Dakgangjeong (닭강정) – Sweet and Crispy Chicken

Dakgangjeong are small pieces of boneless chicken, fried twice and turned in a thick sauce of soy sauce, rice syrup and garlic. At Korean markets, stalls sell the chicken in paper cups with peanuts on top. The sauce cooks down so far that it sets as it cools. That is why dakgangjeong tastes good cold and stays crisp for a few hours.

By Laura Chen · November 4, 2026

50 Mintotal

4servings

550kcal

KoreanCuisine ›

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The potato starch crust withstands the glaze. You fry the pieces once at 170 °C, let them rest and fry them a second time at 180 °C. In the second round the water evaporates from the coating, and the shell turns hard and brittle. Toss the chicken in the sauce only once it throws bubbles and pulls threads off the spoon.

Larger pieces with a thin gochujang glaze come with the recipe for Korean fried chicken. Chikin-mu, pickled radish in cubes, goes with it. From the grill come Dak Kkochi, chicken skewers with a similar sauce.

Image: AI-generated.

Dakgangjeong (닭강정) – Sweet and Crispy Chicken

Name: Dakgangjeong (닭강정) – Sweet and Crispy Chicken
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Korean
Ingredients: 600 g chicken thighs, skinless and boneless; 1/2 tsp salt; 1/4 tsp black pepper; 1 tsp ginger, finely grated; 60 g potato starch; 40 g all-purpose flour; 100 ml cold water; 1 l vegetable oil for deep-frying; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 4 tbsp rice syrup (jocheong) or honey; 2 tbsp brown sugar; 3 garlic cloves, chopped; 3 tbsp water; 4 dried red chili peppers; 40 g roasted peanuts, roughly chopped; 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Laura Chen

Servings

Prep time

25 minutes

Cook time

25 minutes

Calories

550

Cuisine

Korean

Ingredients

For the chicken:

600 g chicken thighs, skinless and boneless
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp ginger, finely grated
60 g potato starch
40 g all-purpose flour
100 ml cold water
1 l vegetable oil for deep-frying

For the sauce:

3 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp rice syrup (jocheong) or honey
2 tbsp brown sugar
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 tbsp water
4 dried red chili peppers

To serve:

40 g roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

Cut the chicken into 3 cm pieces and season it with salt, pepper and ginger. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
Stir the starch, flour and cold water into a thick batter. Turn the chicken pieces in it until they are coated all over.
Heat the oil in a pot to 170 °C. Fry the chicken in two batches for 5 minutes each and put it on a rack.
Let the pieces rest for 5 minutes. Heat the oil to 180 °C and fry everything once more for 2 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and hard.
Bring the soy sauce, rice syrup, sugar, garlic, water and chilis to a boil in a large pan. Let the sauce simmer over medium heat for 3 minutes, until it throws bubbles and is thick.
Take the pan off the heat. Add the chicken and toss it for 1 minute, until every piece glistens.
Scatter peanuts and sesame over it and serve the chicken warm, or let it cool.

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Dakgangjeong (닭강정) – Sweet and Crispy Chicken

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Dakgangjeong (닭강정) – Sweet and Crispy Chicken

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