The easiest and most delicious spicy gochujang fried chicken! The combination of the double-fried crispy fried chicken bites and the hot, spicy, garlicky Korean red chili paste sauce is an absolute match made in food heaven!
While we love all kinds of fried chicken, our favourite is definitely the Asian-style where you get crispy, bite-sized pieces of goodness coated in some flavourful addictive sauce. And eaten with a bowl of steaming, hot white rice? We're obsessed!
Love this type of dish? Check out our other similar chicken recipes:
- Spicy Gochujang Stir-Fried Chicken
- Honey Garlic Crispy Fried Chicken
- Spicy and Crispy Orange Chicken
- Crispy Chicken with Salted Egg Yolk Sauce
- General Tso's Chicken
Ingredients You Need
The ingredients to make the fried chicken are pretty straightforward and can be found in all supermarkets: boneless, skinless chicken breast, egg, cornstarch, all-purpose flour, soy sauce (low-sodium preferably) and sugar. Don't forget canola or vegetable oil for frying!
To make the sauce, on the other hand, might require a quick trip to an Asian supermarket or an online purchase as some ingredients may not always be readily available in all supermarkets.
The ingredients for the sauce include: gochujang, soy sauce (low-sodium preferably), sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, garlic powder, sugar, garlic, green onion and hot water.
Also, toasted sesame seeds and some more green onions for topping!
Bonus tip: We prefer using low-sodium soy sauce as we can better control the saltiness level and balance out the flavours without having to add too much sugar.
However, if you only have normal soy sauce on hand, it's completely okay to use it as substitute! Though don't forget to adjust and add sugar according to taste!
How To Make It
This dish is super easy to make and really doesn't require much technique! Here's a summary on how to make it, but check out below for our full complete recipe!
1. Prep the sauce
In a medium bowl, combine the gochujang, low-sodium soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, garlic powder, sugar, minced garlic, chopped green onion and hot water and mix well until well combined.
You can then set it aside while we make the fried chicken!
2. Prep the protein for frying
We need to first cut the chicken breast into about 1-inch bite-sized cubes and transfer them to a large bowl. Into the bowl, add in some low-sodium soy sauce, sugar, egg, and 2 tablespoons of the cornstarch.
We can let it marinate in the fridge for 15-30 minutes to soak in the seasoning and tenderize!
Once ready, we can add in 1/4 cup of cornstarch and 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour into the bowl and mix, mix, mix! We prefer using hands (with gloves if you prefer) so you can really get in there and mix well! This egg-cornstarch-flour batter should be sticky in consistency.
3. Fry the chicken
Time to fry! Heat about 5 cups of canola or vegetable oil (or enough oil to deep fry) in medium high to high heat.
Fry the coated chicken pieces for about 3 minutes or until lightly golden and cooked thoroughly. Remove from oil and let rest on drying rack for 3-5 minutes, until cooled.
Refry the cooked chicken pieces a second time on high heat for about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, or until deep golden brown and crispy. Let the pieces rest on a drying rack while we make the sauce!
Pro tips: Try to play with the heat setting, keeping it between medium high to high heat. You want the pieces to be fiercely bubbling, but not so much that the oil starts to crackle and splatter too much.
Depending on the size of your pan or pot, you might also need to fry them in 2 batches to avoid overcrowding the pan.
4. Heat the sauce and assemble
Heat the sauce in a pan on medium heat. Once the sauce boils, let cook for 30 seconds and remove from heat.
Add in the fried chicken pieces into the pan and combine well until all the pieces are coated in yummy sauce!
Pro tip: If the sauce becomes too thick or evaporates too much while boiling, lower the heat and add in a little bit of hot water and mix.
Just make sure the sauce has a thicker consistency so that it does not make the crispy chicken pieces too soggy when combined together.
And voilà! Your own homemade spicy gochujang fried chicken is ready to be served! We like to top it with toasted sesame seeds and some more green onions!
FAQ's
Gochujang, or red chili paste, is a Korean fermented condiment made of chili powder (gochu-garu), glutinous rice, fermented soybean powder, barley malt powder, and seasonings.
Gochujang is spicy, salty and slightly sweet with a deeper umami flavour coming from the glutinous rice, fermented soy bean and chili powder.
Gochujang is sold in numerous local Korean, Japanese and Chinese supermarkets. As it is a staple ingredient in Korean cuisine, all Korean supermarkets will sell it. And with the rise in popularity of Korean food, many if not all pan-Asian supermarkets will also carry this product.
For this recipe, we usually prefer using boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs.
The batter is made of egg, cornstarch, all-purpose flour, low-sodium soy sauce, and sugar.
Yes, it is necessary to double-fry to be able to retain the crispiness once they are coated with the sauce.
Spicy Gochujang Fried Chicken
Ingredients
Fried chicken
- 300 grams boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp white sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch for marinade
- 1/4 cup cornstarch for coating
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 5 cups canola or vegetable oil or enough oil for deep-frying
Gochujang sauce
- 2 tbsp gochujang
- 1 1/2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 3 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp rice wine vinegar
- 3 tbsp hot water
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 green onion chopped
Toppings
- 1/2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 green onion green part only, chopped
Instructions
- To prepare the sauce, combine all the gochujang sauce ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well. Set aside.
- To marinate the chicken, combine the diced chicken breast cubes with 1 tsp low-sodium soy sauce, 1 egg, 1/4 tsp white sugar, and 2 tbsp cornstarch in a large bowl. Mix well and set aside in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.
- Take out the marinated chicken bowl from the refrigerator and add in 1/4 cup of cornstarch and 1/4 cup of all purpose flour. Mix well until the batter looks uniform and sticky (the batter should be sticky enough to stick to the chicken pieces).
- Heat about 5 cups of canola or vegetable oil (or enough oil for deep-frying) in a pan or pot over medium high to high heat. If you see a lot of fast bubbling form when you dip in a wooden chopstick or a wooden spoon, the oil is ready. Fry the coated chicken pieces for 3 minutes on medium high to high heat until lightly brown and thoroughly cooked inside. You might have to fry in 2 batches to avoid overcrowding the pot. Play with the heat setting to maintain a frying heat strong enough to keep the chicken fiercely bubbling, but not too hot to avoid oil splattering. Once the chicken is cooked, after about 3 minutes, remove from oil and let rest on drying rack for about 3-5 minutes.
- Refry the chicken pieces in high heat for about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, until deep golden brown and crispy. Remove from oil and let rest on drying rack.
- In a large pan, heat the sauce mixture over medium heat and bring to a boil. Let boil for about 30 seconds, and remove pan from heat. Add in the fried chicken pieces into the pan and combine well until all pieces are uniformly covered with the sauce.
- Serve with toasted sesame seeds and chopped green onions.
I love the addition of the FAQ's!
The pictures look sosoooo good!
Can't wait to make this!
Glad you like it! I hope you get to try it soon 🙂