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Kimchi fried rice

Kimchi-bokkeumbap 김치볶음밥

This simple, simple dish is super, super tasty. It’s just a few ingredients, but it’s a dish much loved by Koreans and a staple of our everyday lives.

This version is simple, but you can dress it up with a bit of beef, chicken, pork, ham, or even spam. Many Koreans also like to put a fried egg on top, but my family prefers this simple version that I’m showing you here. When my son lived in the school dorm, visits with him were rare. I talked to him on the phone before he came and I asked:

“What food do you miss the most? I’ll make it for you when you come.”

I figured I would need some time to prepare and shop ahead of time, but he answered: “I miss kimchi-bokkeumbap.”

“What? That’s it? Is there anything else?”

“Just kimchi-bokkeumbap, Mom.”

As you see in this video, you don’t need to prepare much in advance for kimchi-bokkeumbap if you have kimchi and rice on hand. So of course I made it for him, along with grilled beef and lots of high protein food. As soon as he came home, I was ready to stir fry. He loved it!

A lot of people say making fried rice is best with leftover rice straight from the fridge, or just day-old rice, but I’ve never really tasted the difference in flavor, taste, or texture. I use fresh rice all the time. I just let it cool down a bit before I stir fry, and my kimchi bokkeumbap is always delicious. It’s the best fried rice I have ever tasted, much better than the kimchi-bokkeumbap at a Korean restaurant.

Ingredients

  • 3 bowls steamed rice (3 cups)
  • 1 cup chopped kimchi (should be aged, well-fermented and sour)
  • ¼ cup kimchi juice (spicy red juice from a jar of kimchi)
  • ¼ cup water
  • 2-3 tablespoons gochujang
  • 3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
  • 1 green onion, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds
  • 1 sheet of gim, roasted and shredded into seaweed strips

Directions

  1. Heat up a wide, flat pan or skillet. Add the vegetable oil.
  2. Add the kimchi and stir fry for 1 minute over medium-high heat.add kimchi
  3. Add rice, kimchi juice, water, and gochujang. Stir all the ingredients together for about 7 minutes with a wooden spoon.add kimchi juice
  4. Add sesame oil and remove from the heat.
  5. Garnish with sprinkled chopped green onion, roasted gim, and sesame seeds. Serve right away.

add sesame seedsfried-rice

Posted on Wednesday, March 5th, 2008. Last updated on June 18, 2023.
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262 Comments:

  1. Xiaojie Micayla Penghu, Taiwan joined 8/23 & has 1 comment
    Posted August 17th, 2023 at 8:07 am | or create a profile.

    Nĭ hăo Maangchi! This is my go-to comfort food. Tastes like home, even though home is in the middle of the US! Grew up in a very culturally rich family and Korean has always been my love. I like to slice 4 cloves are garlic thinly and fry them in the oil first. Flavors the oil nicely and getting a slice of roasted garlic with spicy goodness is wonderful. My husband is on a business trip right now and is missing out on one of his favorites tonight!

    With Love From Penghu

  2. benjimin Minneapolis joined 4/23 & has 4 comments
    Posted June 2nd, 2023 at 6:49 pm | or create a profile.

    I made this twice, once with freshly made rice and once with leftover rice. And I have to say, the leftover rice was better – the freshly made rice one was good too but the rice grains stuck together and it was more like kimchi risotto. The leftover rice grains separate more easily for a more traditional fried rice texture. When I made it with leftover rice I also added garlic and sliced hot dog but skipped the kimchi juice – it was so good with a fried egg on top too!

  3. cjoyyc Philippines joined 3/23 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 14th, 2023 at 1:05 am | or create a profile.

    Thanks so much foe this quick and easy, yet delicious recipe. I like how simple everything is. I didn’t have green onion or seaweed but I made it work. I used 2 cups of rice because that’s what’s available but still used 3tbps of gochujang. I love how spicy it is! I added fried eggs on top.


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  4. LizST Arkansas joined 1/22 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 19th, 2022 at 12:30 am | or create a profile.

    Hi maangchi!
    Recently I made the kimchi fried rice recipe and it turned out very light in color and not a lot of taste and I really feel I did something wrong. Because it was light in color but really spicy I think I added too much chili paste but not sure if I let my kimchi ferment long enough. The kimchi was fresher, maybe one week. Should I let it ferment longer next time?
    Thank you for your recipes and any help!!❤️

  5. Aidann Greenwolfe Kansas City, MO joined 12/17 & has 3 comments
    Posted January 19th, 2022 at 12:08 pm | or create a profile.

    Made this with my homemade kimchi today. It was wonderful. Very satisfying lunch on a cold day.


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  6. Coni Chile joined 12/21 & has 1 comment
    Posted December 1st, 2021 at 11:04 am | or create a profile.

    Maangchi today was my second time making kimchi bokkeumbap and it turned out absolutely delicious!!! This has become one of my favorite easy dishes. Thank you so much.

    Greetings from Chile

  7. hoshana42 Chicago, IL joined 11/20 & has 1 comment
    Posted November 24th, 2020 at 2:24 pm | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangchi! I made your kimchi-bokkeumbap recipe for the first time and it turned out AMAZING. Spicy, delicious, and beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I look forward to trying out many more of your recipes!


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  8. MaangchiLove Montreal, Toronto joined 8/19 & has 56 comments
    Posted November 21st, 2020 at 9:58 am | or create a profile.

    Soooo gooooooood, Maangchi!


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  9. K-foodiefan Edinburgh joined 8/20 & has 1 comment
    Posted August 26th, 2020 at 8:10 am | or create a profile.

    How many people does this serve please?

  10. Therapy Jefferson, MD joined 5/20 & has 3 comments
    Posted May 19th, 2020 at 12:11 am | or create a profile.

    I’m from Nebraska and have always been intimidated by Asian cooking, but your recipes make it very easy. I first made Kimchi which my American born Korean friend hadn’t even tried and it turned out perfect, then I made Kimchi fried rice with this recipe (added pork belly) and he thought it looked great, tasted great too. I thought it had just the right amount of heat for me and I would only add more eggs-they were so yummy in it!

    I look forward to trying your basic rice recipe because mine needs work.

    Thank you,
    Matt


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    • Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments
      Posted May 20th, 2020 at 5:59 pm | or create a profile.

      Hi Matt,
      Your kimchi bokkeumbap looks fantastic even though you made this for the first time! Good luck with Korean cooking!

      • freldici France joined 6/20 & has 33 comments
        Posted June 17th, 2020 at 7:41 pm | or create a profile.

        Bonjour. Moi aussi Matt j’ai un problème avec le riz de base. … riz long, riz rond, riz sushi, riz jasmin, etc…ce n’est JAMAIS le bon !!! Si vous faites une découverte prévenez moi !!

        • Bogsunga Florida joined 7/21 & has 1 comment
          Posted July 8th, 2021 at 3:51 pm | or create a profile.

          Salut. Essayez un riz de marque Nishiski ou avec le mot rose dessus. Pour cette recette, utilisez des grains courts. La plupart des recettes asiatiques utilisent des grains courts. Ajouter un peu moins d’eau au riz que les instructions sur l’emballage. Un cuiseur à riz automatique fait du très bon riz.

  11. Eviolus- South UK :) joined 4/20 & has 1 comment
    Posted April 28th, 2020 at 10:42 am | or create a profile.

    What is kimchi juice?

  12. Mayday Montreal joined 3/20 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 28th, 2020 at 7:43 pm | or create a profile.

    Tried it today, followed step by step & came out fantastic ! Boyfriend loved it. :) Thank you !!!

  13. Laarnih Salt lake utah joined 2/20 & has 1 comment
    Posted February 3rd, 2020 at 3:22 pm | or create a profile.

    Amazing recipe. Thank you maanchi ♥️


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  14. CCK Australia joined 11/19 & has 2 comments
    Posted January 25th, 2020 at 3:13 am | or create a profile.

    Wonderful recipe I always make this after my Kimchi has fermented

  15. Pkhoo Michigan joined 7/19 & has 1 comment
    Posted July 18th, 2019 at 7:44 pm | or create a profile.

    Delicious! Thank you :)


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  16. MelB94 Buenos Aires Argentina joined 4/19 & has 1 comment
    Posted April 11th, 2019 at 5:43 pm | or create a profile.

    I just made it for lunch and its sooo delicious!


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  17. anothersesameseed Earth joined 2/19 & has 5 comments
    Posted February 21st, 2019 at 10:45 pm | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangchi! I saw in your video that you sometimes add meat to your fried rice to make it upgraded. How can I incorporate thin strips of pork belly (for shabu shabu) into my fried rice?

  18. Hmreyna88 USA joined 12/18 & has 1 comment
    Posted December 6th, 2018 at 3:44 pm | or create a profile.

    Made the Kimchi 1 month ago from your recipe and today made the fried rice with poached egg. Perfection! Thank you Maangchi!!!


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  19. kamodd Russia joined 9/18 & has 3 comments
    Posted September 1st, 2018 at 7:27 am | or create a profile.

    Thank you


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  20. Sashi Sri Lanka joined 8/18 & has 1 comment
    Posted August 6th, 2018 at 5:03 am | or create a profile.

    Kamsahamnida.

  21. MIXUE INDIANA, USA joined 1/18 & has 7 comments
    Posted January 9th, 2018 at 2:38 am | or create a profile.

    아주 맛있어요~! So simple yet so heavenly! Thank you for your delicious recipe, Maangchi! 갑사합니다! :)


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  22. Jini joined 5/15 & has 3 comments
    Posted November 19th, 2017 at 9:55 pm | or create a profile.

    Hi! Finally gave it a go on your yummy recipe. BUT, I didn’t have gochujang (I forgot to buy)…. I went to see if there was a substitute. There was with chili flakes, soy sauce and sugar. I ended up trying to figure out a recipe and then added some doenjang; to make it thicker paste. It came out alright. But still, gochujang would have made it better.
    Do you have an emergency substitute for gochujang?

  23. ariannagoh Malaysia joined 9/17 & has 1 comment
    Posted September 2nd, 2017 at 4:20 am | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangachi! i want to make this recipe but don’t have any kimchi juice as i buy packaged kimchi, can i leave the kimchi juice out while making or is there any substitutes? thanks!

  24. Abigailll New jersey joined 9/17 & has 3 comments
    Posted September 1st, 2017 at 11:16 pm | or create a profile.


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  25. stephstephanie singapore joined 8/17 & has 1 comment
    Posted August 23rd, 2017 at 11:40 pm | or create a profile.

    hi, can you recommend me what brand to buy for the kimchi and gochujang? i love spicy one.

  26. SpicySBUXkitty Florida, U.S joined 8/17 & has 1 comment
    Posted August 23rd, 2017 at 1:03 pm | or create a profile.

    So yesterday was the first time I tried making this…. can you say Wow! Best and most flavorful fried rice recipe ever!! And so easy. My husband asked me to make it at least once a week if not more. Thank you for this easy and flavorful recipe.


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  27. tetrisbetris Seoul joined 8/17 & has 1 comment
    Posted August 18th, 2017 at 11:40 pm | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangchi,
    I just moved to Seoul and have been trying to make some Korean food. I made this last week and it’s so delicious! A fried egg and some gim on top made it a perfect meal. I’m so happy I have your videos to get me cooking with local ingredients while I’m here :).

  28. Casvectra Germany joined 7/17 & has 2 comments
    Posted July 16th, 2017 at 9:36 am | or create a profile.

    Hello Maangchi, I did this today and it was really delicious. I also add an egg on top. I’m definitely going to cook this for my friends who love Korean Food <3


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  29. Fathima_97 USA joined 7/17 & has 2 comments
    Posted July 7th, 2017 at 9:42 pm | or create a profile.

    Anneyeong Maangchi,

    Can I know how much ingredients I have to put if I want to cook for like 10 people?

    Thank You

  30. Kitchenexperiments Indonesia joined 6/17 & has 2 comments
    Posted June 21st, 2017 at 7:38 pm | or create a profile.

    Tried this recipe and love it so much. Tasted just right, not too salty not to sweet, and simple as well. Would cook it again definteley. Thanks maagchi.


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