Dakgangjeong Chicken Bites (Printable Version)

Crisp golden chicken pieces fried up and smothered in a spicy, sweet gochujang glaze. Super for a snack or bringing folks together.

# Everything You’ll Need:

→ Chicken and Marinade

01 - Season with salt and freshly cracked black pepper as you like
02 - Drop in 1 teaspoon mirin
03 - Scoop in 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
04 - 637 g boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into bite-sized pieces (about 2.5 cm cubes)
05 - 1 teaspoon garlic powder

→ Coating

06 - Crack in some salt and pepper to your taste
07 - Splatter in 2 tablespoons water
08 - 2 teaspoons gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)
09 - A half teaspoon baking powder
10 - Weigh out 65 g rice flour

→ Frying

11 - Enough vegetable oil to fill your frying pot

→ Spicy Gochujang Sauce

12 - Stir in a pinch of black pepper and salt
13 - Pour 60 ml low sodium chicken broth
14 - 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
15 - 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
16 - Drizzle 0.5 tablespoon honey
17 - 2 tablespoons gochujang (fermented Korean red chili paste)

→ Garnish

18 - Snip up some green onions, toss on top
19 - Sprinkle on sesame seeds when serving

# Steps to Cook:

01 - Pile the freshly fried chicken into your favorite bowl. Spoon the spicy sauce over or keep it on the side if you want to dip. Right before eating, sprinkle green onion slices and sesame seeds all over.
02 - Toss gochujang, honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, chicken broth, a shake of salt, and some black pepper into a small pan. Warm everything up on medium-high, stirring until it gets smooth and a little glossy—about 2-3 minutes.
03 - Fill a sturdy pot with about 2.5–5 cm of oil and heat to 177°C. Fry the chicken bites in small bunches for 3-4 minutes till they're super crisp and brown, and cooked through (shoot for 68°C inside). Don't crowd them, and tweak the heat so the oil stays hot between 155°C–177°C. Once cooked, move them to a wire rack set on paper towels.
04 - Have a baking sheet or a big plate ready for your coated chicken. Take each piece out of the marinade, let it drip a second, then roll it around in the flour mixture. Press gently so the coating sticks. Line up the coated chunks on the prepared tray.
05 - In a new bowl, toss in rice flour, baking powder, gochugaru, a pinch of salt, and pepper. Pour in water, mixing with a fork—keep going until you see chunky pieces that look like rough sand.
06 - In a big bowl, add garlic powder, soy sauce, mirin, half a teaspoon salt, and a quarter teaspoon black pepper. Toss in the chicken and make sure every bit gets covered. Pop a lid on and stick it in the fridge for at least half an hour, or leave it overnight if you've got time.

# Extra Suggestions:

01 - Let the chicken chill in the marinade for at least half an hour if you want good flavor. Keep it in the fridge if you're waiting more than two hours. Before cooking, pull it out to take the chill off.
02 - No rice flour? Swap in all-purpose flour, cornstarch, or potato starch, one-for-one, and you'll be fine.
03 - To air fry, set it to 200°C, spray the basket, and lay down the breaded chicken pieces. Don't crowd them. Cook 5 minutes, shake, mist with oil again, and let them go another 5 minutes till the inside gets to 68°C.
04 - If you're baking, set a wire rack on a foil-lined pan, spray it well, and bake at 218°C for 10 minutes. Flip them at the halfway mark if you’re skipping the rack.

Back