Name: Kimchi Fried Rice
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 tbsp gochujang ((Korean Chili Paste)); 1 tbsp soy sauce ((low sodium)); 1 tsp sesame oil; 1 tsp ginger (minced); 1 garlic clove; 8 oz dried pork belly; 1½ tbsp Vegetable oil, divided; 1 tbsp sesame oil; 2 eggs (lightly beaten); 1½ cups kimchi (chopped); 3 tbsp soy sauce (low sodium); 3 green onions (thinly sliced and divided); 2½ cups steamed rice; 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds; 1 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 large egg

What is Kimchi?

Kimchi is a salted and fermented vegetable side dish. It’s an everyday staple in Korean cuisine. Napa cabbage and Korean radish are the most common and widely known vegetables used to make kimchi, but there are hundreds of different types of kimchi, made from a variety of vegetables.

Some examples are cucumbers, burdock, perilla leaves, lotus root, eggplant, green onions. There are dozens of different types and styles of kimchi made from Napa cabbage and Korean radishes alone. It is truly an extremely diverse dish.

Commonly Used Ingredients in Kimchi

Brining salt (which has a large grain size from table salt) is used to begin the salting and fermentation process of most kimchi. Other common ingredients are gochugaru (Korean chili powder), ginger, garlic, green onions, and salted seafood (such as tiny shrimp, oysters, and cod gills), that are all used to flavor different types of kimchi. The different types of kimchi made and ingredients used are associated with different regions throughout Korea.

Napa Cabbage Kimchi

For this recipe of Kimchi and Pork Fried Rice I used the common and popular spicy fermented Napa cabbage variety that is precut (vs the whole leaves of quartered Napa cabbage). It caramelizes very well when sautéed, making it perfect for this type of dish.

You can also find this type of kimchi at all Korean grocery stores, some international grocery stores as well as some local grocery stores. The kimchi itself has so much flavor to it that you don’t need much else to bring this dish together.

Why we like Pork Belly with Kimchi Fried Rice

The addition of spicy marinated pork belly adds a nice, rich and filling component to the overall dish. You can omit the pork belly and the egg if you prefer a vegetarian style kimchi fried rice.

Pork belly is different from bacon and it’s important not to interchange the two in this recipe. Pork belly is bacon before it’s cured and smoked, therefore the flavor is much more simple. If you use bacon the end result will be salty and you won’t have the nice chunks of meat throughout the dish you get from pork belly.

How to make Kimchi Fried Rice:

This Kimchi Fried Rice recipe is really simple, and all it takes are 7 easy steps:

Marinate the pork: Place all pork marinade ingredients into a bowl, then add the pork and mix. Marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Cook the pork: add vegetable oil to the skillet and cook pork for 4-5 minutes.

Cook the eggs for the rice: add the remaining vegetable oil to the skillet followed by the lightly beaten eggs. As the eggs cook gently break them apart into big pieces in the skillet. Add to cooked pork.

Cook kimchi: add sesame oil to the skillet and then add the kimchi and soy sauce. Cook until kimchi begins to caramelize and 4-5 minutes.

Add rice: add rice to kimchi in skillet and stir until well coated. Then add pork and egg mixture. Continue to cook until rice begins to char around the edges.

Add green onions and sesame seeds. Remove from heat.

Top with remaining green onions and a fried egg if you prefer.

If you love this recipe, we also used this fried rice recipe to make these Kimchi Fried Rice Balls! You might also like our other Korean inspired recipes below:

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