Dakgalbi
Chicken, rice cakes, cabbage and sweet potato stir-fried in a spicy gochujang sauce, then rice fried in the same pan: the specialty of Chuncheon, near Nami Island. In Spring Fever, Yoon Bom remembers that she crossed paths with Seon Jae-gyu a year earlier at a dakgalbi restaurant in town. About 40 minutes for four.
- Time
- 40 min
- Level
- Easy
- Spice
- Serves
- 4 servings
What is Dakgalbi?
WHAT IT IS
Dakgalbi is chicken marinated in a spicy gochujang sauce and stir-fried with cabbage, sweet potato and rice cakes on a wide iron pan in the middle of the table. When the chicken is gone, rice is fried in the leftover sauce.
WHERE IT COMES FROM
It began in Chuncheon in the 1960s, when a local tavern started marinating chicken like pork ribs and grilling it over charcoal as “dak bulgogi”; sources differ on exactly who and when. Stir-frying it with vegetables on a round iron plate came in the late 1970s, and it was so cheap and filling that it earned nicknames like “college student galbi” as restaurants crowded into an alley in Chuncheon's Myeongdong.
Sources:Encyclopedia of Korean CultureEncyclopedia of Korean Folk Culture
Ingredients
재료Each Korean item has a substitute, in case you can’t get to a store.
Paid links · The store links in this list are affiliate links: K for All earns a commission when you buy through them. Sales, shipping and refunds are handled by each store.
- 1 lb (450 g)Boneless, skinless chicken thighs 닭다리살
Substitute: Thighs stay juicy. My Korean Kitchen says chicken breast or a whole cut-up chicken works too.
Any grocer - 8 oz (225 g), 10–12 piecesKorean rice cakes (tteokbokki tteok) 떡볶이 떡
Substitute: Soak them in cold water for about 20 minutes so they cook soft. The link searches Amazon for Korean rice cakes; pick the stick-shaped ones.
Search on Amazon Amazon US - 8 oz (225 g)Green cabbage 양배추Any grocer
- 1 small, about 6 oz (170 g)Sweet potato 고구마
Substitute: Korean sweet potatoes (goguma) are the classic choice, but any sweet potato works.
Any grocer - 6–8 leaves (optional)Perilla leaves (kkaennip) 깻잎
Substitute: Korean grocers sell them. They add a fresh, herby note; leave them out if you can't find them.
Any grocer - 2Scallions 파Any grocer
- 2 tbspGochujang (Korean chili paste) 고추장
CJ Haechandle Gochujang (Hot Pepper Paste) · 500 g
Check price on Amazon Amazon US - 2 tbspGochugaru (Korean chili flakes) 고춧가루
Taekyung Red Pepper Powder · 1 lb
Substitute: For a milder dish, use 1 to 1½ tbsp.
Check price on Amazon Amazon US - 2 tbspSoy sauce 간장
Sempio Korean Soy Sauce, Rich and Delicate · 860 ml
Check price on Amazon Amazon US - 1 tbsp, plus 1 tbsp for the fried riceToasted sesame oil 참기름
Otoki Premium Roasted Sesame Oil · 10.82 fl oz
Check price on Amazon Amazon US - 1 tsp (optional)Korean curry powder 카레가루
Ottogi Curry Powder, Mild · 1 kg
Substitute: Both recipes we followed add a teaspoon to the sauce. Leave it out if you don't have it.
Check price on Amazon Amazon US - 1 tbsp garlic, 1 tsp gingerGarlic, minced, and fresh ginger, grated 마늘·생강Any grocer
- ½ cup, shredded (optional)Mozzarella or pizza-blend cheese 모차렐라 치즈Any grocer
- 2 servings, cooked (optional)Cooked rice, for the fried rice 밥
CJ Hetbahn Cooked White Rice · 7.4 oz × 12
Substitute: A microwave rice bowl like the one we link to saves a step.
Check price on Amazon Amazon US -
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- For the sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp rice wine (or mirin) and ½ tbsp corn syrup (or a little more sugar); lettuce leaves and ssamjang for wrapping (optional)In your pantry
Method
만드는 법Sources we compared:Korean BapsangMy Korean KitchenChuncheon City Tourism
- 1
Soak the rice cakes and mix the sauce
Soak the rice cakes in cold water for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together 2 tbsp gochujang, 2 tbsp gochugaru, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp rice wine, 1 tbsp sugar, ½ tbsp corn syrup, 1 tbsp minced garlic, 1 tsp grated ginger, 1 tsp curry powder and 1 tbsp sesame oil.
Want it milder? Cut the gochugaru to 1 or 1½ tbsp.
- 2
Marinate the chicken
Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. If you plan to make fried rice at the end, set aside 1 tbsp of the sauce. Toss the chicken with the rest and let it marinate while you prepare the vegetables.
Have more time? My Korean Kitchen marinates the chicken for at least 30 minutes, or for 4 hours to overnight in the fridge for deeper flavor.
- 3
Cut the vegetables
Halve the sweet potato lengthwise, then slice it thinly crosswise on a slight diagonal. Cut the cabbage, perilla leaves and scallions into small pieces. Drain the rice cakes.
- 4
Stir-fry
Heat a large pan over medium-high heat; a tablespoon of oil is optional. Add the chicken, sweet potato, rice cakes and cabbage and cook for 5 minutes, stirring now and then. If the rice cakes stick or brown too fast, turn the heat down or add about ¼ cup water. Add the perilla and scallions and cook 3–4 minutes more, until the rice cakes and sweet potato are soft and the chicken is cooked through. If using cheese, scatter it over with 2–3 minutes to go.
Steam from the cabbage keeps everything from sticking, so you rarely need much water.
- 5
Wrap, eat, then fry rice in the pan
Eat it straight from the pan, wrapped in lettuce with a little ssamjang if you like. When only a little is left, set the pan over medium heat with 1 tbsp sesame oil, add 2 servings of rice and the reserved sauce, and stir for about 5 minutes, breaking up clumps and scraping up the browned bits. Crumble in the gim, then finish with the sesame seeds and a drizzle of sesame oil.
Add a little soy sauce or gochujang if the rice needs more seasoning. On our Nami Island day trip, the lunch stop serves dakgalbi with cold buckwheat makguksu, the region's classic pairing.
Say it in Korean
한국어로 말해 보세요For a dakgalbi restaurant, in Chuncheon or anywhere else.
Cookware you’ll need
조리 도구Any wide, heavy pan works. This is the 12-inch nonstick pan we link to (for gas and electric stoves, not induction).
