Korean Fried Chicken
Korean fried chicken, or yangnyeom chicken (양념치킨), is chicken fried twice — once to cook it, then again, hotter, to set a thin glassy crust — and tossed in a sticky sauce of gochujang, honey, garlic and soy. The double fry is the whole technique: it drives moisture out of the coating, so the crust stays crisp even under the glaze. In Korea it is the standard late-night takeaway, eaten with pickled radish and cold beer.
Ingredients
- 500 gchicken wings or thighs
- 0.5 tspsalt
- 0.25 tspblack pepper
- 1 tbspsoy sauce
- 0.5 tspgarlic powder
- 1 egg
- 4 tbspcornstarch
- 1 lneutral oil, for deep frying
- 2 tbspketchup
- 2 tbspgochujang
- 1 tbsphoney
- 1 tbspsoy sauce
- 1 tsprice vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 tspsesame oil
- 1 tspsesame seeds for serving
Method
- Marinate. Pat the chicken dry. Whisk the egg with the salt, pepper, garlic powder and the first tablespoon of soy sauce, toss the chicken in it and leave for 15–20 minutes. The egg is what makes the starch cling in the next step — dry chicken in dry starch gives a patchy, powdery crust.
- Coat and fry the first time. Heat the oil in a heavy pot to 170 °C — at least 5 cm deep, so the pieces float. Toss the chicken in the cornstarch until every piece is evenly coated and shake off the excess. Fry in batches for 8–10 minutes for wings or 10–12 minutes for bone-in thighs, until pale gold and cooked through: the juices run clear when you pierce the thickest piece, or the centre reads 74 °C. This first fry cooks the chicken; the colour comes later.
- Rest, then fry again. Lift the chicken onto a rack for 5 minutes — moisture from inside moves out into the crust. Bring the oil up to 190 °C and fry again for 2–3 minutes, until deep gold and hard when tapped. The second, hotter fry drives that moisture off, and it is what keeps the crust crisp under the sauce.
- Make the sauce. In a small pan combine the ketchup, gochujang (Korean fermented chilli paste), honey, the second tablespoon of soy sauce, rice vinegar, grated garlic and sesame oil. Simmer over low heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring, until glossy and thick enough to coat a spoon. Keep the heat low: gochujang catches and turns bitter quickly.
- Toss and serve. Toss the hot chicken in the warm sauce just until coated, sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve at once. The crust stays crisp for about 10 minutes before the glaze starts to soften it.
FAQ
The secret is double-frying. First fry at 170°C cooks the chicken through. After a 5-minute rest, the second fry at 180–190°C creates the signature glass-thin crust. Cornstarch in the coating instead of flour also adds extra crunch.
Korean fried chicken is fried twice for a thin shattering crust, then glazed in a sweet-spicy gochujang sauce. American fried chicken is fried once in a thick flour batter with no glaze. The textures and flavor profiles are completely different.
Yes — an air fryer gives excellent results. Cook at 200°C for 20–25 minutes, flipping halfway. Brush the chicken with a thin layer of oil before cooking. The crunch will be slightly less than deep-fried but very close. In the oven at 220°C it also works well.
The sauce needs to be thick enough to coat the chicken without dripping off. Base ratio: gochujang + ketchup + honey + soy sauce + garlic. Heat in a small pan for 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened — then it clings well to the hot chicken.
Keeps in the fridge for up to 2 days. To reheat — oven or air fryer at 180°C for 8–10 minutes. Microwave destroys the crunch. Store the sauce separately and add after reheating for best results.
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Comments (1)
An instant-read thermometer eliminates all guesswork with korean fried chicken. Chicken is perfectly done at 74°C in the thickest part. Every degree beyond that moves you further from juicy toward dry.