Korean-Style Dakgalbi Recipe (Spicy Stir-Fried Chicken)

Korean-Style Dakgalbi Recipe (Spicy Stir-Fried Chicken)


Dakgalbi is one of those dishes that turns dinner into an event. Everyone gathers around one big pan, the chicken and rice cakes are sizzling away, and by the end someone always throws in rice to fry up in the leftover sauce. 

It’s loud, a little messy, and genuinely fun to make.

Korean dakgalbi spicy stir-fried chicken with rice cakes cooking in a pan

So, What Is Dakgalbi?

Dakgalbi is chicken marinated in a spicy gochujang-based sauce, stir-fried together with rice cakes, cabbage, sweet potato, and perilla leaves, usually right on a big flat pan at the table. 

It started in Chuncheon and spread everywhere from there — today it’s a staple at Korean group dinners, especially with friends who don’t mind sharing one pan.

What You’ll Need (Serves 3–4)

  • 600g boneless chicken thigh, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 200g tteok (rice cakes), the flat oval kind if you can find it
  • 1/4 cabbage, roughly chopped
  • 1 sweet potato, sliced
  • 1 onion, sliced
  • 2 perilla leaves, torn (or substitute a few extra cabbage leaves)
  • 3 tbsp gochujang
  • 1 tbsp gochugaru
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 tbsp grated ginger
  • 1 tbsp rice wine (or mirin)
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • Neutral oil, for cooking

Vegetarian swap: this one’s tougher to fully veganize since chicken is the star, but mushrooms and extra tofu can stand in reasonably well if you’re set on trying it meat-free.

Let’s Cook

Marinate the chicken. Mix the gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, ginger, and rice wine into a sauce, then toss the chicken in it. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes — longer if you have the time.

Heat a wide pan. Add a little oil and get it hot before anything goes in — dakgalbi wants high heat.

Start with the chicken. Add the marinated chicken and cook for a few minutes until it’s mostly done and starting to caramelize a little at the edges.

Add the veggies and rice cakes. Toss in the sweet potato, cabbage, onion, and rice cakes. Keep everything moving so nothing sticks or burns.

Keep stir-frying. Cook everything together for another 8–10 minutes, until the chicken is fully cooked and the rice cakes are soft and chewy.

Finish it off. Toss in the perilla leaves and a drizzle of sesame oil right at the end. Serve it straight from the pan.

A Few Tips

  • Don’t skip the marinating time — it’s where most of the flavor comes from.
  • High heat is your friend here; a low simmer just steams everything into mush.

  • If you have leftovers, fried rice in the pan afterward (with a little extra gochujang and sesame oil) is basically non-negotiable.

  • A cast iron pan or wide skillet works great if you don’t have a traditional dakgalbi pan.

Quick FAQ

Can I use chicken breast instead of thigh? You can, but thigh stays juicier through the high-heat cooking — breast can dry out more easily.

Is dakgalbi very spicy? It leans spicy, but you can scale back the gochugaru if you want a milder version.

Leftovers

Keeps in the fridge for about 2–3 days. Reheat in a pan over medium heat rather than the microwave if you can — it keeps the texture much better. 

Or, as mentioned, just turn it into fried rice.

Label: Korean Recipes

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