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The super fast Korean chicken and rice bowl that tastes just like your favorite Korean spot in town but made at home! Quick-cooking chicken tossed in a sweet, tangy, and spicy Korean style Bulgogi BBQ sauce with spicy garlic butter corn. Serve this chicken over steamed white or brown rice with homemade yum yum sauce on the side. Every bite is saucy, sweet, spicy, and hinted with ginger and garlic, it’s delicious. Major bonus? This comes together in no time at all (under 30 minutes). Perfect for busy weeknights when you’re looking for something a little more exciting, but still quick and DELICIOUS.
Thursday night Korean takeout…made quickly at home?
Yes, yes, yes, it’s my favorite kind of night. You all know how much I love cooking Asian inspired recipes at home. Ever since our family’s trip to South Korea for the Olympics, Korean style cooking will always be my weakness. It’s always so good. Sure, this is not your traditional bowl of Korean style bulgogi, but bulgogi is really all about the sauce…or hot sauce. The actual translation means fire meat. Trust me, this bulgogi (plus homemade yum yum sauce) are spot on and so delicious.
So while the chicken itself is pretty classic, the spicy garlic butter corn is the “wild card” vegetable. As you can probably imagine, it’s a pretty delicious addition. And very seasonal for the time of year we are entering. As we change seasons, I love incorporating seasonal produce into everything I’m cooking. Since I recently stocked up on fresh ears of sweet corn, it was my go-to vegetable of choice for this recipe.
The process…
First up, toss the chicken with a little cornstarch and a touch of oil. Tossing the chicken with cornstarch allows it to get extra crispy and caramelize while cooking. This is KEY.
Now make the sauce. This is a pretty simple mix of Gochujang (Korean chili paste), soy sauce, and lots of fresh ginger and garlic. The Gochujang adds all the flavor, so you really don’t need much else. Gochujang makes everything good, it’s sweet, tangy, spicy, and salty.
Pan-fry the chicken in a little oil until it is crisp. Then pour over the sauce and let it simmer down. As the sauce cooks, it slowly thickens and caramelizes the chicken.
As the chicken is cooking, cook up the corn in a little butter and garlic. Yes, corn, butter, and garlic, so delicious. Oh, and add a jalapeño for a spicy kick. As I said, this is not traditional by any means, but it sure is good! Remember, it can be fun to switch things up!
By this time the chicken should be done as well.
Let’s finish this Korean bulgogi up.
First, make a quick homemade version of Asian style yum yum sauce. With my oldest brother in town, the rule is to always double the sauce. So while the chicken is perfectly saucy on its own, the yum yum sauce just adds that extra special touch. Is it needed?
No probably not. But is it good? Yes, definitely.
It’s a simple mix of yogurt (sour cream, or mayo, whichever you prefer, we like yogurt), more Gochujang, and a small squeeze of ketchup. Kind of an odd match-up of flavors, but trust me, this sauce is very delicious and the perfect creamy element to this crispy chicken.
Now, add steamed brown or white rice to a bowl. Then add that buttery corn and spoon the Korean chicken over it all. Finish with fresh green onions, cilantro, and toasty sesame seeds.
Enjoy…immediately.
Yes, this is that simple and that quick-cooking of a meal. Honestly, this will take you no more than thirty minutes to make. And aside from the corn, this uses a good amount of pantry staples too.
A couple of helpful notes…
What is Gochujang? If you’re not familiar with Gochujang it’s Korean chili paste. It’s spicy with a little sweetness, and it’s extremely flavorful. It’s traditional in a lot of Korean based sauces and is often used in Korean fried chicken or simply as a dipping sauce. Over here, we love Gochujang. I use it for so much more than just Korean food. It’s good when paired with pretty much anything that you’d enjoy with a touch of hot sauce.
You can buy Gochujang in most grocery stores. I know Whole Foods and Trader Joes carry it. I highly recommend this brand Gochujang. It certainly makes for the best truly Korean food.
Tip? If you love a lot of sauce (we do!), then I would recommend doubling the Gochujang sauce so that you can have extra for serving…yes, in addition to the creamy yum yum sauce. Never enough sauce, you know?
Lastly, while I love the corn with this dish, you can really use whatever vegetable you have on hand. Bell peppers would be my top pick, then broccoli, but you could also use asparagus, cauliflower, bok choy. Really, use whatever you’ve got.
And you guys…that’s it. This takes less than 30 minutes to make and it’s not only delicious but fun too. I know we’re not doing much eating out these days, so this is a fun way to do a “dinner out”, at home!
Looking for other homemade takeout style recipes? Some favorites of mine include…
Better Than Takeout Kung Pao Cauliflower
Weeknight Sticky Ginger Sesame Chicken Meatballs
Better Than Takeout Sesame Ginger Chicken Fried Rice
Lastly, if you make this 25 minute Korean Bulgogi BBQ chicken, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
25 Minute Korean Bulgogi BBQ Chicken with Spicy Garlic Butter Corn
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 811 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons corn starch or flour
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 3-4 tablespoons Gochujang (Korean chili paste)
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
- 4-5 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 3 green onions, chopped, plus more for serving
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 4 ears corn, kernels, removed from cob
- 2 medium shallots, sliced or chopped
- 1 jalapeño, seeded (if desired) and chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
- 3 cups steamed white or brown rice
- yum yum sauce and sesame seeds, for serving
Instructions
- 1. In a medium bowl, toss together the chicken, cornstarch, and 1 tablespoon oil.2. In a glass jar, combine the soy sauce, 3 tablespoons Gochujang, ketchup, ginger, 2 cloves garlic, and 1/4 cup water.3. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken and brown all over until it becomes crispy, about 5 minutes. Pour in the Gochujang sauce mix. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the sauce coats the chicken, about 5 minutes. Stir in the green onions, then remove from the heat.4. Meanwhile, make the corn. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the butter, corn, shallots, remaining 2-3 cloves garlic, the jalapeño, and season with salt and pepper. Cook 5 minutes or until the corn is golden. Stir in the cilantro. Remove from the heat.5. To serve, divide the rice among bowls and top with chicken and corn. Serve with additional green onions, cilantro, and yum yum sauce (recipe below). Enjoy!
Notes
Yum Yum Sauce: Combine 2 tablespoons of Gochujang, 1 tablespoon ketchup, and either 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt, sour cream, or olive oil mayo. Season with salt. Sauce keeps for 1 week in the fridge.
This post was originally published on May 28, 2020
Wow this was so good. First time using Gochujang and I have been missing out! Hubby said it was a top 3 dinner I ever made. Thanks for creating such a tasty treat!
Thank you so much Ann! xTieghan
So much for leftovers! This was deeeeeelicious. My brother, who had never heard of bulgogi and was unsure, went back for a HEFTY second helping. Loved how quick it was to make as well. Also, the Yum Yum sauce is a must. As always, thanks for the amazingly flavorful recipes!
Thank you for trying this Alex! I hope you continue to enjoy all of the ones you try! xTieghan
This was incredible! So easy and so tasty!
Thank you Lex! xTieghan
So delicious! I made this with well trimmed bone-in chicken thighs. After cooking to golden brown I added the sauce and finished in a 325 degree oven until caramelized. The corn was great too. I served with basmati rice. My hubby and I both loved it! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Thank you for trying it Donna! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
My sauce is super salty. Is that the overall flavor. I used ground fresh chili paste but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. So salty I am not sure I can serve it.
Hi Anne! I am sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can help with? xTieghan
this was SO good and SO garlicky, yum!!
Thank you Grace!! So happy to hear this! xTieghan
Umph. So glad I decided to make this tonight! My spice-hating partner and my spice-loving tastebuds somehow both managed to agree that this was the best thing they’d tasted this year to date. Thanks so much, Tieghan!
Thank you Kirsten! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
I just made this for our Sunday night “try a new recipe” dinner and it’s SO good!!! I have a gluten allergy and it was incredibly easy to modify to be safe for me to eat! My husband also gives it five stars, this recipe is definitely getting saved. Thank you ?
I am so glad you decided to try this and enjoyed it! Thank you so much Meg!! xTieghan
I made this tonight for dinner and wow!! Talk about an easy and delicious dish. Will definitely add this to a weekly rotation- It was so good I was licking the sauce off the spoon the whole time I was cooking!
Wow that is so amazing to hear! Thank you so much Daniela! xTieghan
This was very tasty. Substituted siracha for the gochujang as that was all I had. Only used 1 tablespoon and increased the ketchup to make up the difference. Plenty spicy! The yum yum sauce and corn were perfect accompaniments. Thanks Tieghan.:)
Thank you Maria! That is really great to hear! xTieghan
We added a ton of Farm fresh veggies, omitted the rice (Lower carb option), and added a cucumber mint sauce (bc it’s Real spicy). It’s soooo good!
Thank you!! I am so glad you enjoyed this one! xTieghan
OMG-this was so good. I subbed in tofu for the chicken @ used Thai sweet chili paste for the Gochugang. Had planned to leave half for tomorrow’s lunch but too good to save…thank you!
Thank you Dale!! xTieghan
Made this tonight couldn’t find Korean chili paste so used Korean BBQ sauce and added sambal olek. This is a delicious easy recipe. Loved the form cooked this way. Used frozen as no fresh corn in Ontario yet.
Excellent!!!!
Thank you so much Susan! I am really glad you enjoyed this one! xTieghan
I made this last night and the flavors were delicious. It did take me longer than 25 min to make from start to finish but who cares – it was yummy. I will be making this dish again. My question – I could not get the chicken to crisp up at all. The bottom of my pan burned a bit and the chicken never got crispy. I did use sesame oil instead of veg or canola or olive oil? Could that be why? Please help – I want to master the crispness. Thanks!!!
Hi Wendy,
Thanks so much for trying the recipe, I am sorry you had some issues with the chicken. I find I get the best results using a cast iron skillet with olive oil. I hope this helps! xTieghan
Tried it and it was the bomb. Great flavor content. I added some broccoli and shredded carrots toward the end. There was more than enough sauce. Glad I tried it, works for the quarantine dulldrums. Thank you!
Thank you so much Letitia! xTieghan