Korean Grilled Chicken Recipe
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Not as common as the beef and pork dishes at a Korean barbecue restaurant, this underappreciated chicken dish, known as dak gui, is just as tasty and has a flavor reminiscent of teriyaki chicken but with a more complex, grown-up slant.
What to buy: Korean malt syrup or mool yut is a very thick and sticky syrup made from ground corn or sprouted barley (or sometimes both) and is used to give sweetness and shine to meat dishes. It can be found in Korean markets or online, but if you can’t find it you can substitute half the amount of barley malt syrup with light corn syrup, honey, or sugar.
This recipe was featured as part of both our Korean barbecue menu and our Tailgating Recipes photo gallery.
INGREDIENTS
- 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 6 medium garlic cloves, smashed
- 3 medium scallions, ends trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 (4-inch) piece ginger, cut into 1/4-inch coins
- 3/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup Korean malt syrup
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, for garnish
- Vegetable oil, for prepping the grill
INSTRUCTIONS
- Lay the chicken in a single layer on a cutting board. Cover with plastic wrap and, using a meat mallet or rolling pin, evenly pound to a 1/2-inch thickness.
- Place everything except the chicken and the sesame seeds in a large, nonreactive dish or a resealable plastic bag and mix until evenly combined. Add the chicken and turn to coat evenly. Cover and place in the refrigerator to marinate for 2 hours.
- Heat a gas or charcoal grill to high (about 400°F) and rub the grill with a towel dipped in vegetable oil. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature while the grill heats up, at least 20 minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade and let any excess drip off. Place the chicken on the grill and cook uncovered, turning rarely, until it’s charred and the juices are running clear, about 10 minutes total. When ready to serve, garnish with the sesame seeds.
Where's the Gojuchang?
So the addition of "Korean" corn syrup makes this dish Korean? My understanding is that Koreans (and Japanese) both import rather large amounts of corn from the US and the Koreans (at least in the States) have mostly switched to plain corn syrup. suegardetto's recipe is much more Korean than the OP, even with the can of Coke added. Even more "Korean" would've been dalk bulgogi, with its use of pear + gochujang / gochu garu
I love chicken but after i watch the BBC program about the Private life of chicken i respect more then. here are my 3 facts about chicken that i learned: Fact 1: In the planet are 7000 species of birds, we only domesticated 7 for food. The domestication of chicken started 8000 years ago. Fact 2: After humans, foxes are the greatest chicken predators. Fact 3: In the fifties rabbit was more popular than chicken in the British tables. In 1953 a farmer introduce a new breeding species from America creating the farm factories.
What is it about sprinkling sesame seeds on meat that makes it look so delectable?
Can use one can of coke for malt syrup, put some kim chi,let marinade overnight Soak sticks in water, place chicken or beef, even pork tenderloin and bake or grill high off heat and slow. no burning that way. DO NOT USE WHITE MEAT CHICHEN.
This is very similar to the recipe I used at my former restaurant. Some tips: Cut the mulyeot (malt syrup) by half and substitute an equal amount of honey or brown sugar. Try adding some mashed or blended Asian pear to the marinade. Marinate for at least 24 hours. (for short marinade times use left over marinade as a basting sauce)
Lacks chili paste and needs more than 2 hours worth of marination. I will tweak recipe and try again.