Gochujang is a Korean red chilli paste, primarily made from red chilli powder, glutinous rice and fermented soybeans. It's a thick, spicy, sweet, umami rich paste that varies in heat from brand to brand.
In this recipe I've suggested that you use between 1 and 3 tablespoons of Gochujang paste, but it really depends on the heat of the paste you are using and how hot you like your food!
I've included 2 tablespoons of honey to give a sweet element to contrast the heat. Some recipes also include varying amounts of sugar, but I've replaced this element with Mirin, a Japanese sweet rice wine often used in Korean cooking.
I like to serve this dish with sticky Jasmine rice and steamed Tenderstem broccoli drizzled with sesame oil and topped with toasted sesame seeds.
For the chicken
3 chicken breasts
1 tablespoon of cornflour
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
For the sauce
1-3 tablespoons of Gochujang paste
2 tablespoons of light soy
2 tablespoons of honey
1 tablespoon of Mirin
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
2 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon of grated ginger (optional)
To garnish
Spring onions
Toasted sesame seeds
- Cut the chicken breasts into 2-3cm chunks.
- Place the chicken in a large bowl with the cornflour and stir well until the chicken pieces are coated in the flour.
- Peel and grate the garlic.
- Mix together all of the sauce ingredients in a small jug or bowl.
- Heat the oil in a large sauté pan (or wok) over a medium heat.
- Once the oil is really hot, add ½ the chicken to the pan (depending on the size of the pan) and stir, keeping the chicken pieces moving until they have some colour and no pink meat is visible.
- Remove the chicken from the pan and repeat for the rest of the chicken.
- Return the first batch of chicken to the pan and stir for a couple of minutes.
- Pour in the sauce and stir again.
- Cook for a few minutes more until the chicken is just cooked through (reached 74 degrees) and the sauce has thickened a little.
