Kimchi Fried Rice Recipe (2024)

Kimchi Fried Rice Recipe

We're cooking up a big batch of spicy Kimchi Fried Rice in the Chili Pepper Madness kitchen tonight, my friends! Would you care to enjoy some with me?

Kimchi fried rice (Kimchi Bokkeumbap) is a popular Korean dish of kimchi stir fried with rice and vegetables. The meal is flavored with a combination of Korean gochujang and soy sauce, then finished with a touch of sesame oil for a dish you're sure to love.

It is considered a simple and affordable meal, popular for its use of leftover rice and kimchi, which many Koreans make in their own kitchens. You can serve it up as a meal or as a quick snack.

Korean fried rice is an ideal dish for the spicy food lover, as it is usually quite spicy, and easy to adjust to your own spicy food preferences, much like most Korean food.

You can easily add in hot peppers, extra fiery gochujang or gochugaru, which is a spicy Korean chili flake, or other seasonings.

You can also change it up each time you make it, swapping in different meats or proteins and vegetables. It is one of those recipes where just about any meat or protein fits, as well as your favorite veggies.

Or simply serve it as is.

I enjoy making this with my own kimchi recipe, which I make extra spicy, though you can use your favorite brand. The great thing about it is that you can have it on the table and ready to serve in about 10 minutes, including prep time.

This is great for someone like me who is notoriously slow in the kitchen.

Let's talk about how to make kimchi fried rice, shall we?

Kimchi Fried Rice Ingredients

• Vegetable Oil. For stir frying.
• Spicy Red Chili Pepper. Optional, for more heat factor to your dish. Use what is local and available to you, to your own heat preference. Feel free to include more if desired.
• Garlic.
• Shallot.
• Kimchi. You can find a jar of kimchi in most grocery stores, or try my homemade spicy kimchi recipe, which is incredibly delicious, and quite easy to make. Highly encouraged for spicy food lovers.
• Steamed Rice. Day old or leftover cooked rice is best for making fried rice, as it is dried out, though you can use freshly made rice. Just try to dry it out as much as you can before frying.
• Gochujang. Gochujang is a Korean fermented chili paste with a nice level of spice to it, a staple of Korean cuisine.
• Soy Sauce.
• Sesame Oil. To finish the kimchi fried rice.
• For Serving/Garnish. Fried eggs, chopped green onion, toasted sesame seeds, chili flakes.

How to Make Kimchi Fried Rice - the Recipe Method

Squeeze and Chop the Kimchi. Squeeze the kimchi to release its liquids into a bowl and save the kimchi juice. Chop the kimchi into bite-sized chunks.

Stir Fry the Peppers. Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the chopped chili pepper (if using) and stir fry for 2 minutes to soften.

Garlic and Shallot. Add the garlic and shallot and stir fry for 30 seconds to let the garlic bloom.

Kimchi. Add the kimchi and stir fry for 1 minute.

Rice. Add the rice, kimchi juice, gochujang and soy sauce. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes, or until the rice is fully mixed and cooked to your liking.

Sesame Oil. Stir in the sesame oil and remove from heat.

Garnish and Serve. Serve into bowls with garnish. Enjoy! I love mine with a fried egg or sunny side up egg on top. So good!

Boom! Done! Your kimchi fried rice is ready to serve. Very quick and easy to make, isn't it? Done in 10 minutes or less. This is great for a slow cook like me. It's very easy to adapt to your own preferred heat and spice levels.

Such a great recipe.

Recipe Tips & Notes

• Vegetables. You can very easily add in other vegetables to your preference to round out your stir fry dish. This is one of those recipes where you can empty out your refrigerator. Consider chopped carrot, onion, mushrooms, radish, zucchini, green onion, peas, bok choy, peppers, so many wonderful options. Change it up each time you make it.
• Proteins. Kimchi fried rice is typically a vegetarian dish, but you can easily include a protein if you'd like. Consider chopped chicken or pork, shrimp, scallops or fish, or firm tofu. Spam is a popular protein.
• Rice. As mentioned, leftover rice or day old rice is ideal for making stir fries. Fresh steamed rice tends to get mushy when you stir fry it because of the moisture content. Leftover rice, however, has had a change to dry out and stir fries much better. If using freshly made rice, try to dry it out a bit, or use less moisture in the pan, if possible, to avoid steaming and soggy rice.
• Garnish. I love to garnish my kimchi fried rice with a fried egg, green onion and chili flakes, but here you can really vary it up. Seaweed strips or gim are very popular, as are other fresh herbs.

Storage and Leftovers

Leftover kimchi fried rice will last up to 5 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Simply warm it in a pan on the stovetop or in the microwave.

You can also freeze it up to 3 months.

Cookbook Recommendation

• Maangchi’s Real Korean Cooking, by Maangchi with Lauren Chattman (affiliate link, my friends).

Try Some of My Other Popular Recipes

• Spicy Chicken Fried Rice
• Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice)
• Shrimp Fried Rice
• Curried Rice
• Paella
• Mexican Rice
• Bulgogi Sauce
• Bulgogi Recipe
• Korean Fried Chicken
• Korean Chicken
• Thai Fried Rice