Dakgangjeong (Crispy Glazed Chicken)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 4 to 5 liter pot or Dutch oven
• •Deep-fry thermometer
• •Wire rack set over a tray
• •Wide skillet for reducing the glaze
• •Long tongs or a spider strainer

Instructions

1. 1

   Season the chicken

   Put the chicken in a bowl with the rice wine, ginger juice, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix by hand until the pieces feel lightly sticky, then let them stand 20 minutes. The pieces are small on purpose: about 3 cm, so the chicken cooks before the coating hardens too dark.

2. 2

   Coat with starch

   Drain off any liquid sitting at the bottom of the bowl. Add the potato starch and toss until every piece is coated, pressing the starch into the corners and folds. Let the coated chicken sit 10 minutes, until the starch turns slightly damp and clings. If any piece still looks wet, dust it with the extra 2 tablespoons starch. Loose dry powder falls into the oil; hydrated starch becomes the shell.

3. 3

   Heat the oil

   Pour the frying oil into a heavy pot, leaving at least 8 cm of empty space above it. Heat to 160 C / 320 F. Use a thermometer if you have one. Hot oil rewards order and punishes hurry, so set a rack over a tray before the first piece goes in.

   Do not fill the pot more than halfway. The oil rises when chicken goes in, and a crowded pot is both dangerous and bad cooking.
4. 4

   First fry

   Fry the chicken in 3 batches, 4 to 5 minutes per batch, until pale golden and cooked through. Stir once after the coating sets so the pieces do not glue themselves together. Lift them to the rack and let them rest while the oil returns to 160 C / 320 F. The first fry cooks the meat and drives moisture out of the coating. Check that the thickest piece reaches 74 C / 165 F.

5. 5

   Reduce the glaze

   While the chicken rests, make the sauce in a wide skillet. Warm the 2 teaspoons oil over medium heat, then cook the garlic, minced ginger, and dried chilies for 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Add the rice syrup, 3 tablespoons soy sauce, water, rice wine, brown sugar, and gochujang if using. Boil 2 to 3 minutes, until the bubbles turn large and slow and a spatula dragged through the pan leaves a clear line for one second. Turn off the heat and stir in the vinegar and sesame oil.

   Reduce the sauce before the chicken touches it. Watery glaze softens the crust, and then the double frying has done all that work for nothing.
6. 6

   Second fry

   Raise the oil to 190 C / 375 F. Fry the chicken again in batches for 2 to 3 minutes, until the coating is deeper golden and feels hard against the tongs. This second fry is what keeps dakgangjeong crisp after it cools. Drain on the rack for 1 minute, not on paper towels, which trap moisture underneath.

7. 7

   Glaze and finish

   Return the skillet of glaze to low heat if it has stiffened. Add the fried chicken and peanuts, then toss quickly for 20 to 30 seconds, just until each piece has a thin glossy coat. Do not simmer the chicken in the sauce. Scatter with toasted sesame seeds and serve warm or at room temperature. Dakgangjeong should still eat crisp after it sits on the table.

Chef Tips

• •Use thigh meat if you want the market texture. Breast works, but it dries faster, so cut it a little larger and do not push the second fry past 2 minutes.
• •Potato starch is the coating I want here. Cornstarch can stand in, but potato starch gives a sturdier crisp that holds better under syrup. Flour makes a heavier crust and goes soft sooner.
• •The safe shortcut is making the glaze a day ahead and reheating it gently before tossing. The shortcut I will not give you is skipping the second fry. Then it is fried chicken with sauce, not dakgangjeong.
• •Go easy on gochujang. Dakgangjeong can be red, but it should not taste only of chili paste and sugar. The soy, garlic, ginger, and chicken still need to speak.
• •Leftovers keep uncovered or loosely covered in the refrigerator for 2 days. Re-crisp them on a rack in a 200 C / 400 F oven for 8 to 10 minutes, then let them stand 3 minutes before eating.

Advance Preparation

• •The glaze can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Warm it in a wide skillet until loose and glossy before the chicken is fried the second time.
• •The chicken can be cut and seasoned up to 8 hours ahead, covered and refrigerated. Do not coat it with starch until 10 minutes before frying, or the coating turns gummy.
• •For a potluck, fry and glaze the chicken up to 2 hours ahead and keep it at room temperature, loosely covered. Dakgangjeong is one of the few fried dishes that forgives this, because the syrup glaze sets instead of soaking in.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 300g)