Makes approx 12 to 14 cookies
What You’ll Need
For the Dough
7 Tbsps unsalted butter, very soft
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
⅓ tsp fine table salt
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
For the Gochujang Swirl
2 Tbsps unsalted butter, soft
¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
¼ cup gochujang
Swirl
In a small bowl, vigorously stir together 2 Tbsps soft butter, ¼ cup dark brown sugar, and ¼ cup gochujang until it forms a smooth, glossy, deep-red paste. Set aside.
Whisk
In a large bowl, whisk together 7 Tbsps butter, 1 cup granulated sugar, the egg, ⅓ tsp fine salt, ¼ tsp cinnamon, and 1 tsp vanilla until smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in ½ tsp baking soda. Add 1 ½ cups flour and gently mix to combine.
Mix + Chill
In a large bowl, whisk together 7 Tbsps soft butter, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 large egg, ⅓ tsp fine salt, ¼ tsp cinnamon, and 1 tsp vanilla extract until smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in ½ tsp baking soda, then fold in 1 ½ cups flour until a dough forms. Place the bowl of plain dough in the fridge for 20 minutes so it can firm up
Prep
While the dough is chilling, heat the oven to 350°F and line 2 large sheet pans with parchment paper.
The Marble Swirl
Remove the chilled dough from the fridge. Drop the gochujang paste onto the dough in 4 or 5 large dollops. Take a butter knife or a spatula and cut through the dough only 2 or 3 times. Keep the swirls big and chunky! Because you have a lot of paste, over-mixing will easily turn the whole dough orange.
SCOOP + BAKE
Scoop out approximately 2-Tbsp-sized rounds (#40 scoop) spaced about 2 to 3 inches apart onto the sheet pans. Bake for 11 to 13 minutes until the edges are lightly golden and the centers look dry and set. Rotate the pans halfway through baking. Let cookies cool completely on the sheet pan.
HALMI’S TIPS
Chewier Increase the initial plain dough chilling time to 30–60 minutes so the cookies spread less in the oven.
Crispier Gently flatten the dough balls with the bottom of a glass before baking, and bake for an extra 1 to 2 minutes until the edges become deep golden brown.
Flavor Check Make sure your gochujang package ingredients only list red pepper, rice, fermented soy, and salt. Avoid any varieties that have garlic or onion powder added directly to the paste.
This recipe is adapted from Eric Kim’s NYT Gochujang Cookies. Halmi loves her gochujang! These are an extra spicy upgrade!