Gochujang Salmon

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This Gochujang Salmon is exactly what you need for a hot and healthy kick! The gochujang marinade has only 6 ingredients and the salmon takes all of 10 minutes to cook so it's super fast and fit from frig to fork (or chopsticks)! Shall we?

Gochujang Salmon is salmon, usually in fillet form, that marinates in a spicy, barely sweet, umami-rich gochujang mixture for a short period of time, then bakes in the oven or in an air-fryer. Gochujang itself has natural sweetness, so the salmon caramelizes around the edges giving the fish a perfect balance of sweet, savory and spicy.

Gochujang is a Korean hot pepper paste made by fermenting chili peppers with rice and/soybeans. It has a deep-toned, savory umami flavor with a subtle background sweetness. Though sometimes literally called a "sauce," gochujang is actually more a basic ingredient used to make and flavor marinades, sauces, soups and more, and not something you would use directly out of the container at the table to season a final dish.

Gochujang, like any condiment, varies in style, flavor, texture, and heat level across brands and recipes—yes! recipes because you can actually make your own gochujang. The base ingredients are Korean red pepper powder—called "gochugaru"—and soybeans. From there, ingredients vary, including any kind of sweetener from brown rice syrup to high fructose corn syrup, seasonings like garlic and/or onion, sometimes grains like barley, rice or wheat, and possibly alcohol or other form of preservative. Read the labels to look out for any ingredients to which you are sensitive.

Omega-3s in Salmon. When we talk about the health benefits of salmon, we are almost always talking about the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids, the all-star anti-inflammatory compound associated with supporting gut health and reducing the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and other inflammation-induced diseases. Salmon is one of the highest concentration, highest quality sources of omega-3 fatty acids, containing 2,150 mg per 3-ounce serving.

Nutrients in Salmon. Salmon is also one of the most nutrient-dense foods in the world. In addition to the high levels of above-mentioned omega-3s, salmon is an excellent source of vitamin B12 for cellular energy, vitamin D which our bodies cannot make on our own, and the essential mineral selenium that has antioxidant properties that protect the heart, reduce cognitive decline, and boost immunity. (source: NIH)

Depending on the type—King, sockeye, coho, Atlantic—salmon has 20-22 grams of protein per 100-gram/3.5-ounce serving.

Gochujang Has Probiotic-like Qualities. Gochujang is made by fermenting chili peppers with rice and/soybeans. As a fermented food, gochujang provides gut-health promoting probiotic bacteria. That fermentation gives gochujang its umami flavor, that salty, savory deliciousness that's hard to pinpoint in foods.

This recipe for Gochujang Salmon is:

For Gochujang Salmon, you will need only a few ingredients:

Pull any small pin bones from salmon fillets. Remove scales with the edge of a small knife if you are using skin-on salmon. Rinse salmon and pat very dry with paper towels.

Whisk together gochujang, tamari, sake, sesame oil, garlic, and optional maple syrup in small bowl. The marinade will be the consistency of thin BBQ sauce.

Place salmon in glass or ceramic bowl and pour marinade over. Turn salmon pieces over in marinade to make sure all surfaces are coated. Cover and marinate for at least 30 minutes, up to 1 day. If cooking within 30 minutes, leave salmon on counter while you prep the rest of your meal. If marinating overnight, place in refrigerator and remove marinated salmon from refrigerator 15 minutes before cooking and let it sit on the countertop to get the "chill" off.

Lift salmon out of marinade and wipe off excess miso marinade. You can use a spatula or spoon to do this, or just use your hands. Do not rinse the salmon.

Place salmon fillet on parchment-lined baking sheet OR in basket of air-fryer skin side down. Bake in oven or air fry at 350° oven for 15 minutes.

Check for doneness. Salmon is cooked and ready when an instant read thermometer registers 145°F per USDA recommendations. You can also flake off a piece of salmon from the thickest part of the fillet and check for your preferred level of doneness. I like my salmon cooked all the way through.

For a full breakdown on gochujang, check out this post, Gochujang 101. In the mean time...

There aren't necessarily different types of gochujang, though like any condiment, there are a range of spice levels, flavors, and textures based on different brands' exact ingredients.

The base ingredients of gochujang are Korean red pepper powder and soybeans. From there, ingredients can include any kind of sweetener from brown rice syrup to high fructose corn syrup, seasonings like garlic and/or onion, sometimes grains like barley, rice or wheat, and possibly alcohol or other form of preservative. Read the labels to look out for any ingredients to which you are sensitive.

** Pro-tip: Make sure the product is "gochujang" and not "gochujang sauce," which is a pre-made sauce with gochujang as an ingredient.

Use any kind of gochujang that suits your taste and preferred heat-level. These are brands of gochujang I actually use and recommend, mostly because I look for products with no corn syrup and no wheat:

My recommendation for any preparation is always for fresh, wild-caught King salmon, which is the largest of the different types of salmon, and has the richest, most luxurious taste and texture. From a nutrition standpoint, King salmon has the highest amount of health-supporting omega3s per serving of all the different salmon types.

However, wild King salmon has a fairly short season, May-June and it's the most expensive of all the salmon types.

Because the gochujang marinade is extremely flavorful, you can get away with using just about any kind of salmon for Gochujang Salmon, from sustainably farmed Atlantic Salmon, Coho or Sockeye.

Check out this What is the Best Type of Salmon - Coho, King, Sockeye post for a deep dive (pardon the pun heh heh) into salmon!

This recipe for Gochujang Salmon includes directions for cooking the salmon in both the conventional oven as well as an air-fryer. I have made it both ways multiple times and really, the key deciding factor for me is always which is more convenient at the time.

When to use the Oven. Make Gochujang Salmon in the oven if obviously, you only have an oven. The broiler in the oven also creates the most caramelized char. The oven is also best for larger portions and/or multiple servings.

When to Use Air-Fryer. Make Gochujang Salmon in the air-fryer if you are only making one or two servings. The biggest advantage of the air-fryer over the oven is that the air-fryer turns off automatically when it's done cooking—one less thing to keep track of. For an absent-minded, multi-tasking chicken in the kitchen with her head cut off like me, this is crucial.

As I always say, you don't need any special equipment to make almost any recipe. However, that's not to say there are a couple of gadgets and tools that might make it a LOT easier to get Spicy Gochujang Salmon from your fridge to fork (or chopsticks).

With so few ingredients in this recipe, there aren't a lot of substitutions. That being said, you can make small adjustments to suit certain diets or lifestyles:

Marinated raw Gochujang Salmon should be cooked within one day of marinating.

Refrigerator. Cooked Gochujang Salmon can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Refer to the USDA for safe storage information for fish.

Freezer. Freeze and store cooked Gochujang Salmon in an airtight container, preferably with the air removed like in a zipper plastic bag, in the freezer for up to 3 months. Refer to the USDA for safe storage of fish and shellfish.

A generous serving of omega-3-rich salmon marinated in metabolism-firing gochujang served with brown rice, a green vegetable, and healthy side of kimchi is a perfect meal to me! Here are some suggestions to pair with you Gochujang Salmon:

Salmon itself is a versatile fish when it comes to wine pairing because it works well with both white wine because it's fish (duh) and lighter-bodied red wine because of its richness. That leaves the nuance of wine pairing to the most prominent feature of Gochujang Salmon which is the earthy, umami spiciness of the gochujang marinade.

Gochujang Salmon is:

Spicy foods are commonly paired with wines that are served cold, lower in alcohol, and just a touch sweeter than your usual choice, all to balance and temper the heat. The perfect wine pairings for Gochujang Salmon are:

Yes, we are obsessed with omega-3-rich salmon in this house, why do you ask?

Since you only need 2 tablespoons of gochujang for your Gochujang Salmon, you'll have an entire of container of gochujang left to make these recipes!

Sarah is a professional recipe developer, writer, and digital content creator with almost 20 years of experience cooking for health and happiness. She has traveled to and tasted wine in Burgundy, France and throughout the many diverse wine regions of California.

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