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Crispy and crunchy fried chicken

Dakgangjeong 닭강정

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. And all Korean fried chicken should be enjoyed with pickled radishes (aka chicken-mu)!

dakgangjeong (닭강정)

Steps:

  1. Mix chicken with seasonings and cover in starch.
  2. Fry in hot oil for 7 to 8 minutes.
  3. Shake off, let sit, then fry for another 12 to 15 minutes.
  4. Coat in seasoning sauce.
  5. Sprinkle sesame seeds over top and serve immediately.

Ingredients

  • 3½ pounds chicken wings (about 1.6 kg), washed and drained
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon minced ginger
  • ⅔ 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 toasted sesame seeds
  • Grapeseed oil (or vegetable oil, peanut oil)

Directions

Prepare the chicken

  1. 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.Dakgangjeong (닭강정)chicken wings
  2. Put the chicken in a bowl and mix with salt, ginger, and ground black pepper by hand.
  3. Put the 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.
    crispy crunchy chicken

Make the sweet, spicy, and sticky sauce:

  1. 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 (if used). Korean fried chicken (pepper)
  2. Stir with a wooden spoon until fragrant for about 30 seconds.
  3. Add soy sauce, rice syrup, vinegar, and mustard sauce (optional). Stir with a wooden spoon and let it bubble for a few minutes.
  4. Add the brown sugar and continue stirring. Remove from the heat. Set aside.Korean fried chicken sauce

Fry the chicken:

  1. Put 4 cups of cooking oil in a frying pan or pot and heat it up for 7 to 8 minutes over high heat.
  2. 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. Korean fried chicken_frying
  3. 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. Korean fried chicken_frying
  4. 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. Dakgangjeong (Korean fried chicken)crispy-fried-chicken
  5. If using the peanuts, place them in a slotted spoon or a small mesh strainer, carefully dip them into the hot oil, and fry for 15 to 30 seconds, just until light golden brown. Transfer to a small bowl.

Dakgangjeong (fried chicken: peanuts)

Coat the fried chicken with the sauce:

  1. When the chicken is done, reheat the sauce until it bubbles.
  2. Add the hot chicken and peanuts (if using) and mix well with a wooden spoon to coat.dakgangjeong (댥강정)
  3. 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, and you can store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. You don’t need any dipping sauce, but it goes well with white kimchi (baek-kimchi) and pickled radishes (chicken-mu).

Posted on Sunday, January 26th, 2014 at 10:40 pm. Last updated on June 17, 2022.
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293 Comments:

  1. Miss Kim78 socali joined 3/13 & has 40 comments
    Posted March 19th, 2014 at 4:33 am | or create a profile.

    I’ve always double fried my fried chicken too. But I didn’t really know that it was an Asian thing! When I was double frying some chicken (for family meal when it was my turn to cook for staff), one of the French chefs asked me why I am double frying…I was like, “to make it crispier (duh)!” And then I later realized that many people didn’t use or know about that trick. Your video has me craving some fried chicken!

  2. JocelynYip Singapore joined 3/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 18th, 2014 at 10:52 pm | or create a profile.

    I’ve always fried my chicken wings just like you. Last night I decided to add a twist and coated it with the spicy sauce. Omg, It was fantastic! My younger girl who don’t usually like wings, polished off 4! Received a thumbs up from everyone. Thanks Maangchi !

  3. geochik salt lake city, ut joined 3/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 9th, 2014 at 10:53 pm | or create a profile.

    I made this tonight…OMG!!! So yummy!!! Like chicken candy!!! :)

  4. karachae Isabela Northern Philippines joined 3/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 7th, 2014 at 9:32 am | or create a profile.

    안녕 하세요 ㅋㅋㅋ!Well for Ms. Maangchi Kim,honestly I started watching your videos.since yesterday and I’m so glad that i found this site..so fanatic!
    Well everybody usually thinks that when you say “KOREAN CUISINE” it sounds pretty hard to prepare and cook for it but through your amazing videos,you mde it very quite simple..
    And that’s the best way I can earn more confidence about cooking korean food without complicated process..A big thanks to you…
    Been in Korea and.I do really love Korean foods…very awesome…I’ll keep on watching!thanks♥♥♥감사합니다

  5. rroohc USA joined 3/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 4th, 2014 at 5:43 pm | or create a profile.

    We love your videos. We just made this. However, instead of the dried peppers we substituted gochujang. Korean food is great. There are so many possible variations to Korean recipes, the variety is endless. Thanks for this video!

  6. TechGirl California joined 3/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted March 4th, 2014 at 12:14 am | or create a profile.

    I used the sauce on baked chicken wings and people demanded the recipe. I had some sauce left over which I put on some salmon. YUM!

  7. barry Finland joined 2/14 & has 2 comments
    Posted February 22nd, 2014 at 1:14 pm | or create a profile.

    This is one of my favorite Korean food. I have been trying to find this recipe and luckily just found it here.
    I would love to try it soon.

  8. nikujaga Singapore joined 2/11 & has 7 comments
    Posted February 4th, 2014 at 5:24 am | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangchi!

    I’m here to thank you for this great recipe. I made this for dinner and it was still very crispy and crunchy after it was cooled. A definite keeper! <3 thank you very much!
    I removed all the seeds from the dried chillies and after taste testing I realize there wasn't enough heat. So I added hot pepper flakes to the sauce. Gave the dish a even redder colour too.

  9. Chris75 Ithaca NY joined 2/14 & has 2 comments
    Posted February 2nd, 2014 at 11:12 pm | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangchi,
    I made 10lbs. of these wings tonight for my super bowl party tonight and they were “so delicious.” Everyone said that they were the best wings that they had ever had in their life! They were so crunchy, I guess it was the double frying. Thanks!
    Chris

  10. Daisydaze Maryland joined 1/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted February 2nd, 2014 at 9:39 pm | or create a profile.

    I made this tonight for the game tonight. My husband doesn’t like chicken wings, but he ate SOO many tonight! Thank you so much for a great website and great recipe.

  11. JoyceWu Taiwan joined 7/12 & has 6 comments
    Posted January 31st, 2014 at 4:16 pm | or create a profile.

    Maangchi , may I know 양념통닭 and 닭강정 have any different ? I saw the ingredients and cooking process almost same.

  12. juniper89 Daegu, Korea joined 1/14 & has 3 comments
    Posted January 30th, 2014 at 10:42 pm | or create a profile.

    This looks great! When I buy 닭강정 from a restaurant sometimes it comes with rice cakes. How would I cook/add rice cakes to the recipe (to make it crunchy but chewy in the middle)?

  13. kaleoa Tacoma, WA joined 1/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted January 30th, 2014 at 3:23 am | or create a profile.

    I will definitely be making this soon. But I need to ask, where did you get your tongs?

  14. YellowFlash_11 Singapore joined 1/14 & has 1 comment
    Posted January 28th, 2014 at 12:44 pm | or create a profile.

    Hi Maangchi, I tried the recipe but I used a lot of substitute like Honey and Dried chili. But still it tastes awesome! Hope to get more recipes from you!

  15. aearthr Singapore joined 1/10 & has 4 comments
    Posted January 27th, 2014 at 6:07 am | or create a profile.

    Look yummy! Better than 4fingers in Singapore. I would try it with my mum after Chinese New Year!

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