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This quick Gochujang Lettuce Wraps recipe is easy to make in about 20 minutes with veggies and your choice of beef, chicken, pork, shrimp or tofu. And it is made with the absolute yummiest 4-ingredient sesame gochujang sauce.
This bold, spicy, savory, slightly-sweet, and irresistibly-good Korean chile paste has become one of my favorite ingredients to cook with this past year. We use it regularly in our kitchen to whip up quick Korean stir-frys, liven up soups and salad dressings and marinades, and make the sauce for Barclay’s favorite spicy Korean noodles (<– recipe coming soon). Most often, though, I love using it to make a super-simple gochujang sauce for lettuce wraps!
This 4-ingredient gochujang sauce only takes a minute or two to whip up with gochujang paste, soy sauce, maple syrup and sesame oil. And when tossed with a few crunchy veggies and your choice of protein (beef, chicken, pork, shrimp or tofu would all work here!), you can have a batch of the tastiest Korean lettuce wraps ready to go in less than 30 minutes. It’s the perfect light meal or appetizer for springtime. It’s a great recipe for using up leftover veggies or protein in the fridge. And I’ll just tell you now — once you whip up a batch of this simple sesame gochujang sauce, you’re going to want to put it on everything.
So add a bottle of gochujang to your grocery list, and let’s make some lettuce wraps!
What is Gochujang?
First, though, let’s back up a second — exactly what is gochujang paste?
Sometimes referred to as the “spicy miso of Korean cooking“, gochujang is a fermented red chile paste that is a staple in Korean cooking. It is a thick and very-concentrated condiment that usually comes in a little tub or bottle. And it has this complex spicy, savory, sweet, umami flavor that instantly livens up any dish. When I was visiting Korea this month, gochujang was served with almost every meal, and it’s the signature flavor of many traditional dishes there, including the ever-famous bibimbop.
Heads up — gochujang definitely packs some heat, so go easy adding it into dishes if you are sensitive to spicy food. That said, different brands of gochujang can vary somewhat significantly when it comes to heat levels and ingredients, so feel free to do some taste-testing and find the brand you prefer. Gochujang is increasingly available in everyday American grocery stores in the Asian section. But if you can’t find it there, it’s worth the visit to an Asian grocery store, or you can easily order it online. (I would recommend this brand of gochujang, which is delicious and does not include corn syrup.)
Korean Lettuce Wraps Ingredients:
So here’s the thing — this recipe is mostly just about the sauce! The rest of the ingredients are super-flexible, so go with whatever sounds best to you. You will need:
Protein: I stir-fried some steak with a bit of garlic for the lettuce wraps in these photos. But ground beef, chicken (sliced chicken breasts or ground chicken), pork (sliced pork chops or ground pork), shrimp, or tofu would also be delicious here.
Veggies: I kept things simple with thinly-sliced carrots and cucumber. But any additional lettuce-wrap-friendly veggies would also be delicious here, such as radishes, bean sprouts, bell peppers or avocados.
Lettuce: I used butter (bibb) lettuce leaves, but romaine, iceberg, cabbage, or endive would be delicious alternatives too.
Sauce: Our 4-ingredient sauce simply calls for gochujang paste, soy sauce, maple syrup (or honey or brown sugar), and toasted sesame oil.
Garnishes: I just sprinkled some toasted sesame seeds and thinly-sliced green onions on my lettuce wraps. But feel free to add on any other garnishes that sound fun!
How To Make Lettuce Wraps:
Alright, let’s talk about how to make lettuce wraps! Simply…
Chop the veggies. You can shred, slice or dice them into whatever shapes you prefer.
Make the sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the four sauce ingredients until combined. Give it a quick taste and feel free to add more sweetener and/or gochujang if you would like.
Cook the protein. Season your chosen protein with salt and pepper. Then I recommend just stir-frying it in a tablespoon or two of oil until it is cooked. Remove the pan from the heat, then toss the protein with half of the sauce.
Assemble the lettuce wraps. Then place a generous spoonful of the saucy protein in each lettuce cups, topped with a few veggies and an extra small drizzle of sauce. Sprinkle with your desired garnishes and…
Serve! Right away, while they are still warm. :)
Possible Variatons:
Want to mix things up with these gochujang lettuce wraps? Feel free to:
Make them spicier: If you want an extra kick, feel free to add in a little extra gochujang and/or mix some crushed red pepper flakes in with your sauce.
Make them milder: If your sauce accidentally packs too much of a punch, feel free to tone it down by adding in more of the other ingredients (especially maple syrup). Or another random trick — stir in some ketchup! Its vinegar and sweetness will help balance things out a bit.
Add rice or grains: To make these lettuce wraps a bit more hearty, feel free to also add in some cooked rice or grains.
Add nuts: This isn’t traditionally Korean, per se, but I love always love sprinkling some chopped peanuts on top of my lettuce wraps.
Add citrus: For a sweeter spin, feel free to also add in some chopped apple, pear, or grapes.
More Favorite Korean Recipes:
If you’re looking for some more inspiration, here are a few of my favorite Korean recipes!
This quick Gochujang Lettuce Wraps recipe is easy to make in about 20 minutes with the most delicious 4-ingredient gochujang sauce, plus your choice of protein and veggies.
Ingredients
Scale
Lettuce Wraps Ingredients:
1 pound steak (or chicken, pork, shrimp or tofu*), sliced into bite-sized pieces
sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced or minced
8–10 butter lettuce leaves
1 cup thinly sliced English cucumber
1 cup shredded carrots
optional garnishes: thinly-sliced green onions and toasted sesame seeds
Make the sauce. Whisk together all sauce ingredients in a small bowl until combined. Taste and add any extra maple syrup (to sweeten) or gochujang (for spice) if would like.
Cook the protein. Season the steak (or your preferred protein) with a few generous pinches of salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large sauté pan or wok over high heat. Add the steak and garlic and sauté for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the steak is browned and tender. Remove pan from heat and stir in half of the gochujang sauce until it has evenly coated the steak.
Assemble the lettuce wraps. Portion a spoonful of the saucy steak into each lettuce cup, topped with a few cucumbers and carrots, an extra small drizzle of the remaining sauce, and your desired garnishes.
Serve warm. And enjoy!
Notes
Protein: Feel free to stir-fry 1 pound (more or less) of any of the following proteins. Cooking time will vary a bit according to whichever protein you choose, but just stir-fry until it is cooked through.
Beef: Either steak (such as a flank steak or sirloin) or ground beef
Chicken: Either boneless skinless chicken breasts or ground chicken
Fun! I love gochujang! First tried it with blue apron meals, and now I can’t get enough.
Lisa Holliday —
I’ve made this with sliced chicken breast and with ground chicken, and both times it was fantastic! This was my fiance’s first time trying gochujang and he is already a huge fan. Thanks!
Can’t wait to try this recipe! I actually just bought a jar of gochujang last week and have been looking for recipes to use it up so this is perfect timing for me!
“When I was visiting Korea this month, gochujang was served with almost every meal”
Do they use it as a condiment or just in cooking meals?
had never worked with gochujang before, thank you for the introduction, looks like a nice pairing with steak and a nicely different flavor too, thank you
I made this tonight and love it!!! Love the sauce, thanks for the heads up on which paste to buy. Does the paste need to be refrigerated after opening?
I made this last night and they were delicious! Even the fiance who was wary of lettuce wraps – loved them. I did add rice into wraps for a little more hardiness but kept mine grain free. I think the game changer for me was that I pickled carrots, radishes, and cucumbers for about 2 hours before serving in the wraps!
And in case anyone wants any more ideas, I had the gochujang steak and pickled veggies over a spinach salad the following day and it was AMAZING! Thanks Ali!
Do you know if the gochujang paste you recommend is gluten free? If not, do you have a gluten free paste that you recommend? I can’t find an ingredient list on the package. Thanks. Can’t wait to try this.
My whole family enjoyed this, including my 9 year old. I subbed red pepper for the cucumber (personal preference) and added sprouts. For a healthy meal, it was great!
Bravo! This was fabulous. I made it with tofu for myself and steak for my husband. He loved it! Always a great recipe when it meets my standard for purity of ingredients and he loves it. Simple, easy, healthy, and super tasty. Great heat. Satisfying and not overly filling. Loved this!!!
This is really delicious! I doubled the sauce and made a pound of ground chicken and a pound of impossible burger to accommodate varying family dietary needs. I would probably triple the sauce because the impossible burger is drier and also because it’s so yummy!?
These look SO good. Excited I found gochujang at Sprouts! Will make this week. Any ideas on what to serve these with for dinner? A side of rice seems boring but I can’t think of anything???? If I put only a lettuce wrap (albeit one w steak!) on a plate for my husband he’ll ask where’s the rest. ?
In the link I clicked to reach this recipe it showed a veggie (scallion type) pancake on the plate as well. Do you have the recipe on your site for that Korean pancake?
Thanks
Susan
Hey, I’m Ali!
My favorite thing in life is time spent around the table. And all the better with some seriously tasty food to bring us all together. more about me »
Fun! I love gochujang! First tried it with blue apron meals, and now I can’t get enough.
I’ve made this with sliced chicken breast and with ground chicken, and both times it was fantastic! This was my fiance’s first time trying gochujang and he is already a huge fan. Thanks!
I suggest adding cilantro as a topping, if desired.
Nice fusion twist!
thank you. I will try it today!
This recipe will be my go to, to take to events. Super easy and fast to make. I recommend adding some kimchi as well.
Can’t wait to try this recipe! I actually just bought a jar of gochujang last week and have been looking for recipes to use it up so this is perfect timing for me!
“When I was visiting Korea this month, gochujang was served with almost every meal”
Do they use it as a condiment or just in cooking meals?
had never worked with gochujang before, thank you for the introduction, looks like a nice pairing with steak and a nicely different flavor too, thank you
I made this tonight and love it!!! Love the sauce, thanks for the heads up on which paste to buy. Does the paste need to be refrigerated after opening?
I made this last night and they were delicious! Even the fiance who was wary of lettuce wraps – loved them. I did add rice into wraps for a little more hardiness but kept mine grain free. I think the game changer for me was that I pickled carrots, radishes, and cucumbers for about 2 hours before serving in the wraps!
And in case anyone wants any more ideas, I had the gochujang steak and pickled veggies over a spinach salad the following day and it was AMAZING! Thanks Ali!
Do you know if the gochujang paste you recommend is gluten free? If not, do you have a gluten free paste that you recommend? I can’t find an ingredient list on the package. Thanks. Can’t wait to try this.
My whole family enjoyed this, including my 9 year old. I subbed red pepper for the cucumber (personal preference) and added sprouts. For a healthy meal, it was great!
Bravo! This was fabulous. I made it with tofu for myself and steak for my husband. He loved it! Always a great recipe when it meets my standard for purity of ingredients and he loves it. Simple, easy, healthy, and super tasty. Great heat. Satisfying and not overly filling. Loved this!!!
This is really delicious! I doubled the sauce and made a pound of ground chicken and a pound of impossible burger to accommodate varying family dietary needs. I would probably triple the sauce because the impossible burger is drier and also because it’s so yummy!?
These look SO good. Excited I found gochujang at Sprouts! Will make this week. Any ideas on what to serve these with for dinner? A side of rice seems boring but I can’t think of anything???? If I put only a lettuce wrap (albeit one w steak!) on a plate for my husband he’ll ask where’s the rest. ?
Made this with tofu, but planning on making again for company. I can do half tofu and my husband can grill some steak. Absolutely a winner!
In the link I clicked to reach this recipe it showed a veggie (scallion type) pancake on the plate as well. Do you have the recipe on your site for that Korean pancake?
Thanks
Susan