Recipe: Billy Law’s Four-Way Korean Fried Chicken Will Ruin Fast Food Forever

Crispy, golden, juicy. Korean fried chicken, or huraideu chikin, is in a league of its own. Forget the Colonel’s 11 herbs and spices. This version, from Billy Law’s cookbook Cook Korea, is all about shatteringly crisp skin, tender meat and four different addictive coatings.

The wings are double-fried for maximum crunch. Once you’ve cooked them, you can choose your flavour adventure – whether you dial up the heat with a fiery gochujang-based sauce or cheese out with a rich, cheddary coating. This is the kind of dish you’ll want to eat straight off the rack, your apron still coated in batter and your fingers sticky with sauce. But, if you can wait, it’s even better shared at the table with friends.

Korean fried chicken, made four ways

Serves 4
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

1.5kg chicken wings, washed and patted dry
½ tsp salt, plus extra to season
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1cm piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped
180g (1 cup) potato starch
Vegetable oil, for frying

Sweet and spicy
1 tbsp vegetable oil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp gochujang
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp Korean rice syrup (ssalyeot) or corn syrup, glucose or honey
Toasted sesame seeds, to serve

Snow cheese
20g (¼ cup) Korean cheese powder or cheddar cheese powder, plus extra to serve

Wasabi and spring onion
60ml (¼ cup) soy sauce
55g (¼ cup) caster sugar
2 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp Korean rice syrup (ssalyeot) or corn syrup, glucose or honey
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tsp wasabi paste
½ tsp sesame oil
2 spring onions, thinly sliced

Method

Cut chicken wings into drumettes, wingettes and tips (discard or reserve tips). Place in a bowl with salt, pepper and ginger; mix well.

Dredge chicken in potato starch until coated. Set aside for 10 minutes.

Heat 5cm vegetable oil in a large saucepan to 165°C. Fry chicken in batches for 10–12 minutes until light golden. Drain on a wire rack.

Bring oil back to 165°C. Fry chicken again for 12–15 minutes until deep golden and crunchy. Drain and season generously with salt.

Serve plain or toss in one of the variations:

Sweet and spicy
Heat oil in a frying pan, add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in soy, gochujang, sugar, vinegar and syrup. Simmer for 2–3 minutes until thickened. Toss chicken in sauce, garnish with sesame seeds.

Snow cheese
Toss hot chicken in cheese powder until coated. Sprinkle with extra cheese powder.

Wasabi and spring onion
Combine soy, sugar, mirin, syrup and garlic in a saucepan. Simmer for 2–3 minutes until thick. Stir in wasabi and sesame oil. Toss chicken in glaze, garnish with spring onion.

This is an edited extract of Cook Korea! by Billy Law, published by Smith Street Books in 2025. Photography by Daniel Herrmann-Zoll.

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