Gochujang substitutes
The best substitute for gochujang is miso + gochugaru + honey: Per 1 tbsp: 2 tsp white miso + 1 tsp gochugaru + 1 tsp honey + 1/4 tsp rice vinegar. The closest homemade version, rebuilding the ferment, the chilli and the sweetness separately. Thinner than the paste, so reduce it briefly if you need it to cling.
Why it matters. Fermented Korean chilli paste that is hot, sweet, salty and deeply savoury all at once, with a thick clinging body. Because it is fermented, a plain chilli sauce gives you the heat but none of the funk or the sweetness.
BestMiso + gochugaru + honey
●●●●○Per 1 tbsp: 2 tsp white miso + 1 tsp gochugaru + 1 tsp honey + 1/4 tsp rice vinegar
Keeps the flavour, umami, sweetener and texture roles.
The closest homemade version, rebuilding the ferment, the chilli and the sweetness separately. Thinner than the paste, so reduce it briefly if you need it to cling.
Ssamjang
●●●●○1:1
Keeps the flavour, umami, sweetener and texture roles.
A Korean paste built on gochujang and doenjang, so it is genuinely related. Saltier, nuttier and much less sweet, so cut salt elsewhere. Often contains sesame and nuts.
Sriracha + miso
●●●●○Per 1 tbsp: 2 tsp sriracha + 1 tsp white miso
Keeps the flavour, umami, sweetener and texture roles.
Covers the heat, the sweetness and some of the ferment. Sharper and more vinegary than gochujang, and noticeably thinner.
Red miso + chilli flakes + sugar
●●●○○Per 1 tbsp: 2 tsp red miso + 1 tsp chilli flakes + 1 tsp sugar
Keeps the flavour, umami, sweetener and texture roles.
Deep and savoury from the miso with the sugar covering the sweetness, but ordinary chilli flakes are hotter and far less fruity than gochugaru.
Sambal oelek + sugar + soy
●●●○○Per 1 tbsp: 2 tsp sambal oelek + 1 tsp brown sugar + 1/2 tsp soy sauce
Keeps the flavour, sweetener and texture roles; loses umami.
Right heat and a similarly chunky body, but no fermented soybean depth, which is exactly what makes gochujang taste Korean.
Sriracha
●●●○○1:1, and cut sugar elsewhere
Keeps the flavour and sweetener roles; loses umami and texture.
Sweet and hot but thin, garlicky and much more vinegary, with none of the fermented funk. It will loosen a marinade or a glaze.
Harissa + honey
●●○○○Per 1 tbsp: 2 tsp harissa + 1 tsp honey
Keeps the flavour, sweetener and texture roles; loses umami.
Similar consistency and heat level, but built on caraway, coriander and garlic, so it reads North African rather than Korean.
Other sauce substitutes
Measuring by weight instead? Use the kitchen converter.