Dakgalbi – but without the rice, in favor of instant noodles and shredded cheese – is the ultimate comfort food to make whenever you have some spice-resistant friends over.
Adding cheese to just about anything has never been a mistake.
The Chef
Dakgalbi is often eaten with rice, but ever since I had a cheesy noodle variation at a restaurant in Hongdae, it instantly became my favorite. It came with a clear, cold soup that contrasted it perfectly (and in my case a cool Chilsung Cider), as well as fresh green onions on the side. In a specialized restaurant like this, the Dakgalbi is fried on a built-in stovetop right at the table. However, this is not necessary as a cast iron pan also keeps it warm for some time.
Some notes on the ingredients (left for the sauce, right for the stir-fry ⬆️):
- Korean curry powder might be hard to come by, but it should not be skipped. I found Ottogi curry medium at my local Asian grocery store.
- As for the chicken, breast also works if you cannot find deboned, skinless chicken thighs, or cannot be bothered to remove the bone and/or skin yourself.
- When it comes to cheese, most recipes online (maybe due to US influence) default to shredded mozzarella, which tastes like nothing to me. I always prefer shredded Emmental cheese or other heartier types.
- Napa cabbage works just as well as green cabbage.
- For the juice, you can use pineapple, apple, or kiwi.
I made a large cheese crater in the middle, and put the pan in the oven for a moment for it to melt properly. If you prefer, you can serve the cheese (as well as the green onion) separately so everyone can sprinkle it over as they please.
Cheesy Noodle Dakgalbi
Equipment
- 1 wide cast-iron pan
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 3 tbsp gochugaru or other chili flakes
- 1 tbsp chicken stock just the powder, without water
- 1 tbsp Korean curry powder
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp mirin
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 100 ml pineapple juice or apple juice or kiwi juice
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 3.5 tbsp gochujang paste
Stir-fry
- 600 g boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 sweet potato small
- 0.25 head green cabbage or napa cabbage
- 2 onions small to mid-sized
- 2 green onions
- 200 g Korean rice cakes stick-shaped
- 200 g shredded cheese desired heartiness
- 2 blocks instant noodles
- some neutral-flavored oil
Instructions
Marinade the chicken
- Peel and finely chop the garlic.
- Thoroughly mix all the ingredients for the marinade in a large bowl.
- Cut the chicken into cubes of 2-3cm.
- Add the chicken to the marinade and mix well. Set aside while preparing the rest, for at least 20 minutes.
Prep stir-fry
- Soak the rice cakes in a bowl of water for 15 minutes.
- Cook instant noodles according to package instructions, but stop a minute short to slightly undercook them. They will soften more later. Break them up while cooking and store with some oil to keep them from sticking together.
- Cut the onion and cabbage into thin slices.
- Cut the sweet potato into sticks shaped like French fries.
- Thinly slice the green onion and set aside for serving.
Stir-fry everything
- Put some oil into the cast-iron pan and put it on the stove over medium heat.
- Spread the sweet potatoes and rice cakes in the pan.
- Put the sliced cabbage and onions on top, then the marinated chicken.
- Let it simmer for a bit, then give it a good stir to distribute the marinade. Keep it on the stove over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
- Note: This step might take a while (20+ minutes) if you're making a larger serving amount. The pan is very overcrowded, which is completely fine. The cabbage releases a lot of moisture – keep going until it's less of a soup and more of a sauce. Importantly, the chicken must be done, the rice cakes should be chewy, and the sweet potato should have no more crunch.
- Optional: Preheat the oven to ~180 degrees to help melt the cheese later.
- When the consistency looks good, take it off the heat and stir in all the instant noodles.
- Part it in the middle and fill with cheese. If you want it to melt nicely, put the pan in the pre-heated oven for just 3-5 minutes.
- Serve immediately and sprinkle with green onions. (If you have a stove to keep it warm on the table where it is eaten, that would be perfect.)
