Kimchi Tomato Pasta: Easy Korean-Italian Fusion [Recipe]

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Kimchi and tomato sauce might sound like an unlikely pair, but they have more in common than you’d think: both are tangy, savory and full of depth. Today’s recipe is Kimchi Tomato Pasta, a fusion dish where crunchy, tangy kimchi is stir-fried until savory and then simmered with arrabbiata tomato sauce. The fermented depth of the kimchi and the sweet-tart tomato sauce go together far better than you’d expect, and the first bite might genuinely surprise you. Even if mixing Korean and Western flavors makes you hesitate, I think you’ll love this one. Let’s take a look.

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📋 At a Glance

• Dish: Kimchi Tomato Pasta (kimchi tomato spaghetti)
• Type: Korean-Western fusion pasta (a one-plate meal)
• Servings: 2 (halve everything for 1)
• Main ingredients: spaghetti, 150 to 200g kimchi, 300 to 400g arrabbiata tomato sauce, 4 to 6 bacon slices, 1/2 onion
• Tools: a frying pan and a pot for the pasta
• Time: 20 minutes prep + 20 minutes cooking
• Difficulty: easy — barely different from a regular tomato spaghetti
• Key point: stir-fry the kimchi well and balance its sourness with sugar before the tomato sauce goes in

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Ingredients for Kimchi Tomato Pasta

At its core, this dish is simple: stir-fry kimchi thoroughly with a little sugar, then add tomato sauce to round out the sourness. Arrabbiata sauce is a great match, but a bacon or rosé sauce works too. To make a single serving, just halve all the ingredients. Button mushrooms and cherry tomatoes make it heartier, but it’s plenty tasty without them.

[Kimchi Tomato Spaghetti Ingredients for 2]

• Spaghetti for 2 servings
• 150 to 200g kimchi
• 300 to 400g arrabbiata tomato sauce
• 1/2 onion
• About 4 to 6 slices of bacon
• 1.5 tbsp sugar
• A little salt
• A little black pepper
• Some Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp olive oil

[Optional Ingredients]

• 1/2 tbsp gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)
• 5 to 6 cherry tomatoes
• 3 to 4 button mushrooms

Freshly grated or powdered Parmesan both work fine. I used pre-cut kimchi. Just don’t chop it too finely, or you’ll lose the crunch, so cut it to your liking.

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[Recipe Summary]

1. Make salted water for the pasta and bring it to a boil ahead of time.
2. Slice 1/2 onion and 3 to 4 button mushrooms, halve 5 to 6 cherry tomatoes, and cut 4 to 6 bacon slices into bite-size pieces.
3. Cut 150 to 200g of kimchi into bite-size pieces as well.
4. Boil the spaghetti. Don’t throw out the pasta water; set some aside.
5. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pan over medium heat, sauté the onion first, then add the mushrooms and cook briefly.
6. Add the bacon and 150 to 200g kimchi and stir-fry over medium-low heat.
7. Add 1.5 tbsp sugar to tame the sourness. Adjust the sugar to how sour your kimchi is.
8. For a little heat, add 1/2 tbsp gochugaru (optional) at this stage too.
9. Add the cherry tomatoes, season lightly with salt and pepper, and toss briefly.
10. Add the cooked spaghetti to the arrabbiata tomato sauce and toss it in the pan.
11. When the sauce starts to thicken, add a splash of pasta water and toss once more.
12. Plate it, grate Parmesan over the top and finish with herbs.

🍝 Always save the pasta water! When the sauce gets too thick, a splash of it helps the sauce cling to the noodles and lets you adjust the consistency.
🍅 Adjust the 1.5 tbsp of sugar to how sour your kimchi is. The more sour the kimchi, the more sugar you’ll want.
🌶️ Adding 1/2 tbsp of gochugaru brings a gentle kick that suits Korean tastes even better!
🌿 Finishing with an herb like basil or Italian parsley lifts both the look and the flavor.
🧀 Freshly grated Parmesan gives the best aroma, though the powdered kind is fine too.

​🥬 Prep time: 20 minutes
🍳 Cooking time: 20 minutes

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Prepping the Ingredients

Let’s start the prep. First, fill a pot with water, add a good amount of salt and stir to make the salted water for the pasta. The prep doesn’t take long, so putting the water on early shortens the total cooking time.

Slice half an onion. It only gets a quick sauté, so keep the slices thin. If you’re using cherry tomatoes, wash them, pat them dry and cut them in half.

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Brush any dirt off the button mushrooms and slice them. Cut the bacon into bite-size pieces, or whatever size you prefer.

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And that’s the prep done. Nothing difficult or time-consuming, right? The ingredients go into the pan more or less in order, so just keep each one in its own bowl.

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How to Make the Pasta

By now the water should be coming to a boil. I put the noodles in first because I was filming, but spaghetti cooks faster than the rest of the ingredients take to stir-fry, so adding it about halfway through is fine. Don’t pour out the pasta water; set some aside. It comes in very handy for adjusting the sauce at the end.

Stir-Fry the Vegetables and Kimchi, Then Tame the Sourness

Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion over medium heat first. Once it softens a little, add the mushrooms and toss them together briefly. Lightly golden is all you need.

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When the onion and mushrooms are partly cooked, add the bacon and kimchi and stir-fry over medium-low heat. Give the kimchi plenty of time: that’s what cooks off some of the sourness and brings out the toasty flavor you only get from stir-fried kimchi.

If your kimchi is very sour, add about 1.5 tbsp of sugar to balance it. This is also the moment to add 1/2 tbsp of gochugaru if you want a little heat. Just don’t overdo it, because too much spice changes the flavor quite a bit.

Bring the Tomato Sauce and Noodles Together

Next, add the cherry tomatoes, sprinkle in a little salt and pepper, and toss briefly. Then pour in the arrabbiata tomato sauce and stir well. Cook it just until the sauce loosens up.

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Now lift the cooked spaghetti straight into the pan. Toss it as it cooks so the sauce coats every strand. When the sauce starts to thicken, add about a ladle of pasta water. The sauce comes together much more naturally and starts soaking into the noodles.

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Season and Plate

Taste it, and if it needs a little more, finish the seasoning with salt and pepper. The texture already looks pretty good, doesn’t it?

Plate the finished pasta and sprinkle it generously with dried parsley and freshly grated Parmesan. For an even prettier finish, a single leaf of basil or Italian parsley on top makes it pop.

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Photo Gallery of the Finished Pasta

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The Finished Kimchi Tomato Pasta

And here’s the finished kimchi tomato spaghetti. It’s a bit like kimchi stir-fried noodles, and the savory notes of the kimchi and tomato sauce blend together surprisingly well. Even people who don’t usually care for tomato spaghetti will probably enjoy it.

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Honestly, the method isn’t much different from any spaghetti with tomato sauce. As long as you stir-fry the kimchi well and balance the sourness, it’s easy. Anyone can make it, and as long as it isn’t too spicy, the whole family can enjoy it. It makes a perfectly satisfying meal.

It’s simple, but I bet your fork won’t stop until the plate is clean. Why not make kimchi tomato spaghetti for an easy meal today? You won’t regret it. If you’re outside Korea, jarred kimchi from an Asian grocery store works fine; just adjust the sugar to how sour it is.

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To learn more about kimchi, the fermented Korean staple that gives this pasta its savory depth, see the Wikipedia article on kimchi.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What if my kimchi is too sour?

Add about 1.5 tbsp of sugar to balance it, and a little more if the kimchi is very sour. Stir-frying the kimchi well over medium-low heat matters too: it cooks off some of the tang and brings out a toasty, savory flavor.

Q. Can I use a sauce other than arrabbiata?

Yes. Arrabbiata is the best match, but a bacon or rosé pasta sauce works as well. For two servings, 300 to 400g of sauce is about right.

Q. How do I make kimchi tomato pasta for one?

Just halve all the ingredients. The button mushrooms and cherry tomatoes are optional, so it’s still delicious without them.

Q. What should I do if the sauce gets too thick?

Add about a ladle of the pasta water you saved. It loosens the sauce naturally and helps it soak into the noodles, which is why it’s worth setting some aside before you drain the pasta.

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