Dakgalbi — Spicy Stir-Fried Chicken Thighs with Cabbage

Ingredients

• 1½ lb Chicken Thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 4 cups Cabbage, cut into wide chunks
• 1½ cups Sweet Potato, sliced into thin half-moons
• 8 oz tteok (rice cakes), soaked
• 3 tbsp gochujang
• 1 tbsp gochugaru
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp mirin
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 4 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 2 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 cup perilla leaves, torn
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Method

1. Mix the gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, mirin, sugar, garlic, and ginger into a thick paste and coat the Chicken Thighs in it. Rest 20 minutes.
2. Heat the neutral oil in a wide, heavy skillet over medium-high. Add the Sweet Potato first and cook 4 minutes — it takes the longest and everything else piles on top of it.
3. Add the Chicken Thighs and its marinade in one layer and let it sear undisturbed for 3 minutes to caramelize the paste before you start stirring.
4. Add the Cabbage and rice cakes, cover, and cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage collapses and gives up enough liquid to keep the paste from scorching. Chicken should read 165°F (74°C).
5. Uncover, raise the heat to drive off excess moisture, then fold in the perilla and sesame oil. Serve straight from the pan.