🍽️ A unique soy sauce-based chicken stir-fry where finely chopped chicken is fried with garlic and dried chili peppers, then caramelized with sugar and soy sauce for a smoky flavor, finished with fragrant ggori peppers.
Dried chili peppers (or bird's eye chili) to taste
About 1/4 cup cooking oil
2 tbsp sugar
About 1/2 cup regular soy sauce
1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce (optional, for color)
1 tbsp minced garlic
A little MSG (optional)
A little black pepper
Recipe 🍳
Cut the dakbokkeumtang chicken pieces in half again with a knife so they cook faster and absorb flavor better. Wash under running water to remove blood and bone fragments.
Thinly slice some of the green onion for infusing oil and cut the rest into larger pieces for later. Wash the ggori peppers and cut them in half crosswise into bite-sized pieces.
In a deep pan or pot, generously add about 1/4 cup of cooking oil. Add dried chili peppers and whole garlic, and stir-fry until a fragrant, nutty chili-garlic oil aroma is released.
Once the aroma is released, add the cut chicken pieces and thinly sliced green onion. Stir-fry until the chicken's surface color changes and it's lightly fried in the oil until golden brown.
When the chicken is cooked on the outside and the oil collects in the center of the pan, creating a sizzling sound, add the sugar. Stir-fry until the sugar melts and caramelizes in the oil, allowing the flavor to be absorbed.
Pour the regular soy sauce (or Chinese stir-fry soy sauce) along the edges of the pan. Let it sizzle and caramelize in the hot oil to impart a deep smoky flavor, then mix well with the chicken. (Adding a little dark soy sauce at this stage can give a appetizing deep color.)
Add water until the ingredients are just covered. Add minced garlic and MSG (if using), then bring to a boil over high heat for about 7 minutes until the sauce reduces by about one-third.
Once the chicken, especially the drumstick parts which take longest to cook, is fully cooked and the sauce has thickened, add the large pieces of green onion and ggori peppers.
Gently toss to lightly cook the ggori peppers without overcooking them, then sprinkle with black pepper and serve.
Cut chicken into small pieces, wash, and prepare green onions and ggori peppers by slicing.
Generously oil a pan, then stir-fry dried chili peppers, whole garlic, green onions, and chicken until fried. Then, caramelize sugar and soy sauce for a smoky flavor.
Add water and reduce until the sauce is slightly thickened. Finally, add green onions and ggori peppers, lightly cook them, and finish with black pepper.
Cooking tips 💡
Cutting the chicken into much smaller pieces than usual for dakbokkeumtang allows the sauce to penetrate deeply in a short time and reduces cooking time.
The key to achieving the unique deep umami and smoky flavor of Baek Jong-won's recipe is to add sugar and soy sauce first and let them caramelize and burn slightly in the oil before any water is added.
Ggori peppers lose their crisp texture and vibrant color if overcooked, so add them just before turning off the heat and cook only briefly to preserve both taste and appearance.
For a presentation worthy of guests or a professional restaurant, add a little dark soy sauce (lao chou) for a deep, rich brown color.
Recommended for 🙋
⭐Those looking for a spicy, sweet, and savory side dish that doubles as an excellent alcoholic beverage accompaniment.
⭐Those who want to try a different kind of braised chicken with a smoky flavor instead of the common red chili powder-based dakbokkeumtang.
⭐Those who enjoy stir-fried dishes with the subtle flavors of pungent garlic and fragrant ggori peppers.