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Korean Green Chilli Pickles

Korean green chilli pickles are an easy and delicious Korean side dish that has a sweet and sour flavour and crunchy texture.

For extra Korean flavour, these pickled chillies can be seasoned with spicy Korean chilli sauce. These are so addictive!  They will become your new favourite pickled dish! 

How to Make Korean Style Green Chilli Pickles | MyKoreanKitchen.com

Korean green chilli pickles (고추 장아찌, Gochu Jangajji) are a popular Korean side dish all year round. Though these are particularly popular during the summer months because when you don’t have much appetite due to the hot and humid weather, these pickles can help you bring your lost appetite back!

Pickled chillies are so easy to make but you do need a little bit of patience while they go through a pickling process. This can take between 3 days to a week depending on how you prepared your chillies.

When the pickled chillies are ready, they can be served with cooked rice, other Korean side dishes or with Korean BBQ. You can also pair them with your favourite hot dog or subs.

Korean Style Green Chilli Pickle Recipe | MyKoreanKitchen.com

My favourite way of serving is mixing these chilli pickles with spicy Korean chilli sauce after they’ve gone through the pickling process. This spicy Korean chilli sauce has a very similar taste to a dressing I used in my cucumber soba noodles and I tell you, this combination is simply THE BEST!

It’s spicy, tangy, nutty and addictive! You’ve got to try your green chilli pickles in this “completely optional but necessary sauce”.

Korean Style Pickled Chillies. These are super addictive! | MyKoreanKitchen.com

When I was growing up, I never understood why my mum would eat these kinds of chilli pickles, but boy, they are seriously delicious! They will steal your boring bowl of rice away in no time. Yum!

Other Quick Pickle Recipes

If you love pickles, you should try these recipes. They are so easy to make and make a great side dish to any Korean meal!

Ingredients for Korean Chilli Pickles

Main

  • 350g to 450g (0.8 to 1 pound) Korean green chillies (or your choice of non-spicy green chillies)
  • 1 cup soy sauce
  • 1 cup water
  • 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup sugar

(Optional) spicy Korean chilli sauce – These are enough for 10 to 15 pickled chillies.

* 1 Tbsp = 15 ml, 1 Cup = 250 ml

**If you want to learn about Korean ingredients, check my essential Korean cooking ingredients list.

How to Make Chilli Pickles

1. Rinse the chillies in cold running water. Trim off the stems with a pair of scissors. With a toothpick (or other sharp pointed object), make some random holes around each chilli. (I typically make 6 to 8 holes per chilli. This is to help with sauce absorption). Alternatively, you can chop the chillies into small pieces (about 3 cm/1 inch) without making the holes.

Preparing green chillies for pickling

2. Combine the soy sauce, water, vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and boil until the sugar dissolves (about 5 mins) on medium high heat. Whisk occasionally. Remove the pan from the heat and cool it down (about 10 mins).

soy sauce based brine for green chilli pickles

3. Tightly stack the chillies (without crushing them) in a glass jar suitable for pickling then pour the brine over them. Seal the lid and leave it at room temperature for 24 hrs. Transfer the jar to the fridge. For small sized chillies, you can start eating them 72 hrs after making them. For larger sized chillies, you can start eating them one week after making them.

If you want some extra Korean flavour, mix the pickled green chillies with the spicy Korean chilli sauce (optional ingredients mentioned above) in a bowl just before serving.

Korean Style Green Chilli Pickles | MyKoreanKitchen.com

Note

  • Before you close the lid (in step 3), you can add a small bowl (that would fit in your jar) or a bag of pebble stones to press down the chillies. This may help the initial pickling process to happen faster and also it may help your chillies to stay more sterile. However, I don’t always do this and my pickles have been fine. So I’ll leave it up to you.
  • Some Koreans boil the brine 24 hrs after the pickling process has begun. This is to make the pickled chillies last longer (e.g. a few months to a year). However, I don’t practice this because I know we will finish these chillies within a few weeks. By all means, if you want, you can boil the brine twice. Simply, drain the brine out, boil and cool down. Pack the chillies again into a clean jar then pour the brine back into the jar. Store in the fridge.
  • When you bite the pickled chillies (with holes), watch out for the brine squirting out through the holes. It can ruin your clothes. 😉
  • Any leftover pickling sauce in a jar can be used to accompany your favourite Korean pancakes or dumplings. Use it as a dipping sauce.

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How to Make Korean Style Green Chilli Pickles | MyKoreanKitchen.com

Korean Green Chili Pickles

How to make Korean green pepper pickles
4.75 from 4 votes
Print Pin Rate Save
Course: Side dishes
Cuisine: Korean
Keyword: chilli pickles, korean pickled peppers, pickled chilli peppers
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 20 +
Calories: 43kcal
Author: Sue | My Korean Kitchen

Ingredients

MAIN

  • 350 - 450 g Korean green chillies (0.8 to 1 pound), or your choice of non-spicy green chillies
  • 1 cup soy sauce
  • 1 cup water
  • 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup sugar

(OPTIONAL) SPICY KOREAN CHILLI SAUCE – THESE ARE ENOUGH FOR 10 TO 15 PICKLED CHILLIES.

Instructions

  • Rinse the chillies in cold running water. Trim off the stems with a pair of scissors. With a toothpick (or other sharp pointed object), make some random holes around each chilli. (I typically make 6 to 8 holes per chilli. This is to help with sauce absorption). Alternatively, you can chop the chillies into small pieces (about 3 cm/1 inch) without making the holes.
  • Combine the soy sauce, water, vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and boil until the sugar dissolves (about 5 mins) on medium high heat. Whisk occasionally. Remove the pan from the heat and cool it down (about 10 mins).
  • Tightly stack the chillies (without crushing them) in a glass jar suitable for pickling then pour the brine over them. Seal the lid and leave it at room temperature for 24 hrs. Transfer the jar to the fridge. For small sized chillies, you can start eating them 72 hrs after making them. For larger sized chillies, you can start eating them one week after making them.
    If you want some extra Korean flavour, mix the pickled green chillies with the spicy Korean chilli sauce (optional ingredients mentioned above) in a bowl just before serving.

Notes

* 1 Tbsp = 15 ml, 1 Cup = 250 ml

Nutrition Info (per serving)

Calories: 43kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 1g | Sodium: 714mg | Potassium: 38mg | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 120IU | Vitamin C: 2.2mg | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.4mg

The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Tried this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Rate this recipe with a comment below and tag me on Instagram @MyKoreanKitchen.

 

Written by: Sue

Last Updated:

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Welcome to my Korean kitchen! I’m so happy that you're here. I am Sue, the creator behind My Korean Kitchen (since 2006). I love good food and simplifying recipes. Here you will find my best and family approved recipes. Thanks for stopping by!

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