Does chili paste require refrigeration

Korean chilli is a little different as it has a slight smoky flavour, in addition to being slightly sweet and also quite hot.

The actual name of the chilli use in kimchi and for that matter, most Korean dishes is gochugaru (고추가루). It comes in a variety of preparations, typically, finely ground, flakes and a paste.

You should be able to find this in most good supermarkets or an Asian store. If you can't get this, you can still use a good quality chilli powder or possibly, a paste.

I am not sure if you are confusing roasting with charring but both are the same basically, though roasting the pepper by charring the skin would be a more accurate nomenclature.

Roasting brings smokiness to the pepper and softens its bite. It allows you to remove skin more easily. When you char the outside of dried peppers in a dry skillet with spices, then soak, it allows you to remove the pith more constructively than tearing it open and it adds depth to the flavor.

For fresh peppers they become somewhat less spicy, for dried peppers it allows them a more expressive flavor (think of roasted sesame or pumpkin seeds or coffee beans for a comparison). Roasted peppers add a different dynamic than their raw counterpart and you should definitely look into the difference (if you enjoy chipotles end adobo you already have a taste for them without knowing it).