Pictorial: Buldak!

(korean fire chicken)

I once did a naver image search for dak (chicken), while doing research on Dak Gochujang Bokum. Back then I stumbled upon this pic, I was close to licking my PC display and the pic kept haunting me. Later on I learned, that the dish is called Buldak (bul=fire, dak=chicken, fire chicken). Unfortunately I wasn't able to find any english recipes, but I managed to find a few korean ones (1, 2, 3, 4). This is the result:

main ingredients:

2 X chicken breast
1 X mozzarella (optional)
1 X scallions' green
1 CUP cooked short grain ripe
1 TSP sesame seeds

marinade #1 ingredients:

4 TBSP soy sauce
2 TBSP sugar

marinade #2 ingredients:

1 X red or green chili
1 X ginger (thumb-sized)
4 X galic clove
3/4 X scallions
1/2 X small onion
1/4 X pear (optional)
2 TBSP sugar
2 TBSP chili flakes (or chili powder)
2 TBSP soy sauce
6-8 TBSP rice wine (or chicken stock)
2 TBSP peanut oil
1 TBSP honey
1 TSP dark soy sauce (optional, just for coloring)
1 TSP mustard (optional)
1 TSP sesame oil (pressed from roasted seeds)

banchan #1 ingredients (mini side-dish, steamed bean sprouts)

1/4 X scallion (sliced lengthwise)
1/2 X small onion
2 CUP mung bean sprouts
2 TBSP sliced ginger
1 TSP sesame seed oil (pressed from roasted seeds)
1 TSP black sesame seeds

banchan #2 ingredients (mini side-dish, purple coleslaw)

1 X half red cabbage (shredded)
2 TBSP veg oil
2 TBSP rice wine vinegar
1 TSP soy sauce
1/2 TSP honey or sugar
1 TSP salt and pepper (more or less)

no pics of the coleslaw prep, just shred the cabbage and mix with the other banchan #2 ingredients,
best done a couple of hours in advance, the coleslaw needs some time to develop its full flavour

marinate cubed chicken in marinade #1 ingredients, at least for 30 min up to 24h



clean/peel/chop the hard ingredients of marinade #2



combine all ingredients of marinade #2 in a blender



blend until somewhat smooth



slice some of the scallions' green for garnish/topping

combine all veggie ingredients from banchan #1 in a bowl, cover the bowl and

microwave it for 90 sec with 600W, the veggies will steam from their own water
content and soften up, dress them with the remaining banchan #1 ingredients



heat/oil a pan, stir fry the chicken pieces, pick them out of the marinade,
don't pour the whole marinade into the pan, its sugar will burn easily



add half of marinade #2 (the whole marinade is good for 2-3 servings)



stir fry for a few minutes with medium heat



deglaze the pan with some rice wine or chicken stock,
simmer until the liquid is vaporised



arrange chicken in a broiler proof dish (cast iron dish/pan or sturdy porcelain),
shred some mozzarella around the chicken pieces



place the chicken under a broiler/grill at max heat until the mozzarella melted
and the chicken got dark (not black), crusty spots ... charcoal grilling/BBQing
would work too (I would skip the mozzarella though, hehe)



serve garnished with scallion rings and sesame, accompanied by rice and the banchans



some close-up pics: