Korean Braised Chicken Thighs use the most flavorful and budget-friendly part of the chicken for a dish you’ll crave again and again!
I am crazy in love with Korean flavors ever since I published my Korean Braised Beef Short Ribs recipe. Those short ribs have the amazing flavors of ginger, garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar and gochujang.
What is gochujang?
Wait. You haven’t heard about gochujang yet? This ingredient is referred to as the “new” Sriracha. I call it umami in a jar! It’s a savory, spicy, slightly sweet, fermented Korean condiment made from red chiles, rice, soybeans and salt. When gochujang first hit the scene, I had a difficult time finding it. Now I see it almost everywhere including the international aisle at my local grocery store.
How to make Korean Braised Chicken Thighs:
The best thing about Korean Braised Chicken Thighs is you get a ton of flavor in less time than from braising beef short ribs. Yay!
And, if you keep a well-stocked Asian pantry full of ingredients such as soy sauce, sesame oil, mirin, you’ll be able to create any Asian-inspired dish on the fly rather than doing take-out.
- Start with bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.
- Brown in oil in a cast-iron skillet until the skin is nicely browned then move it off to the side onto a plate.
- Cook some onion…
- Add the chicken thighs back to the pan…
- Then add the amazing sauce combination of chicken broth, soy sauce, gochujang, sesame oil, mirin, ginger, garlic….
- Simmer, turning a few times until thoroughly cooked through then….
- Mmmwaahhhh!
- There’s some amazing sauce happening around these Korean Braised Chicken Thighs!
- Garnish with sesame seeds and thinly sliced scallion…
- Serve with brown rice…
Tender, intensely flavorful Korean Braised Chicken Thighs! Meet your new favorite dinner! You’ll never crave take-out again!
Love Korean food? Be sure to try my:
- Korean Braised Beef Short Ribs
- Vegan Korean Tofu Lettuce Wraps with Tahini Gochujang Sauce and Spicy Slaw
- Tuna Kimchi Cakes with Soy Ginger Dipping Sauce
- Homemade Kimchi
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Korean Braised Chicken Thighs
Korean Braised Chicken Thighs use the most flavorful and budget-friendly part of the chicken for a dish you'll crave again and again!
Ingredients
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons minced ginger
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup gochujang
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or as needed
- 4 chicken thighs, on the bone with the skin
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Sesame seeds, for garnish
- Thinly sliced scallion, for garnish
Instructions
- Whisk together first 7 ingredients: Garlic, ginger, chicken broth, soy sauce, gochujang, mirin and sesame oil. Set aside.
- Heat oil over medium-high heat in a cast iron or other heavy skillet until shimmering. Season chicken thighs with salt and black pepper.
- Place chicken thighs in skillet, skin side down and cook 4-5 minutes or until skin is nicely browned. Transfer to a plate.
- Refresh oil if needed. Add the onion, reduce heat to medium-low and cook 5-6 minutes or until onion is beginning to soften.
- Return chicken thighs to skillet along with sauce combination. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 25-30 minutes or until chicken thighs are thoroughly cooked through and tender.
- Using a ladle, transfer some of the liquid to a small bowl and whisk in the cornstarch. Pour into the skillet and continue simmering 2-3 minutes or until thickened.
- Serve, garnished with sesame seeds and thinly sliced scallion and cooked brown rice.
Notes
LABOR-SAVING TIP: Transfer the sauce mixture to the same bowl you used to mix up the sauce.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 514Total Fat: 32gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 25gCholesterol: 168mgSodium: 1484mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 2gSugar: 14gProtein: 34g
The nutritional information above is computer-generated and only an estimate. Please do your own research with the products you're using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.
Mike says
Would you double the sauce if doubling the chicken thighs?
Carol says
Hi, Mike, Thanks so much for your question. It depends on if you want the extra sauce to serve over rice. One reader said there was a lot of sauce; I tend to like things saucier. After combining everything, look at how much you have and see if you think you have enough based on the size of the chicken thighs you have. Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
PhotoTravelGal says
Excellent and this works in the pressure cooker as well (reduce the soup to 2/3c and add 1T honey and palm sugar if using boneless skinless smart chicken thighs).
Carol says
Awesome! Thanks so very much, glad you enjoyed and appreciate the information for my other readers!
F. Broccoli says
I made these the other night and they were a big hit. Instead of using the corn starch, I reduced the sauce until I could leave a trail with a spatula, then took it off the heat and stirred in some butter, like a western pan sauce. Maybe not authentic, but delicious.
This also made a lot of sauce, which I won’t complain about, but one could probably increase the chicken thighs to six or eight, given enough pan space.
Carol says
Thanks so much and glad you enjoyed! Appreciate the tip on the sauce; I tend to like things fairly saucy especially if I’ve got rice on the side. Thanks again!
Joan O'Dell says
Hi Carol
I was looking for seafood stuffed chicken breasts when I came across your website. I used the recipe you had and they were delicious. I was so pleased to find your website because you have some great recipes that I want to try. I make supper for my son, daughter-in-law and grandson every Monday and Friday so I like to have new recipes to try. Tomorrow I am going to make the Korean Braised Chicken Thighs. I live in a small town on Vancouver Island and I have looked at all the grocery stores that are near me but none of them have gochujang. Is there something I can substitute for it? I will keep looking for it or perhaps I will have to order it through Amazon. Can’t wait to try some of your other recipes.
Carol says
Hi, Joan, Thanks so much and I’m so very glad you found me, too! A food blogger friend of mine just happened to post a recipe to make your own: Here it is: Gochujang Sauce. Hope that works for you and can find those ingredients. You can also order it on Amazon. Thanks again and so glad you enjoyed the Crab-Stuffed Chicken Breasts!
Curious says
Do you cover it while it’s simmering? I’m guessing not, to let the sauce reduce? It’ll affect the cooking time so it’s good to know for sure.
Carol says
Hi, Curious, Thanks so much for your question. I don’t cover it for that reason. You could cover for 10-15 minutes to speed it up but then uncover and let it reduce. Fortunately, chicken thighs can take the heat and don’t dry out as quickly. Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
Michelle LaRue says
We made these tonight. They were fabulous. We did marinate the chicken in a combo of soy, canola, sesame oil, Korean pepper flakes, and salt/pepper for a few hours. That was only our variance from the recipe. The entire family including our 15 year picky daughter LOVED them. They will go into rotation from here on out.
Carol says
Hi, Michelle, Thanks so very much and so glad everyone enjoyed! Love that your picky daughter even enjoyed it!
Heather W Torrance says
My husband made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! Thank you!
Carol says
Hi, Heather, Thanks so very much and glad you and he enjoyed it! If you love Korean food, be sure to try my Korean short ribs, too. Thanks again!
Lin says
I made this last night and it was fabulous! My husband hasn’t stopped talking about it. I had steamed some broccoli and added it toward the end just to get it coated with the sauce and that was good too! This sauce would be so good on shrimp too. Thank you so much!
Carol says
Hi, Lin, Wow! Thank you SOOOO very much! You really made my day! So happy you and your husband enjoyed it! Thanks again!
Amanda M. says
I love this recipe and have made it a few times! However, I’ve made a few adjustments. Hope you don’t mind. First, I assume you meant 1/4 cup soy sauce [it just says 1/4 soy sauce above]. I personally use half soy sauce, half ponzu. the ponzu makes the dish slightly brighter. Then, I shred carrots and marinate them in a couple of teaspoons rice vinegar and a tablespoon of sesame oil, salt & pepper and place it on top of the chicken and rice once done. I think the carrots help enormously to counterbalance the richness of the sauce and chicken. I also add a pinch of really hot Indian spice [sorry, not sure what’s in it] to the sauce, because I like it hot! Thank you so much for the recipe.
Carol says
Thanks so much, Amanda! So glad this has become a favorite of yours! Also, thanks for pointing out the missing information in the recipe; I’ve corrected it. I’m also happy that you tweaked the recipe to make it your own–recipes are a roadmap but how you get to the final destination is up to you. Thanks again!
Karen (Back Road Journal) says
I always have gochujang in the fridge and I can see these chicken thighs making an appearance in our kitchen soon. I’ve pinned.
Carol says
Thanks, Karen! Gochujang is something I always have in the fridge now, too! It’s sooo good!
Jaime says
Made these tonight but finished them in the oven! Delicious! I am a new lover of gochujang sauce!!
Carol says
Thanks so much, Jaime! So glad you enjoyed! I know about the gochujang–it is positively addictive! Thanks again!
Deb says
Oven: What temperature and for how long?
Carol says
Hi, Deb, Thanks so much for your question. I haven’t made this in the oven but would bake at 375 degrees with the onion in a baking dish for at least 30 minutes or until cooked through. Combine the sauce ingredients along with the cornstarch and bring that to a simmer on the stovetop until thickened. Serve that over the chicken. Chicken thighs tend to render off a lot of liquid in the oven so would really dilute the sauce. Hope this helps and let me know how it goes!