I had 닭갈비 for the first time in my life in late 2019 and it instantly become my favorite Korean food.
Due to the ongoing pandemic I have not been able to go back to the 닭갈비 restaurant but I simply cannot stop thinking about it. Recently I found a recipe on YouTube(see below) and I had the best week of my life making this dish twice and eating it everyday.
Recipe
Courtesy of Aaron & Claire. It’s my go-to channel for recipes on pretty much any Korean cuisine and it never let me down.
Ingredients
I bought all the ingredients from a local Korean grocery store and I’m sure you will be able to find everything in H-Mart or equivalent. Most of the ingredients can be found in pretty much any Asian grocery stores but some of them are only available in Korean grocery stores. Amazon links are provided to help you visualize what to get.
Marinade / Sauce
The most important part of the recipe.
- Sugar * 2.5 Tbsp
- Red pepper flake * 3 Tbsp
- Dashida * 1 Tbsp
- Soy sauce * 3 Tbsp
- Black pepper * 1/3 Tbsp
- Oyster sauce * 1 Tbsp
- Sesame oil * 1 Tbsp
- Corn syrup * 1 Tbsp
- Minced garlic * 2 Tbsp (4~5 cloves)
- Gochujang * 3.5 Tbsp
- Korean curry powder * 1 Tbsp
- Crushed pear juice * 100 mL
The last item, you can use (according to Aaron) kiwi juice, apple juice or pineapple juice. I actually bought a pear and blended my own pear juice and it works great.
Meat
The marinade above is good for about 5 chicken thigh and will make a big enough for at least 4 people. I prefer organic, skinless and excessive fat removed chicken thigh because you deserved to be treated better.
- Boneless chicken thigh * 5
Vegetable & Others
- Sweet potato (medium) * 1
- Korean green onion (Dae-pa) * 1
- Yellow onion (medium) * 1
- Cabbage * 1 cup
- Korean perilla leaves (kkaenip / 깻잎) * 30+ pieces
- Korean rice cake * 150g (~15 bars)
- Udon * 1 pack
- Cheese of your choice (grated)
- Cooked white rice * 150g
Tips:
- Sweet potato, rice cake, udon and rice all all very filling so you should balance the amount and avoid having too much carb (food coma alert). The amount I listed here is good for 4 people for about 2 meals.
- If you can’t get the Korean green onion, replace it with normal green onion you have, but the quantity needs to be a lot since Korean green onion is huge in size.
- Korean perilla leaves (kkaenip / 깻잎) elevates the dish to next level. No kidding. Chop maybe half of the leaves you have and save the other half to eat the dish with (as wrap) and you’ll be rewarded for the effort you put into getting this particular ingredient.
- The cooked rice is to be enjoyed after you’re almost done with the dish. It’s mixed with seaweed flakes, sesame seeds and sesame oil, and stir fried in the same pot with some left over dakgalbi (닭갈비). Please try doing this even if you’re full. One of the best fried rice you’ll ever have.
Steps
- Mix the marinade, chop the chicken into bite size and marinade in fridge for at least 30mins. While waiting, chop all the other ingredients into bite size. Remember to keep the sweet potato soaked in water to prevent oxidation.
- Oil your pot / pan, drain the water in sweet potato and start cooking sweet potato. It’s cooked first since it takes much longer to be fully cooked than other ingredients. When it’s slightly cooked (2~3mins), add in all the other vegetables.
- Wait for vegetables to be slightly cooked (you can smell onion aroma) and add in marinated chicken. Start mixing and you’ll get something like the 2nd picture.
- Add in the rice cake, udon, and chopped perilla leaves, stir well and let the heat do the magic. I forgot to add Udon for the batch that I took picture but it’s definitely recommended to have it in your dish.
- You can check if chicken pieces are fully cooked by cutting them using a pair of scissors. Once they’re, top your meal off with your favorite cheese, mix well and enjoy!
The ingredients I got is definitely way too much for just making one meal but I’m totally okay with that. I even committed to buying this new large electric pan for this dish (from KitchenLand). This is by far my favorite Korean dish and I’m planning on making it weekly or bi-weekly minimum.
Ending this post with my first attempt at this dish. I replicated almost everything from Aaron’s video, even the “cheese river”. Shout out to Aaron & Claire for making and sharing this recipe, and special thanks to my girl Anna for bringing this dish to my world and helping me making it.
