dishes like this Korean Fried Chicken or this Gochujang Braised Pork Belly. You can also check out my other Korean Recipes.
Units
Ingredients
- 115 grams kimchi (1/2 cup packed, chopped)
- ¼ cup kimchi juice
- 2 teaspoons gochujang
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 370 grams cooked short-grain rice (about 2 cups)
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 scallion (finely chopped)
- 2 sunny side up eggs
Instructions
- Before you measure out the kimchi, squeeze the juice out of it into a liquid measuring cup, this liquid is the "kimchi juice."
- Whisk the kimchi juice, gochujang and soy sauce together until the gochujang is completely dissolved.
- Drizzle the sesame oil over the rice and use your hands to mix it, so each grain of rice is coated with oil, and there are big clumps.
- Put the vegetable oil in a frying pan and heat over medium-high heat until hot. Add the chopped kimchi and stir-fry until the kimchi is starting to brown and is very fragrant.
- Add the rice and stir-fry with a silicon spatula, pressing down on any clumps until the rice is uniform in color.
- Pour the kimchi juice mixture over the rice, and turn up the heat to high. Stir-fry, tossing the rice occasionally until the rice starts to brown and doesn't stick together quite as much.
- Since kimchi varies in saltiness, taste the kimchi bokkeumbap and season with more soy sauce if needed.
- When the fried rice is done, add the scallions and then plate. Top each serving with a sunny-side-up egg.
Nutrition
Ivy Ngiam says
I made this last week. Your recipe is easy to follow yet yummy!
Marc Matsumoto says
Thanks Ivy, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Samantha says
Love this! It was my first time tasting kimchi and this was a great way to try it, especially after reading about the awesome nutrition in fermented foods. This I will make again. Thank-you so much for your great recipes!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Samantha, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for letting me know!
Doreen Elliott says
I’m going to make this with some bacon and use that oil to coat my rice. I will also add some left over bulgogi. Thanks for giving me the basic recipe. I never thought of adding the gochujang sauce. Love all of your recipes.
Marc Matsumoto says
Thanks Doreen! As for adding bacon and bulgogi, that sounds like a great idea! I hope you enjoy it!
Stefanie says
Hi there, in spite of a soy allergie, I ‘d like to try this recipe! I replace the soy sauce with coconut aminos, but do you have an idea for the gochujang? Thank you very much from Köln, Germany
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Stefanie, gochujang is a sweet and spicy bean paste. You won’t get quite as much umami out of it, but another asian-style chili paste like sriracha or sambal oelek should work.
Carolin says
Can I freeze the dish?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Carolin, I’ve never tried it, but it has a relatively low water content after it’s cooked so I think it should work.
Kim says
Just made this and it’s fantastic! Thanks for the great recipe!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Kim, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed this. Thanks for stopping by to leave a comment 😀
Becky says
Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! Was a hit with my partner as well. I didn’t added kimchi juice and swapped for soy sauce. Added the enoki mushrooms and also some peas for extra veg (I know not very Korean!). A super quick and easy dinner that will become a regular in our household.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Becky, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing your adaptations!
Becky says
I just made it for lunch and its sooo delicious!
Marc Matsumoto says
I’m so glad to hear it Becky! Thanks for stopping by to let me know!
Rieko Cohn says
Thanks, Marc, for this wonderful recipe. It’s become one of my favorite ways to enjoy my homemade kimchi.
I really appreciate that you provide ingredient quantities in grams and clear step-by-step instructions, which makes it easier to get consistent results.
I’m looking forward to trying some of your other recipes.
Marc Matsumoto says
You’re welcome Rieko! I’m glad to hear you’ve been enjoying this, thanks for taking the time to let me know!
Stefanie Hoffmann says
So delicious! Due to a soy allergy I made it without gochujang and replace the soy sauce with coconut aminos. Nevertheless it’s YUMMY Thank you for this 🙂
Marc Matsumoto says
Glad to hear you enjoyed this Stefanie! If you want a little more heat, sriracha would make a reasonable substitute for gochujang.