Avocado in Korean Cuisine: Discover the Creamy Beef Gochujang Recipe You Can’t Miss!

[Herald Economy = Reporter Yuk Seong-yeon] Avocados usually show up on brunch menus and other Western dishes. Since they aren’t a traditional ingredient in Korean cooking, you don’t often see them in classic recipes—but their rich, nutty flavor makes them a perfect match for Korean-fusion dishes.

One chef-recommended twist on a classic is using avocado in yak-gochujang, a seasoned gochujang paste. Chef Raymond Kim suggests an “Avocado Beef Yak-Gochujang” that’s smoother and creamier than the standard version. “Using avocado in the sauce keeps the dish moist and adds depth,” he says. “It also softens the punchy meat flavor when you cook pork or beef with yak-gochujang.”

Make a batch, and you’ll find endless uses: toss it into bibimbap as the seasoning, swirl it into ssamjang (the Korean dipping paste), spoon it over rice bowls, or use it as a dip for grilled meats. Because avocado brings a buttery, creamy quality, it also works brilliantly in Western dishes whenever you want a slightly spicy cream sauce.

To make it: mix 7 tablespoons gochujang, 2 tablespoons maesil-cheong (plum syrup), 2 tablespoons oligosaccharide syrup, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon mirin to make the gochujang seasoning. Blanch the ground beef briefly to remove excess fat. Mash or puree the avocado. In a pan, sauté the mashed avocado, onion, and shiitake mushrooms in sesame oil, then add garlic and the blanched beef. Stir in the gochujang seasoning, add finely chopped avocado, and stir-fry again. If you like more heat, sprinkle in fine gochugaru (chili powder). Finish with a drizzle of sesame oil and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Chef Raymond Kim also recommends “Avocado Cheese Tonkatsu.” It’s a simple crowd-pleaser: top a pork loin with avocado and mozzarella, roll it up, bread it, and fry. “Avocado brings a rich yet clean flavor that pairs beautifully with meat,” he says.

South Korea imports all of its avocados, so you can find them year-round in supermarkets, but harvest seasons differ by growing region. California avocados peak in flavor from May through July, when their fat content is highest.

Chef Kim encourages using avocado regularly in everyday cooking as a good source of unsaturated fats.

Avocado has been a flagship “superfood” since the term became popular. In 2002, Time magazine named avocado one of the “10 Best Superfoods in the World.” It’s nutrient-dense—rich in dietary fiber, potassium, vitamins E and K, and folate.