An authentic simple Korean marinade is the star of this spicy, sticky Korean pork stir fry that will leave you wanting more long after you licked your bowl clean! This requires just 30 minutes marinating time – which can be skipped if you’re in a hurry!
Korean Pork Stir Fry
If you like BIG flavours – and I mean BIG, HUGE flavours, then this stir fry is for you. The flavours are much more intense than usual stir fries – it’s spicier, stickier and stronger. The jammy sauce is the type that will have you smacking your lips and licking your fingers, wanting to marinade everything in this.
And actually, you could. For those who have sampled Korean Fried Chicken (the “other” KFC), the flavour of the sauce will be familiar because the sticky coating for KFC has similar ingredients to this marinade.
A technique that is not used widely but is fantastic for getting incredible flavour into marinades and sauces is grated onions and pears / apples. I first learnt about this technique from my Korean hairdresser who dictates recipes to me while she does my roots!!!
The reason that grating is such a fantastic technique is that juice is created which forms part of the marinade. Fruit juices simply don’t compare – far less flavour, even when they’re cold pressed fresh juice. And as for grated onions – to my knowledge, you can’t buy that!!!
I made this with pork shoulder (boneless) which is a really great value cut of meat because it is typically considered to be a tougher cut suited to slow cooking. But actually, if you slice it thinly against the grain, it is wonderful to use for quick cooking purposes like in a stir fry.
The one ingredient in this recipe that you might not be able to find easily is Gochujang which is a Korean spice paste. It comes in a bright red tub and the paste is a deep red colour. It’s spicy, savoury with a touch of sweet, and it’s a secret weapon in Korean cooking because it’s go so many layers of flavour. It is used in a lot of Korean dishes, like Bibimbap, Kimchi Fried Rice and even the dipping sauce for the Momofuku Bossam (slow cooked pork).
It can be purchased at Korean grocery stores and most Asian grocery stores for a few dollars. But don’t worry if you can’t find it, I have provided a substitute that yields a very similar result – my taste testers actually couldn’t tell the difference!
Gochujang aside, this is a seriously quick midweek meal. I think you’ll be quite surprised at how short the ingredient list is – thanks to Gochujang which provides much of the flavour base – and just 30 minutes of marinating time.
In fact, I’ve made this without marinating and it still worked out great because the flavour of the glaze is so strong.
I served this with plain white rice and lightly pickled vegetables (I popped the recipe in the notes below). Typically I would have served this with kimchi which is the spicy Korean pickled cabbage that is served with practically every dish for every meal in Korea, but I didn’t have any on hand.
This is a MUST TRY for anyone who loves food with big bold flavours!!! The sticky/sweet/spicy/savory flavours remind me of Mongolian Beef. It is quite spicy, but not “blow your head off” spicy.
Ugh. Writing this up just reminds me how lip smackingly delicious this is and now I’m craving it!!! I’m going to make this for dinner tonight. Using chicken. YUM! – Nagi x
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Spicy Korean Pork Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 lb / 500g boneless pork shoulder (excess fat trimmed) (Note 1)
Marinade
- 1 small pear , grated (1/2 cup) (or nashi pear OR apple) (Note 2)
- 1/2 medium onion , grated (1/4 cup) (brown, white or yellow)
- 1/2 tsp fresh ginger , minced or finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove , crushed
- 1 tbsp soy sauce (all purpose or light soy sauce)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 3 tbsp gochujang (Korean Hot Pepper Paste) OR see Note 3 for substitution
Stir Fry
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 garlic , minced
- 1 onion , halved and sliced (brown, white or yellow)
To Serve
- 1 scallion/shallot stalk , sliced
- Sesame seeds
- Rice
Instructions
- Cut pork into thin slices. If using pork shoulder, as I did, halve it lengthwise to form two long pieces, then slice the pieces. See photo below.
- Combine Marinade ingredients in a bowl. Add pork. Marinate for 30 minutes, or overnight.
- To cook, heat oil in a large non stick skillet (Note 4) over high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes until translucent. Add pork and cook for 5 minutes or until dark golden and caramelised, and just cooked through.
- Serve immediately with rice – or for a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice! Garnish with sliced shallots and sesame seeds.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
The Spicy Side of Life: Korean recipes
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LIFE OF DOZER
He secretly loves his robe. I know it. That’s a glimmer of contentment in his eyes. Not embarrassment / resentment / shame.
Excellent! Excellent! Can’t say enough about how delicious this recipe is. So easy. Thank you for helping me to up my stir fry game.
Thank you Nagi for yet another great recipe. This is simple and delicious. I halved the recipe and made it with two pork neck “steaks” (scotch fillet). It worked very well. I served it with steamed (microwaved) bok choy with (your recipe) for oyster sauce and fresh rice noodles. I love the amount of detail and also tips that you give with every recipe.
Thank you yet again for an amazing and different meal that I would have not tried to cook.and it was amazing – I steamed broccoli and green peas in oyster sauce with steamed rice fabulous
Thank you yet again for an amazing and different meal that I would have tried to cook.and it was amazing
can you use this as a marinade for pork chops
Yes definitely Donna! N x
I’ve had this korean spicy pork at the local restaurant here many many times and wondered how to replicate it.
Thanks to you, I happened across your recipe, followed it using the gochujang sauce and grated apple. A great success! My only complaint was it was not spicy enough. Either the grated apple has toned down the spiciness or I might just add more of the sauce. Will it taste the same without the apple? Will definitely try again. Thanks so much.
It turned out quite watery but pork was tender and flavourful. Did you have to squeeze out juice from grated pear/apple? Not sure how to cameralize it with so much liquid. We enjoyed it though! Thank you for the recipe. Hope you can make a video of it soon so I can try it once more!
I’ve made this a few times but I can’t get it to caramelise with out cooking the buggery out of it! 5 minutes doesn’t seem long enough, not sure what I should do :[
Take the pork out of the marinade before cooking…I mean, I don’t think you’re supposed to pour the marinade into the pan when cooking.
What a great tasting meal and easy also. Added carrots, broccoli, and snow peas and served on egg noodles. It was a hit. Thanks
Can I cook this with bell peppers too?
Sure can Kim!! N x
Oh. My. God. This was magnificent! Thumbs up from every member of my family. I served it on sweet potato noodles as a change from rice, with kim chee and fermented bean sprouts. Sweet, salt, hot, brilliant!
i’m just making this for the second time, and i noticed that the recipe calls for 1 garlic in the stir fry. I assume that doesn’t mean a whole head of garlic…
Either way love your recipes they are really accessible for people that aren’t familiar with Asian cuisine
Nagi, do you find it matters if you use a grating function on food processor vs. a box grater for things such as onion/pear? I’m making this tonight and wondering if I need to run and buy a box grater:) Your recipes are amazing and if I need this…it’s worth it, thanks!
Hi Karmen, I usually use the smaller section of a box grater for this – if you have something similar on your food processor it should work just the same! N x
Thanks, it did work. Your recipes are always spot on! I made this for a friend recovering from surgery and her teen said she should have people bring dinner more often. I had enough to share with neighbor (may have gotten carried away…?!) and they raved too. You’re amazing!
Every recipe of yours that I try ends up on high rotation in our house, and this is no exception! This is very tasty and simple, and is superb with some kimchi and steamed greens on the side. I noticed other comments mentioned that this takes a little while to caramelise, which I did find, but using a large pan and giving it some time helps!
P.S. As a fellow Golden-mumma I’m sort of obsessed with Dozer, he is gorgeous!
Made this for the second time. I drained off some of the marinade because it took a long time to cook the first time. Also, I didn’t have a pear or apple. I used a ripe mango and it came out great. Asian slaw as a side.
This is super tasty and super easy to cook. Wish I made more because my boys were all asking for more.
This was so delicious and a big hit for my family! I enjoyed making it. I had enough pork shoulder to make a second batch and put in the freezer. I’m looking forward to eating this again. I used a nashi pear. I’ve never liked pears but the nashi pear has such a different texture and I really liked it. I plan on buying more nashi pears the next time I go to the store just to eat separately. Thanks for the great recipe!
You’re so welcome Katherine, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!! N x
Nagi this amazing! So full of flavour and perfect spice (We like really spicy food). Thank you for another awesome recipe. Your recipes have given me so much confidence! I love cooking now. This dish is one of my favourites.
Thanks so much for the feedback, I truly appreciate it! N x
I haven’t finished making this yet, but I’m already going to give it 5 stars. It smells absolutely amazing. This is the third or fourth recipe I have made from your recipes Nagi, and I have to say your recipes are AMAZING! So so so glad I found your site!!! I decided to make this with Pork loin in the slow cooker, so I’m sure it will come out a little differently, but I’m also sure it will be amazing because your recipe rocks! May even serve on sliders as an option. Thanks!
That’s awesome Kevin, thanks so much for letting me know! N x
This was delicious. Thank you for posting it.
You’re so welcome Mariann!