Gochujang paste is a Korean chili paste that adds a delicious amount of spice and complex flavors to recipes. I love incorporating it with many different plant-based options, including tempah, mushrooms, tofu and more. The combination of the paste with mushrooms and walnuts makes the perfect savory filling to accompany crunchy lettuce wraps. The filling is not just a great source of flavor, but it also packs protein, fiber and other nutrients into these crispy lettuce wraps. The brown rice really enhances the texture of this dish and will help keep you feeling full and satisfied long after you’ve finished eating. If you have time to prep your brown rice ahead of time, this will cut the cooking time down to ~20 minutes. Once cooked, you can store the brown rice in the refrigerator and heat in the pan along with the walnuts, mushrooms and Gochujang per the directions below.
Want more recipes with Gochujang paste? Try these Tempeh Korean Tacos & Mushroom Bulgogi Bowls.
Yield: 4 servings
Cook time: 1 hour, including cooking brown rice. Prep your rice in advance to cut cook time down to ~20 minutes.
Ingredients
¾ cup uncooked brown rice or 1 and ½ cups cooked brown rice.
If you are cooking your rice at the start of this recipe, you will have time to cut and prepare your vegetables after starting the rice.
1 Tbsp lime juice
2 tsp rice or white wine vinegar
¼ cup soy sauce
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 tsp ginger, peeled and minced
2 Tbsp Gochujang paste
1 tsp neutral cooking oil
1 cup yellow onion, peeled and finely diced
7-10 cremini or button mushrooms, finely diced
1 cup walnuts, finely diced
1 head butter lettuce, washed. You’ll use 12-16 leaves for lettuce wraps.
½ cup carrots, peeled and cut into thin sticks. Optional for topping lettuce wraps.
½ cup green onions, ends removed and sliced thin. Optional for topping lettuce wraps.
Preparation
Step 1: Bring a pot of water to boil and cook the brown rice per the package instructions. If you’ve made brown rice ahead of time, you don’t need to reheat it. You’ll add it to the filling in step 3 below.
Step 2: If you’re cooking the rice now, you can chop all of your vegetables while it cooks. Also prepare your Gochujang sauce, by combining the lime juice, rice vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and Gochujan paste in a medium sized bowl. Stir until everything is well mixed.
Step 3: Once your rice has cooked, heat a large frying pan over medium heat and add the oil. Heat the oil in the pan and add the onion. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the finely diced walnuts and mushrooms and cook for another 4 minutes. You may need to add more oil if the mixture starts to stick. Add the rice and the Gochujang sauce mixture you made to the frying pan, stir so everything is well coated. Let the mixture cook for another 2-3 minutes or longer if you started with cold cooked rice. I like to serve this hot!
Step 4: Add the walnut and mushroom filling to the washed leaves of butter lettuce and serve with sliced carrots and green onions on top.
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