Chicken Bulgogi (Korean BBQ Chicken)
Chicken bulgogi is an easy and quick Korean BBQ chicken recipe made with gochujang. You can grill this slightly sweet and savory chicken, broil it in the oven, or pan-fry it. Perfect for a weeknight dinner!
“made this tonight. instructions were super easy to follow, and the resulting chicken was a huge hit.”
PAULETTE MCCARRON
If you hear the word, Bulgogi, you immediately think of the famous Korean bbq beef dish. However, Bulgogi doesn’t limit on the beef. Try this Chicken bulgogi, the Korean BBQ chicken, and you will be surprised how wonderful chicken tastes.
Chicken bulgogi (aka Dak-bulgogi, 닭불고기) is often confused with Dakgalbi (닭갈비), another spicy Korean chicken recipe. While dakgalbi is a more of chicken and vegetables pan-fried all together with a spicy sauce in one skillet, dak-bulgogi is solely chicken without any vegetables, and cooked over a grill. Therefore it is called Korean BBQ chicken.
Chicken Bulgogi can be made with soy sauce based seasoning, which has its own unique savory flavor, but I often like to enjoy my chicken bulgogi seasoned with gochujang (Korean chili paste). Typically, boneless skinless chicken thigh meat is preferred over chicken breast.
If you like a pork version of similar recipe, try my Pork Bulgogi Recipe. You will love it equally. Also don’t miss out my Korean fried chicken recipe. If you anything Korean chicken, I guarantee you will love it, too.
Traditionally chicken bulgogi is cooked over a grill, but you can also use other cooking method; such as broiling or pan-frying. Either way, this Korean barbecue chicken is one of the easy Korean dinner recipes.
What Does Bulgogi Mean?
“Bul” means fire and “gogi” means meat in Korean. As the name explains, chicken bulgogi means chicken meat barbecued over a fire.
Now you can understand why so many Korean restaurants have an open grill on the middle of each serving table. It’s there to cook the meat right at your table so that you can enjoy popping hot grilled meat right away. Bulgogi is unique to the Korean food culture that you don’t find it elsewhere.
More Cooking Methods for Chicken Bulgogi
- Grill: Brush the hot grill grates with oil and lay the chicken on top. Grill for 3-4 minutes each side turning only once.
- Broil: Put an oven shelving at 5-6 inch below the heat source, preheat the oven to broil. Place a greased cooling rack on a large baking sheet (half sheet size), lay the chicken pieces without overlapping. Broil 4-5 minutes on each side. Make sure to keep an eye on your chicken so that you don’t char them too much.
- Pan-Fry: Heat a tablespoon of oil on a non-stick surface skillet over high heat, add chicken pieces without crowding the space. You might need to pan-fry chicken in batches. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side until chicken is fully cooked. If the sauce burns and start sticking to the skillet, wipe out with a wet kitchen paper.
I will admit that grilling will bring the most tasting chicken Bulgogi. However, you can still enjoy the delicious chicken Bulgogi through broiling or pan-frying.
I am using the broiling method this time (I prefer over pan-frying). Easy clean up and you don’t need the extra oil that is needed for pan-frying method.
What you’ll need for Chicken Bulgogi
- Boneless skinless chicken thigh
- Chicken bulgogi (Korean BBQ chicken) sauce
Korean bbq chicken sauce ingredients:
- Gochujang (Korean chili paste): an essential Korean cooking ingredient
- Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes), optional
- Soy sauce
- Light brown sugar
- Korean corn syrup (or plain corn syrup)
- Garlic
- Ginger puree
- Sesame oil
If you don’t mind the extra spicy kick, I suggest to add a little bit of Korean chili flakes (gochugaru). It does add intensive “fire” flavor to this Korean dish.
Korean corn syrup (mulyut or oligo syrup) will adds shine to the dish and makes chicken look more scrumptious.
How to make Chicken Bulgogi
Pound chicken thigh with a meat hammer. This will tenderize chicken and help cook the chicken faster and more even.
Mix all the seasoning ingredients in a large mixing bowl to make the paste.
Add chicken and toss well to coat the chicken with the seasoning. I recommend to let it sit in a room temperature for 10 minutes while you are preheating the oven to broil.
Grease a cooling rack and place it on a large baking sheet (lined with piece of foil for easy clean up). Put chicken pieces and broil for 4-5 minute per each side until the surface is slightly charred and chicken is fully cooked.
The oven shelving should be about 5-6 inch below the heat source. Watch carefully so that you don’t char the chicken too much.
Cut up the chicken into a bite size chunks for easy serving. Transfer on a serving dish and garnish with perilla leaves or chopped green onion.
What to serve with Korean BBQ chicken
Serving with rice is most typical, with or without the lettuce wrap. It will make a great rice bowl dish with a simple vegetable or salad on the side. Any Korean side dish recipes or even simple cabbage kimchi will goes well, too. I also think it pairs well with a noodle dish.
I recommend to garnish your chicken bulgogi with Perilla leaves (aka kkaennip). Kkaennip is a fragrant Korean herb; cross between basil and mint, and pairs well with any gochujang flavored dish. It is easily found in most of Korean or Asian grocery stores.
Storage Suggestion
Chicken bulgogi tastes best when it’s hot, so I recommend to finish it off at the time of serving. However, any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator up to 5 days. Serve it as chilled or reheat in a microwave for 45-60 seconds. Freezing is not recommended.
More Korean Chicken Dishes
If you don’t mind a hint of spiciness, these Korean chicken recipes are so popular and must-try chicken recipes.
- Korean Fried Chicken Recipe (for Chimaek)
- Spicy Korean Chicken Soup
- Korean Honey Garlic Chicken Wings
- Dakgangjeong (Crispy Korean Chicken Nuggets)
- Dakdoritang (Spicy Korean Chicken Stew)
- Dakgalbi (Spicy Korean Chicken Stir-Fry)
Chicken Bulgogi (Korean BBQ Chicken)
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, boneless & skinless
- 3 tbsp Korean chili paste (gochujang)
- 1 tbsp Korean chili flakes (gochugaru), optional
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1-2 tbsp light brown sugar
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 1 tbsp Korean corn syrup (mulyeot)
- 1 tbsp sweet rice wine (mirim), optional
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 5-6 Korean perilla leaves (kkatnip), thinly sliced, to garnish, optional
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds to garnish
Equipment
Instructions
- Out a piece of plastic wrap over chicken thighs and pound with a meat hammer to stretch and tenderize; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together gochujang, gochugaru (if using), soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, corn syrup, rice wine, sesame oil, and pepper. Add the chicken thighs and toss together to coat evenly. Let the chicken rest on a room temperature for 10 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to broil; place an oven shelving to 5-6 inch below the heat source. Grease a cooling rack with a spray oil and place on top of a large baking pan (half sheet size) lined with foil.
- Spread the chicken pieces on the rack without overlapping. Broil 4-5 minute or until the surface is slightly charred. Turn the chicken to the other side and broil for another 4-5 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. Keep an eye on the chicken so that you don't char them too much.
- Cut the chicken thighs into a bite size chunks and place in a serving dish. Garnish with thinly sliced perilla leaves and toasted sesame seeds. Serve hot with rice.
Excellent!! I used honey in place of the corn syrup and served with a quick slaw and rice. Was looking forward to the leftovers for breakfast, but my daughter got to them before me 🙁
Made this tonight and grilled it. So flavorful and delicious. Thanks for an easy quick dinner recipe 💕
Made this for dinner tonight and it was very tasty! I think next time I will try marinating it overnight like was suggested for even more flavor.
Hi Jason
I’m glad you enjoyed it! You’re correct, marinating overnight enhances the flavor. Thank you for your feedback!
I once garlic chili paste for Gochujang. it was a great sub. I also sub the syrup with this plum syrup I got at the korean store. I like it more cuz it adds some tang.
It was tasty but I feel like the sauce didn’t coat all the pieces evenly enough so some were less flavored than others. I did cut it up into pieces before cooking it so maybe that was why?
Hi Carissa
It’s hard to tell but I recommend cooking the entire piece of chicken thigh with the sauce first, then cut it up after. Thanks.
Your recipes are easy to follow and frequently helpful with my writing!
I followed the recipe and cooked it over the stove. My sauce was more of a liquid than a paste. I’m not quite sure what I did wrong. I didn’t add the chili flakes because the paste itself was spicy.
Any ideas on how I should have made it thicker? So that I can have more of a glaze?
Hi Alexandria
To help you with your question, did you use the given amount of gochujang (3 tbsp) and liquids in the recipe? If so, and still runny, then omit the rice wine and corn syrup. Let me know if that helps.
Thanks.
Sooo yummy! A go-to recipe for me!
Absolutely delicious. It’s not difficult to make and everyone LOVES it! It was the first dinner I made for my my fiancés family and it turned out amazingggg! Korean food NEVER fails to be delicious. This is my favorite so far!!! I was asked to make it again for dinner the next week.
감사합니다!!
Loved this recipe. I didn’t have Korean corn syryp of Perilla leaves but replaced with sugar and the balance between sweet and spicy was still fantastic.
Hi Andrea
Yeah! I am so glad to hear that you liked this chicken bulgogi. Thank you for leaving me a comment.
I made this for dinner and it was phenomenal! Easy to make and super tasty. Korean food is so good and I’m glad that I can add this to my weekly menu from now on. This will definitely be a once a week food.
My family and friends love this! It is my most requested dish!
Had friends over for dinner and I made this, they kept coming back for more – even the ones with low spice tolerance. Have even recommended this recipe to family members – absolutely loved it
Would an overnight marinade give more flavor to the chicken? Making this tomorrow and want to see if it’s worth starting it tonight
Hi Nick
Yes, you can definitely marinate the chicken overnight. It will make it more flavorful.
I typically marinade mine overnight…… it’s soooooo good!
This recipe works perfectly for tofu, no other changes needed. I’ve made this countless times with extra firm tofu (plus once or twice with chicken) and I’m always pleased with it! It reheats well for leftovers.
This recipe was perfect! I added one tablespoon less of the gochujang in case it would be too flavored and it was perfect! I also did not have corn syrup, but I had some leftover rice syrup. Although there wasn’t enough for the full amount, I added a tablespoon of sugar more to balance it out.
I pan-fried the chicken and surprisingly it still came out super juicy. I wiped the pan after each batch to prevent burnt pieces and they came out like a golden color. I would use this recipe again.
Hi Kim
So happy to hear you tried my recipe and liked it. Also glad to know that you wiped the pan after each batch is cooked. It’s a great tip for those who wants to pan-fry this chicken bulgogi. Thanks for sharing your comment.
” Serve it as chilled or reheat in a microwave for 45-60 minutes.”
You might want to change that just in case. Anything in a microwave would catch fire in that length of time.
Probably meant “reheat in an oven @ 350f for 45-60 mins” or “reheat in microwave for 45-60 seconds”
Yes, it should be seconds, not minutes. I fixed it. Thanks for letting me know.
Terlihat sangat lezat sekali jarang sekali ditemui
made this tonight. instructions were super easy to follow, and the resulting chicken was a huge hit. My daughter’s boyfriend is from JeJu island and while I can’t compete with his mom’s cooking, I am enjoying giving it a try. Trying the crispy Beef Bulgogi next week! THANK YOUU
You don’t mention when the corn syrup is to be used. Does it go in the marinade?
Hi Kate
Yes, the corn syrup should go in the seasoning paste (marinade) along with other ingredients. Thanks for pointing it out. I must have missed it in the directions.
Hope you get to try this chicken bulgogi recipe. It is easy and delicious.
This looks outstanding! I just made a galbi sauce. It’s a Roy Choi recipe. Can’t wait to use it. And this will be perfect for outside when it’s grilling weather. Can’t wait to make it!
Fabulous. I actually ended up hiding it in the fridge so my family wouldn’t gobble it all up.
Very good. My husband ate all of it. first for dinner and the next day’s lunch. I have to make extra next time so I can eat some too.
Glad that your husband liked it. Too bad that you didn’t get to eat though. Yes, you better make a little more sauce and add a few more pieces of chicken thigh next time. It’s yummy!
This looks incredibly flavorful! I’ve had this dish in restaurants, but haven’t made it. I need to — it’s so flavorful, and a pretty easy dish to make. Good stuff — thanks.
My whole family loved this. Thanks for the recipe. I broiled it this time. I can’t wait to cook it again on the grill. Yum!
This looks lipsmackingly delicious!