Gochujang Fried Rice with Leftover Ham

Hands down the BEST Korean comfort food is homemade Gochujang Fried Rice with Leftover Ham. This easy Korean kimchi fried rice ( bokkeum-bap (볶음밥) can be on your table in about 15 minutes flat with just 6 pantry ingredients. Top it off with a fried egg and mix in leftover Air Fryer Ham for a delicious spicy, sweet, and savory flavor experience.

We must warn you; this gochujang rice is addictive! Each satisfying bite is packed with kimchi that sweetens when stir fried and has a little kick of spice from the gochujang sauce.  When you use left over rice, like in our recipe for Hong Kong Fried Rice, the little individual grains of rice get a little crispy too. If you like a little drippy fried egg indulgence, you may even need a “personal moment” to enjoy your bowl of Korean egg fried rice!

Jump to:

• Ingredients and Substitutions
• Easy Step by Step Instructions
• Tips for Success
• How to Serve
• No Special Equipment
• What to Serve It With?
• How to store
• Frequent Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
• More Delicious Rice Recipes
• Gochujang Fried Rice with Leftover Ham

Ingredients and Substitutions

Are you ready? Just 6 little ingredients to make a delicious lunch, dinner or anytime snack and 2 of the ingredients are optional.

Kimchi

Its an essential Korean ingredient made by fermented vegetables like napa cabbage and daikon with a probiotic and ground Korean chili for a delicious gut friendly addition to your diet. The best part about using kimchi is there is no need to add any aromatics like garlic and onions as it is already packed with flavor and is gluten-free.

After all the holiday indulgencing, getting your gut health back is a high priority. Do you have a huge container like us? Then try our Kimchi Salmon with Rainbow Pickles and Creamy Kimchi Pasta. Once you open a jar of kimchi, it is best to store it in the refrigerator and use within 3 months.

Leftover Rice

Cold rice is the best option and a great way to use up the items in the refrigerator. You can use any type of rice you like such as jasmine, short-grained sushi rice, brown rice, etc. The reason to use cold leftover rice is to prevent the fried rice from getting mushy.

If you use fresh warm rice, stir frying it will just add more moisture and it make it soggy. Leftover rice is firm and more apt to keep the individual grains of rice separate so they can pick up all the flavors of the fried rice.

Gochujang

This is a fermented Korean red Chili paste made from chili powder, glutinous rice, fermented soybean powder, barley malt powder and salt. This paste is a spicy, savory, and sweet which gives a delicious umami flavor to any gochujang sauce recipes. Bibimbap is not authentic without a good dollop of gochujang sauce mixed in.

If you have an allergen to wheat-based products you will need to investigate alternative brands such as Koko Gochujang or Wegmans gochujang. These two options are both vegan and gluten-free.

In a pinch, you may substitute gochujang with a little miso with Sriracha sauce or Thai chili paste but it does not have the same flavor profile.

Ham

Have you tried our Air Fryer Ham with Cranberry Glaze  recipe? It is fantastic in this gochujang fried rice recipe. A little salty, sweet and mmm… delicious.

Don’t have leftover ham, try Spam! However, we highly suggest you stir fry it a little with the kimchi first to give it those little toasty edges. You can also use honey deli ham in a pinch.

To make this recipe vegan, hold the ham. Instead, add in veggies, mushrooms or even a little fried tofu.

Green onions

This fresh ingredient is optional. However, a little pop of green brightens up this Korean crispy rice recipe.

Fried egg

Who can resist a little runny sunny side up egg over fried rice?  So good! It’s another optional ingredient. However, once you try it, you will never serve this gochujang pork recipe again without it.

Easy Step by Step Instructions

The most important step is to prep all your ingredients before you heat up your wok or frying pan. Chop up your kimchi, leftover ham and green onion as when you turn on the burner the whole dish will be cooked in about 5 minutes.

• Add oil to pan or wok and add chopped kimchi. Stir fry until all the moisture has absorbed.

• Put a dollop of gochujang sauce in the pan and stir fry until aromatic. You may need to add a little more oil as needed to prevent sticking.

• Add the rice and stir fry until all the grains of rice are coated with gochujang sauce.

• To the fried rice, add the chopped leftover ham and green onions and stir fry until aromatic. Season with salt and white pepper to taste.
• If you fancy a fried egg on top, fry up a sunny side up egg.

• Serve up Gochujang fried rice with leftover ham on a plate with or without a fried egg as desired.

Tips for Success

• Always used leftover cold rice. Do not use warm freshly cooked rice or you will end up with soggy gummy rice- not nice!
• Stir fry your kimchi until all the moisture is removed. This prevents your rice from getting soggy.  In addition, it makes the sour spicy kimchi naturally sweet.
• Adjust the amount of gochujang to your preferred spice and heat level.
• Chop your leftover ham in small cubes. It is always nicer to eat stir fries when all the items in the dish are about the same size.
• Mix it up and add any fresh vegetables bits and bobs you have the crisper.
• To make vegan, hold the ham and add mushrooms, fried tofu, or vegetables of choice.
• Traditional gochujang is not gluten-free. If you have celiac or a gluten sensitivity, please try one of the gluten free options like Koko or Wegmans.

How to Serve

Ok, we are not going to lie, we eat it straight from the wok. (smiling) You can certainly eat it plain.

However, if you do not have an egg allergy, you must give the sunny side up egg on top a try. There is something magical about having that runny delicious yolk mix with the savory, spicy and slightly sweet kimchi with rice. Heavenly!

If you were living in Korea, you would be using those gosh darn metal chopsticks to eat this dish and not a fork. Believe if or not, we are very proficient using "wooden" chopsticks. However, if we had to live the rest of our lives eating with only "metal" slippery chopsticks we would be super skinny. Hey, that might be our go to plan for the new year! (smiling) Have you ever tried eating with metal chopsticks?

Did you know this interesting theory? Some say that this tradition of eating with metal chopsticks started a long time ago to make sure that the rulers were not poisoned. Metal chopsticks can easily tarnish when they are exposed to corrosive substances.

No Special Equipment

Feel free to use a wok or a large frying pan for this kimchi fried rice recipe. However, the MOST important thing to remember is DO NOT CROWD THE WOK or PAN.

If you add a lot of ingredients to your wok, you are not stir frying but steaming. That is not the effect you are going for. To achieve the best results, you want to fry the ingredients with lots of room, so they stay dry and crisp. If you plan on doubling this recipe, do it in two separate stir fry sessions.

What to Serve It With?

Gochujang fried rice with leftover ham is a meal all by itself. However, you may want to serve along with these other tasty side dishes or mains.

Sides: When in doubt, more veggies are always a good choice. Try our Garlicky Sesame Stir Fried Green Beans, Stir Fried Romaine Lettuce or 5 Minute Stir Fried Garlic Pea Shoots.

Mains: Korean Beef BBQ Kalbi is extra delicious with a little fried rice and extra kimchi on the side.

Appetizers: Baked Dduk Lavered with Bacon is an oldie but a goodie.

How to store

Do you think you are going to have leftovers? You are an optimist.

If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, please store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Korean kimchi fried rice is delicious in bento boxes and lunches.

We do not suggest freezing your gochujang fried rice with leftover ham. It’s a texture thing. If the texture thing does not bother you, you can store in a freezer safe container for up to 2 months.

Frequent Asked Questions (FAQ’s)

More Delicious Rice Recipes

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