One-Pot Wonders

Spicy Korean Chicken & Potato Stew (Dakdoritang)

by:
February  1, 2019
4.4
15 Ratings
Spicy Korean Chicken & Potato Stew (Dakdoritang)
Photo by Ty Mecham
  • Prep time 5 minutes
  • Cook time 35 minutes
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

Dakdoritang is hot, spicy, and bold like my mother, but also sweet (from the gochujang and carrots). Love is not an ingredient here according to the FDA, but time is. It's crazy to me that in just 40 minutes, you can have a stew as penetrating with flavor as this one. After the fiery-red chicken, the potatoes are probably the best part, and the most comforting to eat. They almost fall apart in the broth and make it even thicker. Lastly, it's important to serve with fresh white rice—soft, fluffy relief from the heat—because is there anything better than starch on starch in the winter? —Eric Kim

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: This Spicy, One-Pot Chicken & Potato Stew Is a Blaze of Korean Comfort. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds chicken drumsticks
  • 1 1/3 cups water
  • 1/3 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup gochugaru (red pepper powder)
  • 2 tablespoons gochujang
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 8 cloves garlic, grated
  • 1 large onion, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 large potato, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 medium carrot, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 jalapeño, thinly sliced (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 4 scallions, sliced on the diagonal, for garnish (optional)
  • White rice, for serving
Directions
  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the chicken, poaching for 5 minutes. It may not come up to a boil again (that’s fine!). Drain and rinse with cold sink water. Add back to the empty pot.
  2. In a small bowl, stir together the water, soy sauce, red pepper powder, gochujang, brown sugar, and garlic, and add to pot with the chicken. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to medium, and cook at a rolling simmer for 10 minutes.
  3. Add the onion, potato, carrot, and optional jalapeño and continue simmering for 20 more minutes, or until the chicken and vegetables are cooked through. Stir in the sesame oil.
  4. Garnish with scallions and serve with white rice.
  5. Instant Pot variation: Add all of the ingredients (using only 1/2 cup water, not the full 1 1/3 cups), save for the sesame oil, scallions, and white rice. Pressure-cook on High for 30 minutes, then let release naturally for about 10 minutes. Stir in the sesame oil and garnish with scallions. Serve with white rice.
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Eric Kim
Eric Kim was the Table for One columnist at Food52. He is currently working on his first cookbook, KOREAN AMERICAN, to be published by Clarkson Potter in 2022. His favorite writers are William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, and Ernest Hemingway, but his hero is Nigella Lawson. You can find his bylines at The New York Times, where he works now as a writer. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @ericjoonho.

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35 Reviews

magill
magill November 30, 2021
Made the stovetop version with boneless chicken thighs so it cooked up fairly quickly. My gochugaru doesn't seem spicy at all (reputable brand), so it was a fairly mild dish. But would make again with a splash more gochujang. And might try without the sesame oil just to see. Great way to use up some of that giant container of soy sauce I bought at the big box store.
 
Linda D.
Linda D. November 11, 2021
Thank you so much for another delicious recipe, Eric. I used chicken thighs instead of drumsticks and didn't use red pepper powder. I used the stove top method and covered the pot. Went 30 plus minutes for the potatoes to be tender. Wonderful flavor with just enought bite.
 
Syl
Syl October 18, 2021
I just made this using the IP method. The carrots were over cooked even though I used good sized chunks. I don’t know what the answer to that issue would be. Otherwise tasty and tender but won’t be on regular rotation in my kitchen.
 
Lauren H.
Lauren H. March 19, 2020
Made this last night and it was perfect! Looking forward to having leftovers for lunch. Will definitely make again.
 
Tallulah
Tallulah October 13, 2019
Forgive me for posing what may be a dumb question, but: if making Instant Pot version, must one poach the chicken separately in advance of putting all the ingredients together, or does one put the chicken in the IP raw, alongside all the other ingredients, and go from there?
 
Megan
Megan October 25, 2019
You may have figured it out already, but raw is the way to go!
 
Tallulah
Tallulah October 25, 2019
Thanks!
 
Megan
Megan October 8, 2019
Made the instant pot version and it was a winner in terms of the magic cost-effort-flavor ratio. I am wondering if a little less time at pressure would work as the potatoes and carrots were verrrry soft. Next time I might up the sugar and soy sauce and gochugang. I didn't have gochugaru so I subbed a combo of Aleppo, ancho, and regular red pepper flakes. Will definitely make again!
 
Annmarie L.
Annmarie L. March 27, 2019
I misread the recipe and swapped the quantities of gochujang and gochugaru and this still came out delicious - spicy and falling-apart tender chicken.
 
Mama B.
Mama B. March 16, 2019
From one Kim to another Kim, thanks for this recipe. Made it tonight for the family plus a non-spicy version for the kids. My kids who usually refuse to eat chicken ate their non-spicy version without a fight and the grown ups enjoyed their spicy version! Great to see so many Korean recipes being posted. Keep them coming, Eric!
 
Susanna
Susanna February 16, 2019
Finally got around to making this last night. Superb even without the sesame oil, which I *knew* I had but couldn’t find (found it later, of course). The only thing that went slightly awry for me is that the potatoes weren’t as done as I would have liked. Guess I cut them too big, but no matter. There are leftovers to be warmed and sesame oil to be added!
 
Eric K.
Eric K. March 5, 2019
Yay! Thanks for reporting back, Susanna. Means a lot to me that you enjoyed it.
 
Kristi
Kristi February 15, 2019
The family LOVED this dish. I omitted the gochugaru since we have a four year old. I have leftovers in the fridge still, and I’m already thinking about when I can make this dish again!
 
Eric K.
Eric K. February 15, 2019
Aw. That makes me so happy, Kristi.
 
Kim M.
Kim M. February 11, 2019
Made this over the weekend, exactly as written, and it was absolutely delicious. A double-batch made lunch on Sunday plus a week's worth of meal prepped lunches for two.
 
Eric K.
Eric K. February 11, 2019
Amazing!
 
LH23
LH23 February 10, 2019
This looks amazing - like a spicier version of filipino adobo almost? Anyway, thank you so much for sharing your mom's riches with those of us who aren't fortunate enough to have gotten a Korean one!!
Speaking of which...if one happened to be in Atlanta sans Korean mom, do you have any recommendations? I'm from Oz/Cali and the couple I've tried have been awfully....white.
 
susan
susan February 7, 2019
Reading this brought tears to my eyes. I lost my mother a year and a half ago. She was a wonderful cook, well known in our Trinidad community. Cooking was an all day, or so it seemed affair. I've spent countless hours cooking and video tapping our time in the kitchen. I can't tell you how many times (though I tried) I've heard her tell me "you are not a real Trinidadian" meaning I didn't do it right. She would sprinkle a bit of this & that and it would be wonderful. I miss those days. Cherish these moments with your mom.
 
CL
CL February 7, 2019
Hi, Eric. Thank you for sharing this recipe. Just FYI, the correct/preferred term for the dish is "dak bokkeum tang." I'm sure you had no intention of offending anyone, but "dori" can be considered incorrect/offensive. I won't get into the history here, but you may wish to do some research for your own awareness.
 
Jane K.
Jane K. March 15, 2019
Did some research on this, and dakdoritang is correct- there is no frying (bokkeum) in this dish. Dori comes from the verb (dorida) to chop up. So the meaning of dakdoritang is a tang where the chicken has been chopped up, and has nothing to do with the Japanese word for chicken.
 
Deana
Deana February 7, 2019
What love for your mother. What insight. Your storytelling is just as good as the dish sounds. I will definitely be making this dish. Happy New Year.
 
Susanna
Susanna February 7, 2019
Sounds incredible. Was wondering about pressure cooking as well, as I just (finally) got an instant pot. I’m also wondering how it would be as a beef stew? Have you ever made it with beef? I’m thinking short ribs could be tasty.
 
BellaRasa
BellaRasa February 7, 2019
I made this recipe in my Instant Pot last night and found it spicy and delicious. I added more carrots and 2 potato and served it over rice. Thanks for the recipe.
 
Eric K.
Eric K. February 7, 2019
Whoa, that's an amazing idea. Did you keep all the amounts the same? How long did you pressure-cook the chicken?
 
molls T.
molls T. February 7, 2019
Would love the answers to this as well!
 
BellaRasa
BellaRasa March 1, 2019
Eric, I apologize for not responding sooner but I just found your response in my spam folder. The good news is, I have made this a second time because it's so delicious. The first time, I kept the amounts the same. The second time, I decreased the water by half. I cooked it for 20 minutes both times but I do use chicken thighs and not drumsticks. I just throw everything in the Instant Pot and do not do the poaching step. I am such a fan of gochujang, so if you have any more recipes, please post!
 
Eric K.
Eric K. March 1, 2019
Incredible. Thanks for reporting back. Bet that makes the chicken taste extraordinary!
 
Eric K.
Eric K. March 1, 2019
And noted on the gochujang recipes!
 
BellaRasa
BellaRasa March 1, 2019
Correct!!
 
Carlos C.
Carlos C. February 6, 2019
Potatoes and meat in a spicy stew with rice? That is like bait for any Peruvian. This sounds amazing.
 
John L.
John L. February 6, 2019
Sounds delicious. I've several types of gochugaru handy, each varying in coarseness of grind. Seems like 0.25cu of the finely ground gochugaru would impart a lot more heat than the coursely ground. Will try this with the coarser stuff first.
 
Kim M.
Kim M. February 5, 2019
1/4 CUP of red pepper powder? Is that a typo?
 
Eric K.
Eric K. February 5, 2019
Not a typo! Red pepper powder, not flakes.
 
Kim M.
Kim M. February 5, 2019
Got it, thank you Erik! This sounds amazing :D
 
Eric K.
Eric K. February 5, 2019
With that said, this is a very spicy dish, so feel free to adjust the pepper powder amount to your liking—and taste before you add any jalapeño! Good luck. :)