Korean fried chicken — yangnyeom chicken — is a different thing from Western fried chicken. The coating is thinner and crispier, the double fry technique produces a crust that stays audibly crisp long after it leaves the oil, and the sauce is sticky, spicy, and slightly sweet in a way that coats every piece without softening the crust underneath.
The double fry is the technique that makes it work. The first fry cooks the chicken through at a lower temperature. The second fry, at a higher temperature and much shorter time, drives off the remaining moisture in the coating and produces the crust. Skip the second fry and you have decent fried chicken. Do it and you have something noticeably better.
Ingredients
- Chicken
- 400 g Boneless skinless chicken thighs, trimmed, cut into 4cm pieces
- 5 g Fine sea salt
- 0.5 tsp White pepper
- 0.5 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 2 cloves Garlic, finely minced
- 5 g Fresh ginger, finely grated
- 70 g Potato starch
- 20 g Cornflour
- 0.5 tsp Baking powder
- Sauce
- 0.5 tbsp Neutral oil
- 1 cloves Garlic, finely minced
- 0.5 tbsp Gochujang
- 0.5 tbsp Gochugaru
- 1.5 tbsp Korean rice syrup, or honey, see notes
- 1 tbsp Light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Ketchup
- 0.5 tbsp Rice vinegar
- 0.5 tbsp Dark brown sugar
- 25 g Water
- Garnish
- 0.5 tbsp Toasted sesame seeds
- 1 Spring onion, finely sliced
- To serve
- 2 servings Sticky rice
Equipment
- Heavy bottom casserole or deep fryer
- Wire rack
- Oil thermometer
Method
Trim any excess fat from the chicken thighs and cut into roughly 4cm pieces. Combine with all the marinade ingredients, mix thoroughly until every piece is coated, and leave to marinate for 30–60 minutes.
While the chicken marinates, heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the oil and garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add all the remaining sauce ingredients and stir to combine. Simmer for 2–3 minutes until glossy and just coating a spoon — it should be loose enough to lacquer the chicken, not thick enough to clump on it. Set aside and reheat briefly before tossing with the chicken.
Combine the potato starch, cornflour and baking powder in a bowl. Add the marinated chicken and toss thoroughly until every piece is well coated — the coating should look uneven and slightly rough rather than smooth. Leave to rest for 10 minutes before frying.
Heat the oil to 165°C in a large heavy-bottomed casserole or deep fryer. Fry the chicken in batches — don’t overcrowd — for 4–5 minutes until cooked through and pale golden. The crust should be set but not deeply coloured. Remove to a wire rack and rest for 10 minutes.
Raise the oil temperature to 190°C. Fry the rested chicken in batches for 90 seconds to 2 minutes until deeply golden and audibly crisp. Drain thoroughly on a wire rack.
Transfer the hot chicken to a large bowl. Reheat the sauce briefly if needed and pour over the chicken. Toss rapidly until every piece is lightly and evenly lacquered.
Spoon the sticky rice into warmed bowls and pile the sauced chicken alongside. Scatter over the sesame seeds and spring onion and serve immediately.
Notes & Substitutions
Korean rice syrup: The traditional sweetener for yangnyeom sauce — less sweet than honey with a more neutral flavour that lets the gochujang and soy lead. Available in Korean and some Asian supermarkets. Honey works well as a substitute and is what this recipe was tested with — golden syrup also works but is slightly sweeter.
Shaoxing wine: A Chinese rice wine that adds depth and a subtle complexity to the marinade. Available in Asian supermarkets. If you can’t find it, rice vinegar works as a substitute — the flavour will be slightly sharper and less rounded, but still good.
Gochujang and gochugaru: Both available in Korean supermarkets and increasingly in larger Asian supermarkets. Gochujang is a fermented chilli paste — deep, slightly sweet, and complex. Gochugaru is dried Korean chilli flakes — brighter and more straightforwardly spicy. Both are worth having in the fridge or cupboard if you cook Korean food regularly.
Oil depth: The oil should come at least 8–10cm up the sides of the pan before the chicken goes in. Too shallow and the chicken sits in the oil rather than submerging, which means uneven cooking and poor crust development.
Chicken thighs: Boneless skinless thighs are the right choice here — they stay juicy through the double fry in a way that breast meat doesn’t. See how to cook chicken to temperature for more on why thighs are more forgiving than breast.
Serving suggestion: The Thai cucumber salad works particularly well alongside — the sharpness and crunch cuts through the richness of the gochujang sauce.
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Korean Fried Chicken
Korean fried chicken — yangnyeom chicken — is a different thing from Western fried chicken. The coating is thinner and crispier, the double fry technique produces a crust that stays audibly crisp long after it leaves the oil, and the sauce is sticky, spicy, and slightly sweet in a way that coats every piece without softening the crust underneath.
The double fry is the technique that makes it work. The first fry cooks the chicken through at a lower temperature. The second fry, at a higher temperature and much shorter time, drives off the remaining moisture in the coating and produces the crust. Skip the second fry and you have decent fried chicken. Do it and you have something noticeably better.
Ingredients
- 400 g Boneless skinless chicken thighs (trimmed, cut into 4cm pieces)
- 5 g Fine sea salt
- 0.5 tsp White pepper
- 0.5 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 2 cloves Garlic (finely minced)
- 5 g Fresh ginger (finely grated)
- 70 g Potato starch
- 20 g Cornflour
- 0.5 tsp Baking powder
- 0.5 tbsp Neutral oil
- 1 cloves Garlic (finely minced)
- 0.5 tbsp Gochujang
- 0.5 tbsp Gochugaru
- 1.5 tbsp Korean rice syrup (or honey, see notes)
- 1 tbsp Light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Ketchup
- 0.5 tbsp Rice vinegar
- 0.5 tbsp Dark brown sugar
- 25 g Water
- 0.5 tbsp Toasted sesame seeds
- 1 Spring onion (finely sliced)
- 2 servings Sticky rice
Equipment
- Heavy bottom casserole or deep fryer
- Wire rack
- Oil thermometer
Method
Marinate the chicken
Trim any excess fat from the chicken thighs and cut into roughly 4cm pieces. Combine with all the marinade ingredients, mix thoroughly until every piece is coated, and leave to marinate for 30–60 minutes.
For this step: 400 g Boneless skinless chicken thighs, 5 g Fine sea salt, 0.5 tsp White pepper, 0.5 tbsp Shaoxing wine, 2 cloves Garlic, 5 g Fresh ginger
Make the sauce
While the chicken marinates, heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the oil and garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add all the remaining sauce ingredients and stir to combine. Simmer for 2–3 minutes until glossy and just coating a spoon — it should be loose enough to lacquer the chicken, not thick enough to clump on it. Set aside and reheat briefly before tossing with the chicken.
For this step: 0.5 tbsp Neutral oil, 1 cloves Garlic, 0.5 tbsp Gochujang, 0.5 tbsp Gochugaru, 1.5 tbsp Korean rice syrup, 1 tbsp Light soy sauce, 1 tbsp Ketchup, 0.5 tbsp Rice vinegar, 0.5 tbsp Dark brown sugar, 25 g Water
Coat the chicken
Combine the potato starch, cornflour and baking powder in a bowl. Add the marinated chicken and toss thoroughly until every piece is well coated — the coating should look uneven and slightly rough rather than smooth. Leave to rest for 10 minutes before frying.
For this step: 70 g Potato starch, 20 g Cornflour
First fry
Heat the oil to 165°C in a large heavy-bottomed casserole or deep fryer. Fry the chicken in batches — don’t overcrowd — for 4–5 minutes until cooked through and pale golden. The crust should be set but not deeply coloured. Remove to a wire rack and rest for 10 minutes.
Second fry
Raise the oil temperature to 190°C. Fry the rested chicken in batches for 90 seconds to 2 minutes until deeply golden and audibly crisp. Drain thoroughly on a wire rack.
Sauce and serve
Transfer the hot chicken to a large bowl. Reheat the sauce briefly if needed and pour over the chicken. Toss rapidly until every piece is lightly and evenly lacquered.
Serve
Spoon the sticky rice into warmed bowls and pile the sauced chicken alongside. Scatter over the sesame seeds and spring onion and serve immediately.
For this step: 0.5 tbsp Toasted sesame seeds, 1 Spring onion, 2 servings Sticky rice
Notes & Substitutions
Korean rice syrup: The traditional sweetener for yangnyeom sauce — less sweet than honey with a more neutral flavour that lets the gochujang and soy lead. Available in Korean and some Asian supermarkets. Honey works well as a substitute and is what this recipe was tested with — golden syrup also works but is slightly sweeter.
Shaoxing wine: A Chinese rice wine that adds depth and a subtle complexity to the marinade. Available in Asian supermarkets. If you can’t find it, rice vinegar works as a substitute — the flavour will be slightly sharper and less rounded, but still good.
Gochujang and gochugaru: Both available in Korean supermarkets and increasingly in larger Asian supermarkets. Gochujang is a fermented chilli paste — deep, slightly sweet, and complex. Gochugaru is dried Korean chilli flakes — brighter and more straightforwardly spicy. Both are worth having in the fridge or cupboard if you cook Korean food regularly.
Oil depth: The oil should come at least 8–10cm up the sides of the pan before the chicken goes in. Too shallow and the chicken sits in the oil rather than submerging, which means uneven cooking and poor crust development.
Chicken thighs: Boneless skinless thighs are the right choice here — they stay juicy through the double fry in a way that breast meat doesn’t. See how to cook chicken to temperature for more on why thighs are more forgiving than breast.
Serving suggestion: The Thai cucumber salad works particularly well alongside — the sharpness and crunch cuts through the richness of the gochujang sauce.
Free guide: How to Cook Properly
How to Cook Properly — the 11 principles that turn average into outstanding
Equipment worth having
One bowl per ingredient. It sounds simple. It changes everything.
£25-£75
The wok costs £15. The heat underneath it is what you're really paying for.
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One bowl per ingredient. It sounds simple. It changes everything.
£25-£75
The wok costs £15. The heat underneath it is what you're really paying for.
£10-£25
One bowl per ingredient. It sounds simple. It changes everything.
£25-£75
The wok costs £15. The heat underneath it is what you're really paying for.
£10-£25Shape what comes next
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