Kimchi Fried Rice (Kimchi-bokkeumbap)

Kimchi Fried Rice

This is my go-to recipe if I'm craving comfort food and want something quick and easy.  It's so simple and yet is packed full of flavor. Honestly, I rarely order takeaways anymore... There is no need and it seems like a waste when you have fried rice ingredients lying around in the fridge. This is my favorite way to use up leftovers. And it is by far the healthier option to greasy takeout. 

What is Kimchi Fried Rice?

Kimchi fried rice, also known as "kimchi bokkeumbap" is a popular Korean dish that combines kimchi and fried rice. Kimchi itself is a traditional Korean fermented vegetable dish, typically made from napa cabbage, along with various seasonings like red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger, and salt. Kimchi is a staple in Korean cuisine and has a long history, dating back hundreds of years.

The origins of kimchi fried rice are a bit less clear, as it is a relatively modern fusion dish that likely emerged in the mid-20th century as Korean cuisine was evolving. It's believed to have been created as a way to repurpose leftover rice and kimchi. Over time, it became a popular comfort food and a quick, easy, and delicious meal to make at home. 

What does Kimchi Fried Rice taste like?

An addictive balance of umami, spicy, and tangy flavors. Kimchi gets its sourness from the fermentation process in undergoes. The longer you leave it, the more tangy it becomes. So depending on your personal preferences, you can customize your fried rice by adding a more mature and funky kimchi for a lip smacking kick, or a fresher kimchi for a cleaner finish. 

Customize your recipe

Make it plant-based or halal-friendly by leaving out the pork and eggs. However, it is entirely up to you! You can also dress it up by adding beef, prawns and chicken. 

If you want to make a vegetarian kimchi fried rice, use a premium vegan kimchi. I prefer to use Jonga. Of course, you can also make vegan Kimchi, which is well worth the effort. You can find many Korean vegan and vegetarian recipes in my books here.

What to Eat Kimchi Fried Rice With?

Koreans enjoy kimchi bokkeumbap for breakfast, lunch, dinner, as a snack or a side... You can pair it with a fried egg, or with Korean fried chicken. There are countless ways to eat Kimchi fried rice, so you do you! 

Why not get creative and stuff it inside a Korean Tofu Marinated Burrito?? It tastes amazing in a burrito. 

Seoul Bird

Where to Find Kimchi?

You've got a couple of options here in addition to the aforementioned vegan kimchi.

There's nothing like homemade kimchi, where you can tweak the flavors to suit your taste buds. Although, I do believe I've perfected my kimchi recipe and so I will share you the link here: Cabbage or "Pogi" Kimchi recipe.

But if you're all about convenience, no worries! You can snag some top-notch kimchi from the shelves of your local Asian supermarket or online at Hmart.

Again, choose a premium brand like Jonga to make the most out of your fried rice efforts. 

Ingredients:

The beauty of this dish is that it's like a food scrapyard—in a good way! You can toss in just about anything you have lying around, and it'll be delicious. It is a truly thrifty meal option.

For the ultimate Kimchi Fried Rice, you'll want to reach for short-grain rice, like Korean or Japanese rice. It's sticky, it's flavorful, and its perfect for this dish. 

Find out more about each ingredient and where to buy it by clicking on the ingredient links below!

Cabbage Kimchi

Ingredients

serves 4

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 strips (45 grams or 1 3/4 ounces) bacon, diced (optional)
  • 2 carrots, julienned and then coarsely chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • 9 shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced lengthwise into quarters
  • 1/2 zucchini, julienned and coarsely chopped
  • 3 spring onions or scallions, finely sliced
  • 1 cup (300 grams) cabbage kimchi, chopped into small pieces
  • 4 cups (740 grams) cooked short-grain rice
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
  • 8 grinds black pepper
  • 4 soft sunny-side up fried eggs (optional)
  • Sprinkle Korean chilli flakes (gochugaru)
  • Sprinkle freshly ground black pepper

Method

  1. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the bacon and saute until the edges are crispy, 2 to 3 minutes.
  2. Using a slotted spoon remove the bacon from the skillet and let drain on kitchen towels.
  3. Reduce the heat to medium and add the carrots and garlic to the skillet. Cook, stirring constantly, until carrots are just softened, 2 to 3 minutes.
  4. Then mix in the mushrooms, zucchini, 2 of the spring onions and the kimchi, and continue to saute until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Return the bacon to the pan.
  5. Add the rice and mix to incorporate well using a wooden spoon to break up the rice. Season with salt and pepper.
  6. Transfer the fried rice to a serving plate or platter, top with the fried eggs and garnish with the remaining spring onions and a sprinkle of Korean chilli flakes and black pepper.

Notes

Place the kimchi in a bowl and use kitchen sheers to cut it into small pieces. Kimchi can stain your cutting board and make it smell. Use the julienne blade on a mandolin or a julienne peeler to cut the carrots and the zucchini. After making long thin pieces, use knife to cut down to small pieces.

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Social media

@judyjoochef Instagram profile imageRolling into K-Viral Kitchen with a protein packed glow-up: Chamchi (Tuna) Keto-Gimbap @judyjoochef style 🥢💛 

No rice, no problem — this keto-friendly roll swaps steamed rice for silky egg crepe (jidan), and still delivers all the flavor of a classic gimbap — a genius hack that’s gone viral in Korea.  

Here’s what’s inside:

🍳 Paper-thin egg strips
 🥒 Salted fresh cucumber + sautéed sweet carrot
 🐟 Creamy tuna mayo 
 🥬 Pickled tangy radish + herby perilla leaves (if you’ve got it!)
 🌿 Wrapped in seaweed and brushed with nutty sesame oil for that glossy finish

Low-carb, big flavor. A lunchbox hero turned meal-prep MVP. 

📍 Ingredients via @koreafoodsuk 
 💄 Glam by @jonesroadbeauty & @justbobbidotcom 
 👩🏻‍🍳 Pro tip: Oil your knife for that picture-perfect slice.

💬 Comment “KETO” and I’ll DM you the recipe!
 📌 Save this for your next lunch idea
 👯‍♀️ Tag a friend who’s always on the clean-eating grind 

#KviralKitchen #KetoGimbap #ChamchiGimbap #LowCarbEats #KoreanFoodRemix #TunaMayoRoll #RiceFreeGimbap #HealthyKoreanFood #EasyKoreanRecipe #MealPrepGoals #EggCrepeRolls #DishesThatBrokeTheInternet #JudyJoo #JudyJooChef #QuickHealthyMeals #GimbapGlowUp #savethisrecipe1 week ago via Instagram
@judyjoochef Instagram profile imagePart of my K-Quick Recipe Series — quick, bold Korean dishes from my newest cookbook!

Chewy. Spicy & Sweet. Saucy. Seoul in a bowl 🥢💥

My version of this totally viral dish brings the heat with gochujang, gochugaru, and a deep dashi base. Add fish cakes, eggs, and scallions — or keep it veg, add some tofu, and let the sauce shine. 

I have so many late-night memories of devouring this dish on the streets of Seoul—post-clubbing, slightly disheveled, and very hungry. The plates came wrapped in plastic bags for quick clean-up, chopsticks replaced with humble toothpicks. My friends and I would huddle around, jostling for bites, skewering those chewy rice cakes and smacking our way through like it was the best thing we’d ever eaten. (Spoiler: it was.) 

How do you tteokbokki? Drop your favorite add-ins below 🔥👇

Drop a comment below for the recipe!

💡: @samsunguk 
 🛒: @koreafoodsuk 
 📚: K-Quick — From my latest cookbook, K-Quick — link in bio if you want the full collection!

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@quartobooksuk @quartobooksus @whitelionpublishing 
#JudyJoo #JudyJooChef #KQuick #KoreanRecipes #KoreanSoulFood #SamsungUK #SamsungKitchen #KoreanCooking #Korea #Seoulplaza #Tteokbokki #SpicyRiceCakes #KoreanStreetFood #Gochujang #EasyKoreanRecipes #KoreanFoodTok #QuickRecipes #seoulplaza1 week ago via Instagram
@judyjoochef Instagram profile imageIn Korea, fruit isn’t just food — it’s a gift, a luxury, and sometimes… a jaw-dropper. 🍑🍈🍓

Historically, fresh fruit was rare and precious. Harsh growing conditions, no refrigeration — a perfectly ripe melon or peach was like gold. Even now, the best fruit is grown in tiny batches, hand-picked, and wrapped like a fine gemstone.

One of the most unique? The Korean melon, or chamoe (참외) — a yellow, oval-shaped fruit with a sweet aroma and a crisp, cucumber-like texture. Bright yellow with white stripes on the outside and milky white flesh inside, it’s as refreshing as it is beautiful — especially when enjoyed chilled in the summer.  I have so many memories of my relatives serving ice cold cubes of this melon with toothpicks as a snack. 

You’ll often see a single perfect melon go for ₩43,000 (about $40). Around Chuseok (Korea’s harvest festival, similar to Thanksgiving) or Lunar New Year, gifting one of these beauties is the ultimate sign of respect and generosity. 

And Koreans don’t stop at the market. Fruit features in delicate French pastries bursting with peaches, mangoes, strawberries, plums, and HUGE local shine muscat grapes. These pale green grapes are prized for their floral aroma, honey-like sweetness, and crisp bite — plus, they’re seedless with edible skins, making them as easy to eat as they are addictive. They’re often the star of luxury gift boxes and seasonal café desserts.

Here, fruit is more than a snack. It’s a celebration of beauty, seasonality, and flavor at its absolute peak.

@visitkorea.uk 🇰🇷

#JudyJoo #JudyJooChef #KoreanFruit #LuxuryFruit #ShineMuscat #BingsuLove #TasteOfKorea #VisitKorea #KoreanDesserts #SeoulEats #KoreanFoodLover #FoodieReels #AsianFoodLover #WomenInFood #ChefsOfInstagram #KoreanFoodie #FoodTok #KoreanCuisine #FoodObsessed #TravelForFood #KoreanCulture #KFoodCravings #EatSeoul #FoodPhotography #Foodstagram #MelonBingsu #CafeCulture #KoreanCafe #KoreanMarket2 weeks ago via Instagram
@judyjoochef Instagram profile image4 bold recipes. 1 star ingredient.

@saffronroadfood’s Tteokbokki just got a whole new glow-up. 💥

Spent the day filming with @saffronroadfood — and yes, there were cheese pulls, sauce swirls, and a whole lot of taste testing behind the scenes. 👩‍🍳

Tteokbokki takes me right back to the streets of Seoul — sweet, spicy, comforting, and totally nostalgic. 🇰🇷

We’re keeping the recipes under wraps (for now), but trust me — you’ll want to try every single one. 😉

Can you guess what we made? Drop your guesses below 👀👇

💄Glam by @mscherryle

#SaffronRoad #JudyJoo #JudyJooChef #KoreanSoulFood #TteokbokkiRemix #QuickKoreanEats #ComfortFoodReinvented #WomenInFood #TasteOfKorea #WholeFoodsFinds #FoodieReels #AsianFoodLover #BoldFlavors #ChefsOfInstagram #FoodTok #CheesePull #StreetFoodRemix #KoreanComfortFood #KFoodCravings #EasyMeals2 weeks ago via Instagram
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