Korean Fried Chicken Recipe

4.67 from 3 votes

This is the best Korean fried chicken recipe with extra crispy chicken double fried and smothered in spicy gochujang sauce, easy to make and huge on flavor.

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Korean

Keyword: chicken, chicken legs, chicken thighs, chicken wings, fried chicken, gochujang, recipe, spicy

Servings:

Calories: 722kcal

Author: Mike Hultquist

Ingredients

FOR THE KOREAN FRIED CHICKEN

2 pounds chicken legs & chicken thighs bone in or boneless (I used bone in for this recipe)
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons ginger powder or use fresh chopped ginger
2 teaspoons garlic powder or use fresh garlic
1 teaspoon spicy red chili flakes
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup corn starch or use ½ cup corn starch + ½ up flour
4 cups peanut oil for frying canola oil is good, or vegetable oil

FOR THE KOREAN FRIED CHICKEN SAUCE

3 tablespoons tomato sauce you can use ketchup if you’d like
3 tablespoons gochujang sub in sriracha if needed
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons brown sugar or more to taste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons minced garlic use powder for a smoother sauce
1 tablespoon minced ginger use powder for a smoother sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoons spicy chili flakes
FOR SERVING
Fresh chopped herbs spicy chili flakes, sesame seeds

Instructions

FOR THE KOREAN FRIED CHICKEN

Add the chicken to a large bowl with the rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, chili flakes, salt and pepper. Toss to evenly coat.
Next, coat the seasoned chicken evenly with corn starch. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a large wide pot over medium-high heat to 350 degrees If you are unable to measure the temperature, add a droplet of batter to the oil. It is ready when the batter sizzles. Do NOT bring the oil to a boil.
Fry the chicken pieces in the oil a few pieces at a time 4-5 minutes, flipping part way through. The coated skins will lightly brown. Remove the chicken and set onto paper towels to drain.
Bring oil back to temp and fry each piece of chicken again for 2-3 minutes, until they crisp up. The chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Remove the chicken and again drain on paper towels.

FOR THE KOREAN FRIED CHICKEN SAUCE

Stir all of the ingredients in a small pot. Stir and heat through on medium-low heat. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Coat the chicken with the sauce and garnish with chopped herbs, spicy chili flakes and sesame seeds .
Serve with the remaining sauce in a bowl for dipping.

Notes

Heat Factor: Mild to Medium, depending on the brand of gochujang you use. Gochujang is a Korean chili paste sold in various levels of heat, from mild to hot.

Nutrition