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What is Dak Galbi?
Dak Galbi is a Korean Spicy Chicken Stir Fry. The chicken is marinated in a spicy sauce made of gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, onions and garlic. Then it's stir fried with vegetables and rice cakes.
This popular Korean food is usually fried on large frying pan or large cast iron skillets that sit on an open flame or a portable gas stove in the middle of the table.
It's a communal dish a group of friends can share with a bowl of rice or stuffed into fresh perilla leaves or crunchy lettuce. After all the chicken and veggies are eaten, white rice or instant ramen is stir fried with the leftover sauce!
"Dak" means "chicken" and "galbi" means "ribs" but this dish is ribless. In the past, Korean restaurants used pork ribs but since they were too costly for daily serving, they replaced them with chicken, hence the name.
There are many dakgalbi restaurants that specialize in this food. There's even a famous alleyway called "Chuncheon Myeongdong Dakgalbi Street" in the Gangwon province. It's lined with restaurants that serve this spicy chicken dish.
My version is simple to make and so satisfying! It's also great as a busy weeknight meal because it's made in one-pan and serves well as leftovers.
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to the below Recipe card for full measurements.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs: or substitute with chicken breast and dice them but please reduce the cooking time as breast tends to dry out faster than thighs.
Sauce
- Gochujang paste: a Korean red chili paste made of red chili flakes, fermented soybean paste, glutinous rice and salt. It's a thick red sweet and spicy paste that comes in a red tub sold at many Korean grocery stores in the sauce aisle varying levels of spice from mild to hot.
- Gochugaru: aka Korean red pepper powder. It's a spicy red chili powder or flake that is seedless. It's spicy and very red in color. Commonly used in Korean cooking. It's a common Korean ingredient that offers a vibrant red color and spice.
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce.
- Ginger: this helps tenderize the chicken and gives our sauce extra flavor.
- White granulated sugar: or substitute with a sweetener of choice, like honey or cane sugar, to balance the spicy and salty flavors of our sauce.
- Garlic cloves
- Onion
Stir Fry Ingredients
- Napa Cabbage: or substitute with Chinese cabbage or regular green cabbage.
- Carrot: or substitute with thinly sliced sweet potatoes or regular potato.
- Onion: or substitute with green onions.
- Perilla Leaves: a green pointy shaped leaf with a mint-like flavor, found in Asia and sold at Korean grocery stores. Often incorporated into dishes or used like a 'lettuce' wrap. If you can't find it, omit it.
- Korean Rice Cakes: aka "tteok" in Korean. These are thick chewy rice cakes like a mochi like texture. Soak these in warm water for 5 minutes ahead of time to help acclimate them. I recommend fresh or refrigerated rice cakes and avoid the frozen kind as they easily splinter. If you can't find them, omit it.
- Neutral oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil or any heavy scented oils with a low smoke point.
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients.
Expert Tips
- Use chicken thighs for extra flavor! The dark meat makes a big difference.
- Make sure the chicken is fresh by doing a smell test at the grocery store. If you can smell an odor, put it back and get a fresher pack of chicken.
- Soak the rice cakes in warm water for at least 5 minutes to bring them to room temperature so they don't split in the sauce.
- Use a non-stick pan to fry the chicken so the sauce doesn't stick and for easy cleanup!
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make dak galbi:
- Soak cold rice cakes in warm water for 5 minutes to bring them to room temperature. Strain and set aside.
- Dice chicken thighs into bite size pieces, about 1.5-inch wide. Then transfer chicken pieces to a large bowl. In a small mixing bowl, combine sauce ingredients as listed and mix into the chicken. Marinate the chicken for 10-15 minutes.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Cook sliced onions until translucent, about 1-2 minutes.
- Next stir fry carrots, cabbage, rice cakes and perilla leaves until cabbage has softened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add chicken along with marinade sauce and stir-fry with other ingredients. Spread evenly across the pan. Fry chicken for 10 minutes, flipping over half way.
- Once chicken is cooked through, remove off heat and enjoy with steamed rice or in a lettuce wrap! Note: cooked chicken has an internal temperature of 165 F with a digital instant read thermometer.
Storage
- Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat: microwave for 2-3 minutes until hot or reheat in a pan on medium heat.
- Freezer friendly? I don't recommend freezing dak galbi because the vegetables and rice cakes will change in texture.
Pairing Suggestions
Dak galbi serves best with steamed rice or stuffed into fresh lettuce or perilla leaves but also serves well with:
FAQ
This can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat, microwave or in a pan on the stovetop on medium heat.
Yes, feel free to substitute the chicken with pork shoulder or rib eye beef and cook accordingly. The vegetables can also be substituted with ones you enjoy like other Asian greens, snap peas, snow peas, broccoli, cauliflower, other root vegetables, or bell peppers.
📖 Recipe
Quick & Easy Dak Galbi
Ingredients
- 1 lb skinless boneless chicken thighs
- 2 cups napa cabbage or regular cabbage chopped
- ½ cup carrot thinly sliced
- ¾ cup Korean rice cakes
- ½ cup onion julienned
- 6 perilla leaves stems removed and roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
Sauce
- ½ cup onion finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup gochujang mild kind
- 4 teaspoon gochugaru
- 4 teaspoon regular soy sauce
- 4 teaspoon white granulated sugar or cane sugar
- ¾ teaspoon ginger peeled and grated
Instructions
- Soak cold rice cakes in warm water for 5 minutes to bring them to room temperature. Strain and set aside.
- Dice chicken thighs into bite size pieces, about 1.5-inch wide. Then transfer chicken pieces to a large bowl.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine sauce ingredients as listed and mix into the chicken. Marinate the chicken for 10-15 minutes.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Cook sliced onions until translucent, about 1-2 minutes.
- Next stir fry carrots, cabbage, rice cakes and perilla leaves until cabbage has softened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add chicken along with marinade sauce and stir-fry with other ingredients. Spread evenly across the pan. Fry chicken for 10 minutes, flipping over half way.
- Once chicken is cooked through, remove off heat and enjoy with steamed rice or in a lettuce wrap! Note: cooked chicken has an internal temperature of 165 F with a digital instant read thermometer.
Dany
Did you use frozen or fresh rice cakes? I ask because I have frozen and they have soaked for 30 minutes and are still quite hard.
christieathome
I used fresh rice cakes. They should become chewy when you go to add them into the hot pan. Just be careful not to overcook frozen rice cakes as they tend to break apart in high heat or prolonged cooking periods.
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
This is such a tasty fun way to upgrade chicken. Spicy and packed with flavor! 💕💕
christieathome
Thanks Heidi! Yes it's one of my favourite ways to cook chicken as it truly hits the spot.