Hi everybody! Today I’m going to show you how to make dakgangjeong, a crispy and crunchy Korean fried chicken.
Many of you probably know that I posted it once already, years ago, but the version I’m showing you today is a little easier than the last one, and will be faster to make: I don’t mix a batter, I just coat the chicken in potato starch powder. I also skipped the ginger slices so we can cook the sauce faster.
In this recipe, both the peanuts and the chilis are optional.
Both versions are delicious in their own way, and both of them are authentically Korean, they’re just two ways of making the same dish, kind of like there are many ways to make pizza. Take this chicken to a party and everyone will give you compliment. “Whoo ah~ this crispy chicken is crunchy crunchy like candy!”
If you love fried chicken, I strongly advise you to try this recipe, my recipe for dakgangjeong with ginger slices (including a vegetarian version), and my yangnyeom-tongdak recipe which has been incredibly popular on YouTube! You’ll love all of them.
Steps:
- Mix chicken with seasonings and cover in starch.
- Fry in hot oil for 7 to 8 minutes.
- Shake off, let sit, then fry for another 12 to 15 minutes.
- Coat in seasoning sauce.
- Sprinkle sesame seeds over top and serve immediately.
Ingredients
- 3½ pounds chicken wings (about 1.6 kg), washed and drained
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 2/3 cup potato starch or corn starch
- ⅓ cup peanuts (optional)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 to 4 large dried red chili peppers, seeded, cut crosswise into ⅓ inch pieces (optional)
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ½ cup rice syrup or corn syrup
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon mustard (optional)
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- Grapeseed oil (or vegetable oil, peanut oil)
Directions
- Cut off the tip of each wing and chop the wing in half. After this is done you should have about 3 pounds of chicken, with 24 to 26 pieces.
- Put the chicken in a bowl and mix with salt, ginger, and ground black pepper by hand.
- Put 2/3 cup potato starch in a bowl and dip each wing in the powder to coat it, one by one. Squeeze each wing to press the coating to it tightly.
Make the sweet, spicy, and sticky sauce:
- Heat a large non-stick skillet or wok over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons cooking oil, minced garlic, and the dried red chili pepper.
- Stir with a wooden spoon until fragrant for about 30 seconds.
- Add soy sauce, rice syrup, vinegar, and mustard sauce (optional). Stir with a wooden spoon and let it bubble for a few minutes.
- Add the brown sugar and continue stirring. Remove from the heat. Set aside.
Fry the chicken:
- Put 4 cups of cooking oil in a frying pan or pot and heat it up for 7 to 8 minutes over high heat.
- See if the oil’s ready by dipping a test wing into it. If the oil bubbles, it’s hot enough to start frying. Slide the coated wings one by one into the hot oil and cook for about 12 to 13 minutes, turning over a few times with tongs.
- Take the wings out of the oil and shake them off in a strainer. Turn off the heat, and let the wings sit for a few minutes.
- Reheat the oil and fry the wings again for another 12 to 15 minutes until they all look golden brown and feel super crunchy through the tongs. If your frying pan or pot is not large enough to fry all the chicken at once, divide it into batches like I do in the video. If you use a larger frying pot to cook them all at once, you’ll have to use more cooking oil.
Coat the fried chicken with the sauce:
- When the chicken is done, reheat the sauce until it bubbles.
- Add the hot chicken and mix well with a wooden spoon to coat.
- Remove from the heat and transfer the coated chicken to a large platter. Sprinkle some sesame seeds over top and serve immediately. This chicken won’t lose its crunchiness, even by the next day. You don’t need any dipping sauce, but it goes well with Baek-kimchi.
Posted Sunday, January 26th, 2014 at 10:40 pm.
Tagged: crispy crunchy fried chicken, crispy fried chicken, crispy homemade chicken wings, crunchy fried chicken, 닭강정, fried chicken, fried chicken recipe, fried chicken wings, spicy crispy chicken wings, superbowl chicken, sweet spicy crispy chicken
Jun 23rd
May 24th
Apr 20th
hi Maangchi,
Can I use rice oligo syrup instead? will it be different taste ?Thanks
Yes, you can use oiligo syrup, too.
Hi Maangchi
Finally i gave tried your Crispy and Crunchy Fried Chicken.
Wow.. it was so good, delicious n the important one is so Crispy n Crunchy as what u taught. Thanks a lot for your clear recipe.
See full size image
maangchi, me and my family love so much this recipe. I made it time to time. I’ve a plan to sell it btw, could you give me an idea what’s the name / brand for me? :D thank you so much.
Maangchi does sweet garlic soy sauce Korean fried chicken contains mustard? I’m a bit hesitant to add it but I do love mustard. I think I’ll add it. What mustard would u recommend, normal yellow mustard like French’s yellow mustard? I’m cooking the chicken tomorrow. Btw I have tried several of ure recipes like ure japchae, Dakjjim and Korean spinach salad and yangneom-tongdak and they were a hit!
I made this dish last night. My first attempt at Korean food and… absolutely delicious!! It was the crunchiest crunch I have ever crunched on. 10/10, will make again.Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and introducing me to an exciting new cuisine.
Finally made this with my cooking partner, Wow. Just. Wow. It was soooo good! This recipe beats 2 other KFC recipes we tried. Maangchi’s version is so awesome!!
– Marc & Joe
See full size image
Hi Marc & Joe,
You made awesome chicken! Congratulations!
Hi Maangchi!
I’ll be making this again (for like the 4th time now) and I’m just wondering since we’ll have our party on Saturday and I’d like to finish all the cooking by Friday – will it be okay to fry it once on the Friday and do the 2nd frying on the Saturday? Will it still be as crunchy? Or should the 2nd frying be done straight away?
Thank you :)
Lea, yes, you can keep the first fry chicken in the freezer. When you serve it, fry it again until very crunchy and coat the chicken with seasoning sauce before serving.
I’ve tried the recipe with chicken wings but 12 minutes was a bit too long; chicken was a bit dry. I’ll try reducing the frying time to 9 minutes. Taste was amazing by the way!
See full size image
Your chicken looks very tasty! “12 minutes was a bit too long; chicken was a bit dry” Sure, you can modify the recipe a little to adjust to your taste.
I tried to use this recipe but the oil in the pan burned the chicken before it was fully cooked. Do I just need to lower the heat and cook for longer? Also, the marinade wouldn’t stay on the chicken. It just slid off. I look forward to your advice!
“Do I just need to lower the heat and cook for longer?” Yes, lower the heat a little bit. “the marinade wouldn’t stay on the chicken. It just slid off.” When the chicken is still hot, you have to coat with the hot sauce. Otherwise the chicken won’t coat well.
Hi maangchi, im kasih from malaysia.
I really love your fried chicken recipes and i always make for my family.
But i hope you make more fried chicken recipes… please..
My first wife was Korean; my wife now is Thai. Thanks to your website she can cook both Korean and Thai. You are one of the greatest asset to the Culinary Industry, and if I could give you the Nobel Peace Prize, I would.
I can’t wait to try this! I finally discovered a Korean supermarket that’s going to help me cook all of Maangchi’s awesome recipes.
To anyone reading this: Do you strain and keep the oil or discard after using like this? Is there a specific reason for using grapeseed oil or will any vegetable oil lead to the same result?
Thank you Maangchi for this amazing recipe! I made this tonight with breast fillet as I wanted leftovers for the kids school lunch box, which would be a bit easier for them than chicken wings. My kids LOVED it! Thank you so much – I will definitely try it with chicken wings next time!
See full size image
Hello Maangchi. Can you also do this recipe with chicken feet?
Great recipe and the sauce is awesome. It tastes just like the soy garlic sauce Korean fried chicken you’d get from the Korean restaurants in my city!
Oh wow! This looks amazing. My wife is gluten free, so with tamari instead of soy sauce, I think I can actually make pretty awesome chicken like this! I can’t wait to try!
First off thank you for creating this website. My wife, who’s Korean, and I love it and use it all the time.
My number one question: can this be done without frying? I’m thinking keep the grill or over at or above 450 F to get crispy skin. I think this would work with the starch as well. Your thoughts?
If you have time:
What about sweet rice flour instead of potato starch? Am I sacrificing or gaining anything there?
Do you have a suggestion for a fresh pepper to use instead of a dried red chili? I want spicy but not too spicy.
Thank you in advance. Anyone’s opinions are welcome.
Coating with a starch will create a specific crispiness. You could substitute corn starch for potato starch without much difference. Sweet rice flour has a high starch content, so it might work also.
To create “fried chicken” in the oven, coat as usual and spray with cooking spray. Cook at 375. There are many recipes online that you can take this technique from and apply to maangchi’s recipe. Just google “oven fried chicken.”
Hey Maangchi!
So I’m guessing that Gochugaru (powder) can be used in place of red chile peppers, but can Gochujang (paste) replace any part here?
If I used gochujang (paste) to replace the chile peppers, being that it has a distinct flavor, what else would I have to remove? I really want to try to make this version of Dakgangjeong but it’s the only one I’ve seen without either or both of those ingredients
안녕하세요 Maangchi!! ^^
I really love 한식 and love to watch your videos!
Here’s my fried chicken, my husband and friends loved it =P
Thank you!! =)
here^^
See full size image
Your dakgangjeong looks very crunchy and tasty! Thank you for sharing the photo!
Maangchi, I want to make this with thigh or drumstick – is the cooking time still good? Can’t wait to try! And I love your videos so much!
Just tried this recipe. It was a big hit. It wasn’t too spicy. Good enough that my students who don’t like overyly spicy foods loved this. They even made sure that they had some for lunch the next day.
I really like your youtube channel. I am looking for Asian recipes because I have three students living with me. One is Korean, the other Chinese, and the other Vietnamese. I want to make some food that they are used to having back home so that they eat well. Our Canadian food is too strange for them. Thanks for making it easy to follow and also for listing the locations of Korean supermarkets around the world. I will go to the one located in Ottawa for the ingredients.
We have a chinese supermarket here “T&T”, but my student tells me they cater mostly to Chinese.
Yum! I made this recipe — only instead of using fried chicken wings I baked some chicken nuggets and then coated them in the sauce.
Hubby couldn’t get enough!
Next time I want to use chili peppers — can you use pepper flakes or does it work best wtih chili peppers?
See full size image
LOVE this recipe! LOVE your cookbook!
I like the narrow,pointed tongs you are using in this (and many other) video; would you please tell me the maker or a link to were I can purchase a pair?
Can’t wait for your new book,
Thank you!
I bought them at IKEA for a cheap price!
This looks amazing! I can’t wait to make it for my family. What type of dried chili did you use? It looks yummy!
You can use any dried red chili peppers.
Hello Maangchi,
Is it okay if we don’t put rice or corn syrup for this recipe ? Also, is it mandatory to put brown sugar for this recipe ?
Thank you maangchi…your receipe made my husband and boy love me to the Max…hahha…this is first and ever best chicken wing I made..
See full size image
wow, it looks great! No wonder your family love you more than before! : )
Hi. I already made this dish for two times and everybody likes it. I once tried this crunchy Korean fried chicken in Korean restaurant and I loved it so much. When I made it with your recipe it turned out in a better taste than in that restaurant. No kidding) I also found your Yuja recipe and bought one jar of it in Asian shop which I’m in love with. I drink it every single day. Thank you so much!
See full size image
” When I made it with your recipe it turned out in a better taste than in that restaurant” oh, I’m so happy to hear that! Your dakgangjeong looks very tasty! Good luck with your Korean cooking! : )
Maangchi, I’ve tried this recipe (omitted the red dried chilies, though, because they are too spicy for my kids), and it came out PERFECTLY! The smell of cooking the sauce in my home just made everyone’s mouths water and when I finally mixed in the double fried wings to the pan and coated them–the family ate up EVERYTHING before I could take a photo to post. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!! I’m keeping it!!!
Hi maangchi,
I can’t seem to find dried chilli peppers but just have chilli flakes. I eat spicy food and want these to have that chilli kick. Which chillies will be the best alternative to dried chilli peppers. Can I use chilli flakes instead?
Hi Maangchi, I can’t find dried red chili, rice syrup and I don’t like mustard. What can I use to replace those ingredients? Thank you!
You can use sugar or honey instead of rice syrup and skip mustard and dried red chili. Your chicken will still turn out delicious!
What do you think? Isn’t it great?
See full size image
Hi Maangchi!!!! Made this again today for lunch & to take to work tonight for dinner… Love this chicken!!! Totally addictive!!!
See full size image
It looks great! Happy cooking!
Hello! I wanted to make this but here, where I lived i couldn’t find any rice syrup or corn syrup. So what should i do? Or it is okay for me not to put the syrup? Thank you.
Yes, you can skip the syrup or use sugar or honey.
Hey Maangchi!
Thanks for the recipe. I just made this today and it was great! However, the chicken was a little on the hard side. In the sense that the batter was crispy but almost borderline hard.
I am wondering if it is because I used corn starch instead of potato starch? Or was it my frying method? Looking forward to receiving your reply!
Thanks!
I think you fried your chicken too long or the sauce was boiled too long.
I lived and worked in Incheon for 2 years and just made this. It was my first time having dakgangjung since I used to eat it at SK Wyverns baseball games. Absolutely INCREDIBLE recipe. Your cookbook is on my birthday wish list. Thanks, Maangchi! KFC = Korean Fried Chicken!
Great news! Happy cooking!
I was looking for a recipe for KanPoongKi and I’m guessing this is the closet to it
See full size image
Closest* … Auto correct got me again
Hi Maangchi,
Crispy and crunchy fried chicken :) I finished cooking, I applaud with joy …. Thanks for this recipe :)
See full size image
I am joining the applause! It looks sweet and crunchy!
Annyeonghaseyo! I made this yesterday and didn’t had the time to upload it. It turned out so well and so delicious. I’m the one who cooked our dinner and everyone loved this recipe. It took a lot of time frying the chicken but either way you gotta take time to make good food right? :) Thanks for this recipe Maangchi!
See full size image
No wonder everybody loved your dakgangjeong! It looks very tasty!
I am in love with this chicken! I usually don’t like sweet food but… this is the best! So yummy! I wanna try the sauce with fried tofu next time to see how it will turn out :)
See full size image
Your chicken looks very tasty! “I wanna try the sauce with fried tofu next time to see how it will turn out” It will turn out very delicious, too!
I love your recipe maangchi. Here is a photo of my crispy chicken. Thank you again maangchi. Loving your blog
See full size image
Thank you for sharing the photo of your dakgangjeong! It looks so delicious!
Hi Maangchi! This method of frying chicken is awesome. I have tried to get really crispy chicken using flour and/or breadcrumbs but I never got the same results! I just made some drumsticks and they were perfect! I made a different sauce however. I made a sweet and spicy lemon sauce which is delicious over the chicken and topped it off with some toasted sesame seeds:) Your recipes always inspire, thank-you. Eva
I tried your recipe Maangchi! Thank you for this, I really enjoyed the sauce it was so quick to make! I have done a blog post on this recipe and how I found making it http://aokiitriedntested.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/korean-fried-chicken-new-generation-of.html
Thank you for sharing the link! It looks very tasty!