Dakgalbi (닭갈비)

the most juicy spicy savory meal you have EVER had

This is def Korean comfort food at it’s best. You can make it alone and just eat the spicy chicken or you can make it with a handful of colorful korean vegetables hearty in color and flavor.

First, you need your chicken! Chicken breast is much too tough- you need a very tender cut of chicken. I either buy chicken tenderloins or drumsticks (with no skin) and remove all the chicken from the bone. Tenderloins is the easier way to go, and drumsticks are less expensive but take more time to take the meat off the bones etc. You choose- to feed about 3-4 people you will need a pound of the tenderloins.

Chop them into even smaller pieces, and place in a bowl. Sprinkle with a little black pepper and a tbsp of cooking wine, and a tbsn of low sodium soy sauce. Set aside.

grab another bowl, make your spicy marination sauce. All you need is:

8 teaspoons of minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of minced ginger, 1/4th cup hot pepper paste, 1/4th cup of hot pepper flakes, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 1/3 cup cooking wine, 1/4th cup of white sugar in a bowl. Mix it well!

If you just want spicy chicken meat- get your 1lb of sliced tenderloins back out and mix with this spicy sauce well.

Refrigerate for 5 hours, and it will be ready to make! When I make it this way, I also slice up half a medium onion for taste!

Now, the other way with all those hearty veggies- (the way you should def do if you have time)-and why?? Because at the end, (like many Korean restaurants do) when everyone has eaten everything,  you get a couple scoops of rice and mix it around the remnants of sauce etc left in pan. The flavor from the spicy sauce and chicken and the perilla leaves make for an excellent stir fry. It’s so good, do it when everyone is done!

Ok, so for the stir fry!

get your veggies-  1/2 of a smaller sized cabbage chopped up into small pieces, one medium sliced onion, one small sliced carrot, a big handful of sliced perilla leaves, and one small korean sweet potato also cut up into one-2 inch slices.

Throw the chicken on the pan, pour the spicy marinade on top. Cover on medium heat for about 2 mins mins. Take the lid off and add your veggies. Cover for a couple more mins. Take the lid off and then just stir everything around some more making sure the marinade has covered all of the chicken and veggies perfectly.

At this point if you have any 떡 (korean rice cakes), throw them in! I always throw in the tube kind you use for 떡볶이 😉

It’s when the rice cake is chewy, and the sweet potato is soft and tender that you are finally ready to eat!

so good!

 

garnish with scallions on top and enjoy with rice!

Oh~ & don’t forget to make that stirfry at the end!