Hi everybody! Today I’m going to show you how to make dakgangjeong, a crispy and crunchy Korean fried chicken (aka “kfc”).
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. It has an incredible crunch!
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 and my other Korean fried chicken recipes like dakgangjeong with ginger slices (including a vegetarian version), and my yangnyeom-tongdak recipe (aka yangnyeom chicken) which has also 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)! If you drink alcohol, it also goes great with beer (“chi-maek” in Korean, which means “chicken and beer”).
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 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
- 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 large bowl and mix with salt, ginger, and ground black pepper by hand.
- 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.
Make the sweet, spicy, and sticky Korean fried chicken 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 (if used).
- 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 the mixture. Remove from the heat. Set aside.
First fry:
- 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 temperature is 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 deep fry 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 or let them drain on a wire rack. Turn off the heat, and let the wings sit for a few minutes.
Second fry:
- 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 deep fry them all at once, you’ll have to use more cooking oil.
- 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.
Coat the fried chicken with the sauce:
- When the chicken is done, reheat the sauce until it bubbles.
- Add the hot chicken and peanuts (if using) 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, 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) are the perfect garnish.
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Thanks so much for posting this. I’ve never deep fried anything but I love to order k(orean)fc when I find a great place. They’re tough to find in my neighborhood though so I want to try to make my own. Since I’m a novice fryer, I think it will be less error-prone if I fry by temperature rather than try evaluate the “bubbling”. At what temperature would you suggest I fry these?
I made this recipe for the first time today and I’m thrilled. Incredibly delicious. Hard on the outside and soft on the inside. The best chicken wings I’ve ever eaten!
Congratulations! It looks so tasty!
Hi Maangchi, I want to make this for my granddads 75th birthday but can I make it in advance and keep in oven until everyone arrives? If so, what would be the oven temperature and how long can I keep in oven without it going dry. Thanks
Please let your grandfather know happy 75th birthday! : )
You made a great choice with the dakgangjeong. I’m sure it will be a big hit! This chicken (dakgangjeong) stays crunchy even after a day! You don’t need to keep it warm in the oven. Just place it on a large plate after making it. Once it cools slightly, the pieces may stick together, so gently separate them by hand. You can make it 7–8 hours in advance and keep it at room temperature before serving. Good luck!
Here’s a picture of my batter
I’m not sure what i did wrong but my batter was way more sticky and wet compared to your photo. So it didn’t seem like the chicken was evenly coated. Please advise.
i know its optional, but what do we do with the peanuts? Its listed as an optional ingrediants but there are no steps how to prepare it.
Thanks for pointing it out! Some part of the recipe was clipped out from some maintenance we did, so I put it back.
I made this with chicken thighs and it was fabulous. I should have doubled the sauce recipe because I didn’t think they were coated enough. The sauce is very delicious though!!!
I have used the recipe for the sauce for regular stir fry! AMAZING! But the sauce could be a little thicker. What can I do to make it thicker without compromising the flavor and recipe? Thank you!
Just some suggestions:
Substitute part or all of the syrup with sugar. Dissolve it in the remaining liquid ingredients beforehand.
Or use some molasses (which is thicker) with the syrup. But that will change the taste, not necessarily in a bad way, but still.
Just cook the sauce a little longer to evaporate some water until it turns shiny and a little sticky. Happy to hear that you love it!
Hi maangchi!
Can i use King oyster mushrooms to coat with corn flour and fry as well?
I just tried this recipe yesterday and it was divine
Thank you!
This recipe scales nicely. There are only two of us; I’ve made this recipe three times, in different “sizes” (allowing for leftovers in two instances). Because you do a great job with technique, the scale-down/scale-up is pretty straightforward. I’ve also worked out some substitutions: I used simple syrup in place of rice syrup. I used standard crushed red pepper in a bottle. I used apple cider vinegar (I was tempted to Zhejiang vinegar, and probably will next time; I suspect the flavor might really pop!). I suspect I will also make a “bigger” batch of the coating, then cook it down to hard-crack stage (I’ve only gotten to “soft ball” so far). On the other hand, the soft coating over the crispy (still there — interesting) is special. And all this flavor from fairly inexpensive chicken — very welcome in the face of inflation. In short, I like this dish and I note some others I’m anxious to cook. Kudos!
I’ve made this recipe multiple times for years now! it’s a great recipe. I’ve made it both with chicken wings I breakdown myself and just with chicken thighs or breaststroke that I cut into cubes and then make it. Both are great, I recommend making this
i made a vegan version of this today using homemade seitan (wheat protein), it’s SO good!! thank you maangchi!
I loved and enjoyed watching your cooking video. So fun, specially when you are about to drink a beer,,,hahaha so cute!
Keep on cooking!
Thank you Maangchi I love this recipe! Gonna be hosting a dinner s just wondering if I can do the first fry a day before, and do the second fry on the day to shorten the time and still make sure it’s still fresh? xx
I think it will work well! Everyone loves it when I bring dakgangjeong to a party. I hope your guests give you some great compliments!
I made this yesterday and my sauce was really good until I reheated it. I made it before frying the chicken (as it’s described in the written recipe) and it had a great consistency, but when the chicken was fried and put in the reheated sauce, the sauce became a hard caramel, which was very weird texture-wise. There was nothing wrong with the taste though, but I think I’ll make the sauce while the chicken is frying next time :)
What are the temperature for first and second fry do you recommend??
My Kids love your Dakgangjeong recipe! Its so crunchy and soft inside! It’s perfect to go with beer and soda for kids. I made it without the peanuts because not into nuts but still the taste is perfect!
Thank you! ♥️♥️♥️
I’m happy to hear that your children loved your homemade dakgangjeong! It looks so sweet and crunchy!
I made it today!!! I love it. thank you so much for the recipe ☺️
photos of the delicious chicken :)
fried chicken
Made it for the second time today and the family loved it, absolutely finger lickin good. I’ll be making this forever
Crunchy crunchy chicken! Looks awesome!
Thanks Maangchi!
Tasty recipe indeed~ Much more delicious than some places that sell Korean Fried Chicken even!
:)
Cynthia
Yummy!
Everyone loves this until I have to cook another batch!!!
Thank you, Maangchi!!!
No wonder everybody loved your dakgangjeong! Love the light brown color!
is it okay to use chicken breasts instead of chicken wings since my family and i like the boneless version?
I cooked this korean fried chicken and my family really loved it. Its really so delicious. I will definitely cook it again.
Wonderful!
Hello Maangchi, you are so right about people will love this when you bring this food to a party. Sure enough! People LOVE this so much. Some of them asked if I can make this with the cheese coating like BBQ Chicken has (the cheeseling?). Do you have recipe for that? Please advise. Thank you so much.
Hello maangchi. I’ve been following your blog for years. and wanna try this receipe korean spicy crispy chicken but its hard to find rice syrup or corn syrup here. and the halal one its hard to find. i havent see corn syrup or rice syrup at store. any suggest to replace rice syrup ?
I don’t know where you live but you can buy corn syrup on Amazon or any asian grocery store
I’ve been following your blog for years and your recipes are wonderful and authentic. My husband is a Korean citizen that moved to the US in 2007 and we have lived in Seoul for a couple of years and your recipes taste just like the Korean food in Korea. My husband ask me to make your crunchy chicken at least once a week :) The Korean government should give you an award for promoting Korean food so well! Take care!
Hi Maangchi, this is a wonderful recipe which I can prepare for home party. May I know long will the crispiness last so I can time myself to make this.
Can I use air fryer instead? If possible, Im concern on the double frying on how to achieve it with air fyer? Will it be burnt?
It will still be crunchy after several hours. I wouldn’t recommend using an air fryer for this recipe.
Hi!
I’ve made this recipe twice now and I love it! I used chicken drumsticks instead of wings. This recipe is now my absolute favorite fried chicken recipe. It was absolutely amazing with rice, cucumber salad, kimchi, and of course a beer. Thanks so much! I will be making this again and again.
It’s such a good combination of a simple and delicious meal!
I’m planning on making this dish for my family and I was wondering how many this serves?
Haha never mind I just didn’t read it properly
Yummy yummy!!!
Ymmy yummy!!!
Total success!
Made a big batch of this, and I’ve never fried anything like this before. I used honey instead of rice syrup, and it worked perfectly. The whole batch disappeared in 10 minutes, consumed by my husband & two teenaged sons. Fortunately, I did hid away some pieces for myself, because if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have got any. Thank you for the receipt!
:D
“The whole batch disappeared in 10 minutes, consumed by my husband & two teenaged sons.” Yaho! : )
This is totally yummy!
I have a small resort in Cebu & would like to put this on our snack menu. However, the preparation time is a bit long.
My question is: can I do the first frying, then vacuum pack when cool. Keep in the chiller. Then re-fry/ bake & finish at a later time?
Or, pack away only with the batter on, do both frying in one go?
Any suggestion please?
Thank you!
She did answer this question before, and she says that it would work perfectly. :)
That’s a great idea, I do the same thing sometimes!
Made this for the first time for my family tonight and it’s all gone. I used corn starch instead of potato starch. Also, i used my xl philips Air Frier instead of deep frying. 360F for 25 minutes. Shook the basket every 5 minutes. Then I cooked them at 390F for 15 min and shook basket every 5 minutes. I also used raw honey instead of rice syrup.
I plan on using rice syrup next time. I ordered some online.
Maangchi can I remove the rice syrup?? I can’t find any of those in my nearest local grocery shop.. Cause I want to cook this for this New Year ^^Thank You :)
Thank you for this recipe. My family loves it so much.. Looking forward to cook this again on New Year.
Delicious!
Just made this for my dad and I and we were both extremely pleasantly surprised on how good this tasted!
“… we were both extremely pleasantly surprised on how good this tasted” I’m so happy to hear that! Congratulations!
I forgot the sesame seeds. :(