Here’s how to make a hearty, flavorful Korean braised chicken dish, called jjimdak! It’s very easy to make at home with a few basic ingredients! Simply omit the chili peppers for a mild version.
Jjimdak (찜닭) is a braised chicken dish. Jjim generally refers to dishes that are steamed, stewed or braised in a sauce, and dak means chicken. These two syllables can be reversed, so jjimdak is also called dakjjim (닭찜). A popular spicy version is known as Andong jjimdak (안동찜닭). It’s a huge restaurant favorite that’s easy to make at home with a few basic ingredients!
What is Andong jjimdak?
Andong jjimdak, which originated from the city of Andong, is a spicy braised chicken dish that has become enormously popular since the late 1990’s. Braised in a sweet and savory braising liquid, the dish gets its nicely clean spicy kick from dried whole red chili peppers and fresh hot chili peppers. Unlike dakbokkeumtang (also called dakdoritang), no gochujang (Korean red chili pepper paste) or gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes) is used!
Making Andong jjimdak is relatively simple. The dish uses small chicken pieces and is cooked over high heat. It cooks up pretty quickly. In Korea, braised chicken dishes are typically made with a whole chicken cut up, but pre-cut parts can be used. In this recipe, I used a whole chicken cut up.
Jjimdak variations
You can reduce the amount of chili peppers or omit them entirely to make a mild version. This reminds me of the braised chicken dish I grew up eating.
When I was a small child, my parents raised a few chickens in our backyard. I remember feeding baby chicks and watching them grow. It was utterly fascinating to see a mother hen lay her eggs. They were great company and provided us with warm fresh eggs every day. Occasionally, some of their lives were cut short by my father who had to do the unpleasant job to feed his family. These events apparently stirred strong emotions in one of my brothers. To this day, he does not eat chicken. As for me, I loved the sweet and savory braised chicken dish my mother used to make.
For vegetables, I used potatoes, carrot, onion, mushrooms, and scallions. Green cabbage is another common ingredient for this dish. Some people also add a bit of leafy greens such as spinach and bok choy.
To make the dish darker like the restaurant’s version in Korea, add a tablespoon of instant coffee powder, caramel sauce, or dark soy sauce if available.
Watch how to make jjimdak
More Korean braised chicken recipes:
Pressure Cooker Dakbokkeumtang
Slow cooker Dakjjim
Dakdoritang (dakbokkeumtang)
For more Korean cooking inspirations, follow along on YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Ingredients
- 1 medium-sized chicken, cut up (2.5 to 3 pounds of cut pieces)
- 3 ounces sweet potato starch noodles (dangmyeon, 당면)
- 2 medium white or yukon gold potatoes (about 10 ounces)
- 1 medium carrot
- 1/2 medium onion
- 3 - 4 mushroom caps (rehydrated dried shiitake or fresh shiitake, white, or baby bella)
- 2 scallions
- 2 - 3 dried whole red chili peppers (4 to 5 small ones)
- 1 - 2 fresh chili peppers or jalapenos (optional)
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
Braising liquid:
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce (If unavailable, use more soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoons rice wine (mirim or mirin)
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar (if unavailable, use regular sugar )
- 3 to 4 tablespoons corn syrup, Korean jocheong (rice syrup), Oligodang (oligo syrup), or 2 to 3 tablespoons honey Adjust to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Soak the starch noodles in warm water for about 30 minutes while preparing the other ingredients. Drain well before using.
- Clean the chicken and cut into small pieces. Trim off excess fat.
- Cut the potatoes in chunks (about 1-1/2 inch) and soak them in water while preparing the other vegetables. Cut the carrot, mushrooms, and onion into bite-sized pieces.
- Add the chicken pieces to a large pot. Pour 3 cups of water over the chicken. (You should reduce the amount of water if not using the noodles.) Add the sauce ingredients except sesame oil and seeds. Bring it to a boil over high heat, uncovered, and continue to boil for about 10 minutes. Skim off the foam.
- Add the potatoes, carrot, mushrooms, onion, dried whole red chili peppers if using, garlic and ginger. Cover, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. You may see that there still is a lot of liquid, but the potatoes and starch noodles will soak up a lot of the liquid.
- Gently mix in the green chili peppers (or jalapenos), scallions and starch noodles, and continue to cook, uncovered this time, for an additional 3 minutes. Stir in the sesame oil. Garnish with the sesame seeds to serve.
Emily Kil says
It was delicious and so easy to prepare. I added a bit more sugar and potatoes and omitted the noodles. The kids enjoyed it. Thank you for posting the recipe.
Brianne H says
This is my partner’s favorite meal! Thank you so much for sharing it
Hyosun says
Glad to hear that! Thank you for the great review!
Cassandra ching says
Hi.. plan to try this recipe. But i have a question. Can i substitute yoridang cooking syrup for the corn syrup? Thank you.
Hyosun says
of course! That’s Korean version of corn syrup, I believe. If you have a choice in the future Oligodang is generally considered healthier. I explained this in my Korean Essential Seasoning Ingredients post.
T.M. says
Tried the recipe after craving this like crazy from watching Youn’s stay. Absolutely amazing. I tripled the amount of noodles and used wider noodles for personal preference and omitted the chilis. OMG, it was SO DELICIOUS and easy to make! Thank you for sharing this recipe! Trying your royal tteokbokki recipe later this week!
Jina says
What can I use a substitute for rice/corn syrup?
Hyosun says
You can use honey or more sugar to taste. Honey is much sweeter than syrup so use less.
Pongpol Wathakul says
Thank you for sharing 🙂
Hyosun says
My pleasure!! Thanks for using it!
Karen says
Why not par-boil the chicken first to get rid of the first layer of fat/impurities?
Hyosun says
You can certainly do that if you want, but for chicken, I don’t find it necessary.
Jane Minervini says
So comforting, so tasty! The leftovers are to die for too. This is a very forgiving recipe. I make it with chicken thighs because my family don’t like to eat around bones 🙄
I add extra vegetables too and some gochujang into the braising liquid. When the weather turns cold in Adelaide, this will be the first dish I make. Deliciousness in a bowl!
Clara says
Thank you for this easy recipe. I now prefer it to dakdoritang. My young children- 8 and 7- love it even with the dried and fresh chili.
Its also super easy to make and is a staple in our house. We haven’t been back to Seoul for over 2 years now because of Covid so dying for more than my own cooking. Thank you for your blog. I’ve cooked- in the last few weeks- miyeokguk, jangjorim, tteokbukki, buchu jeon and nakji- your recipe was for ojingeo- but my children love nakji.
Clara says
Oops forgot your mapo tofu, sigeumchi namul, myeolchi bukkeum.
Big Sad says
Remember to not do the same mistake as I did: The recipe calls for three cups of water on step 4. This amount will -not- adjust if you change the ingredients to be different amount than of four servings.
So please remember to change the water amount accordingly or else the braising liquid will be watered down.
Ashley says
Made this tonight and it was perfect. I doubled the recipe so I would have lots of leftovers. I didn’t have any dried red chiles, but used one large deseeded jalopeno pepper. Also after watching the video, I learned to use the water from the soaked mushrooms and it added a wonderful umami flavor. Thank you for another amazing recipe!
Meren Kim says
Made this for special dinner..came out fabulous! I omitted the noodles but the chicken and vegetables were perfect. This is definitely a keeper.
Hyosun says
Great to hear that! Hope you find many more keepers from Korean Bapsang.
KW says
I have been enjoying all things Korean recently: foods, films, art, etc. When Mr. Sunshine (Korean historic soap opera) started streaming I binged several episodes at a time.
Not only are Lee Buyng-Hun and Kim Tae-ri impossibly beautiful, but the food in each episode looks fantastic. Have you considered bringing all those recipes to your site? A lot of them likely are already, but I bet a folder labeled “Recipes from Mr. Sunshine” would get a lot of traffic. Just a thought.
Come to think of it….food figures prominently in a LOT of Korean films. The two dinner scenes in Sympathy for Lady Vengeance were epic. The original Old Boy used food as a clue to get the film rolling. The Host protagonist is always eating something. And of course last year’s Parasite was food focussed.
Joseph Bengivenni says
Thank you. I’ve been away from Korea for 6 years and really craving this. I’m heading out to find dangmyeon now. 🙂
Catherine says
So easy to make! I was tired of Filipino food so I wanted to try something new and tried Korean food. Love this and so easy!
Soo Fanucchi says
Easy to make and wonderful!!!!
Jueun says
Good♡^^~
Jueun says
Good ♡
권주은 says
맛있어요 ^^
엄마가 직접 만들었어요. 맛있게 냠냠 쩝쩝 먹었어요 ♡
😊😍😋
생각보다 맛있었어요 ^^
사진들도 맛있게 보였어요.
주은 주은 주은 주은 주은 주은 주은 주은
주은 주은 주은 주은 주은 주은 주은 주은
오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋
오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋 오홋
Stephanie Lip says
I cooked it exactly following the recipe and my family loved it! Can I use beef instead of chicken?
Naomi Barton says
Another delicious and comforting meal! I added mung beans as well because I had them in the fridge. Thanks for this lovely recipe.
Jennifer says
I plan to make this recipe for my family on Sunday. We live in Seoul and have access to all the peppers. That being said, which “red peppers” do I need? I’ve learned that things can go very wrong in the pepper department if you don’t choose wisely. 😂
Hyosun says
You can use any pepper you prefer. Really a matter of preference.
jkay86 says
Hi Hyosun, tried out this recipe and I think it makes for a great comfort dish. However I found the end product a little too sweet, but I’m not sure if that is how its meant to be? I would probably omit the honey the next time I make it.
Hyosun says
It should be slightly sweet. How about you reduce it to 1 or 2 tablespoons to your taste?
Sharon Haraba says
Can I add squash instead of potatos?
Jennifer Mancke says
Can I make this with boneless chicken thighs? Or will it lose too much flavor?
Hyosun says
Yes you can. Not the best, but it’ll still be delicious!
kyle D. Leach says
Hi, I plan on my making this for my friends tomorrow and was wondering if I can substitute corn syrup for Korean plum extract syrup?
Hyosun says
yes you can! That’s a great substitute.
joseline M kyi says
Hi, I don’t have corn syrup or honey at home. Can I substitute for regular sugar?
Hyosun says
Yes you can use regular sugar. Enjoy!
Courtnee Peterson says
Hi there, most of the jjimdak recipes I had in Korea had garatteok included. That was one of my favorite components. How would the recipe need to be modified if I wanted to add this in? Thanks!
Sheena says
Outstanding Recipe! We made this tonight and the whole family loved it, kids and all, it was not spicy but we did get some flavor from the chilis which we liked very much. I made a couple of tweaks to make it gluten free, I subbed dry sherry for the rice wine, and I used Red Boat Fish Sauce instead of Oyster Sauce. I didn’t have any noodles in the house so I doubled all the veggies, 100% delicious! Thanks so much Hyosun for a truly delicious recipe!
Jos says
Can I cook this in Instant Pot? What modifications do I need to do?
Lorena says
Very good!!! Recipes!!! Thank you!!!
Andreas Fett says
Hi,
I have two questions regarding this recipe (well, they are more general questions):
1) For cooking wine. I have either the Chinese one (Shaoxing), or mirin – which seems to be a lot sweeter. Which should I prefer for Korean dishes? Is there Korean cooking whine?
2) For dark soy sauce again, I have the Chinese one and Indonesian Kejap Manis. Which is better suited for Korean cooking? Or should I look for Korean dark soy sauce?
Hyosun says
Actually Koreans use different types of rice wine for cooking too. However, for braising like this recipe, you can use either one. In general, Korean soy sauce (which is not as dark as some of other Asian dark soy sauce) is preferred for authentic Korean flavors, but for this dish you can use any dark soy sauce. Hope this helps.
Julie says
Thanks for the recipe! I don’t see in the instructions when to add the ginger and garlic? Can’t wait to try this!!
Hyosun says
Oops sorry about that. Fixed. Enjoy!
Don says
I have made this a few times and it is delicious! My wife is not a fan of overly spicy food but a mild version of this is one of her favourites. She especially likes the texure of the dangmyeon noodles.
Hyosun says
Happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know!
Jen says
Hi! How would you suggest I adjust thebrecipe to make it less spicy for my children to eat?
Hyosun says
Hi Jen! See my write up under “Jjimdak Variations” and also the ingredient list. Basically, you can omit or reduce the amount of chili peppers for a mild version.
Angie Lee says
Can I use instant pot to cook this?
Loren says
Can you make this using Instapot or pressure cooker? If yes, what would the time be?
Hyosun says
Yes! In fact, I have a similar chicken recipe made in the Instant Pot which you can use as a reference.
https://www.koreanbapsang.com/pressure-cooker-dakbokkeumtang-korean-spicy-chicken-stew/
Bora says
I made this for dinner today and it was amazing! Very easy too! Thank you so much for this recipe. I can’t wait to try your other ones. 🙂
Anthony says
Hello
Thank you so much for sharing your un-intimidating recipes. I’m a second generation Korean-American in New York, father of 2 young ones. They LOVE this dish. I’ve made it both without a starch, and with noodles included.
I don’t cook much, and whenever I’ve tried other online recipes, results have been discouraging (some really bad Chicken Marsala, oof). But every single recipe I’ve tried here has been at least good, sometimes a real hit.
You have a real talent for making these great dishes accessible. Thanks again and please keep sharing!
Sharon says
Hi! I have all the ingredients but the glass noodle. Any suggestion on what I can substitute with?
Hyosun says
You can simply omit it, or add some other types of noodles (cooked). Enjoy!
Anna says
Hi Hyosun, I made this dish tonight for my family and the flavor was so wonderful! Thank you for your spot on recipe. I didn’t use the peppers since I was feeding young ones, but I had Japanese nanami togarashi to sprinkle to taste for my husband and myself because we like a bit of an extra kick. Also, I used chicken drumsticks only since this is what was on sale and I just used a small knife to pierce the thick parts of the leg and it helped infuse the flavor into the chicken and was very tender. We will definitely be making this again!
Hyosun says
Hi Anna – So happy to hear it turned out well for you. Drumsticks are always good. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave me the feedback!
Karen says
Hi Ms. Hyosun! I’m back again for your Andong Jimdak recipe! (I last visited in 2014 and commented on JULY 15, 2014). I am planning to make this dish for Easter weekend. Your recipe is so awesome. I’e been missing Korea nad this is comfort food. Wish you and your faimly an early Happy Easter
Hyosun says
Hi Karen – Good to hear from you again! Wow you’re planning for Easter already? Nice! And thank you very much for picking this recipe for you special Easter weekend meal! Early Happy Easter to you and your family as well!
Karen says
Thank you! Hope you had a great Easter weekend too. I’m making this recipe again tomorrow for lunch! Your recipe is a hit among my family members 🙂
My parents are traveling in Seoul right now and will eat at a Andong Jimdak restaurant tonight. (This shows how much my fam really loves this dish haha.)
Have a wonderful weekend!
Hyosun says
That’s nice! I’m sure they enjoyed it. They should also try Chucheon dakgalbi (https://www.koreanbapsang.com/2014/11/dak-galbi.html). You have a great weekend too!
Karen says
Hello Hyosum-ssi,
Thank you for your recommendation! I almost forgot about that dish. I first had it while I was an exchange student in Seoul 4 years ago. Hmm I’m going to make some next week!
My family went to a restaurant in Myeongdong that serves Andong Jimdak today but they did not enjoy it because the restaurant changed their recipe and it was much, much spicer than it used to be.
Yesterday, I made some Andong Jimdak-wings at home. I ruled out the colorful chili peppers and the carrots though. Here’s a photo of my cooked dish: http://postimg.org/image/6k2em7ion/
Tomorrow I’m going to make some Galbitang using your recipe (it’s a national holiday here in Hong Kong), I’ll let you know how it goes!
Have a lovely Sunday.
Cheers,
Karen
Karen says
Ah I made a typo, should be Hyosun-ssi. Sorry!
JeanS says
Thank you for this recipe!!! I made it tonight and it was a HUGE hit and your recipes always impress my Korean mom.
natasha says
I lived in korea for 3 years and i LOVED jjimdak … this recipe was really good! much better than the one i tried last week. However every time i make it it seems the sauce isnt as thick as when i had it in korea. Do you think I need to add more corn syrup? I used agave syrup instead of corn syrup.. maybe i will use corn syrup next time! any suggestions to make the sauce a bit thicker?
Hyosun says
Thank you! I am glad it turned out well for you. No, adding more corn syrup will not help. It may make it too sweet. You can try to add a little more starch such as potatoes or starch noodles or simmer a little longer. You can also use a little bit of corn starch slurry at the end.
Isa says
We cooked this today 🙂 the vegetables were doubled, but it was still so simple to make, yet the flavors are absolutely wonderful! Thank you for this recipe!
Hyosun says
I am happy to hear it turned out well for you. I am sure all those extra vegetables were delicious!
Janis says
Korean cuisine is one of my faves and I always have to have it at least twice a week! We’re starting to have a lot of Korean grocery stores in my area so I thought why not try to recreate the Korean dishes that I love in my own kitchen? I cook for my family everyday and your recipes have certainly gotten me excited; they will definitely bring me out of my usual routine and menu. I have all the ingredients for this and will make it tomorrow! I will omit the chilis because I have a 5 and an 8 year old who might not eat it if it’s too spicy. I’m also looking to making your meatballs, and Japchae which I LOVE. I think it will be a Korean festival in our house this week lol. Oh by the way, one of the dishes that I love to eat in Korean restaurants is the tendon soup which has a very milky broth with salt and a soy sauce mixture on the side. I hope you can add that here on your site! I would love to be able to recreate that. Thank you 🙂
Janis says
OMG, this was wonderful and super easy to make! I used bone-in skin on chicken thighs and wow!! I had Korean rice syrup so used that instead of corn syrup and apparently we don’t have scallions here in Manila so I used leeks instead. My husband and 2 boys loved it! Thank you.
Hyosun says
So happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know.
Vittoria says
Thank you for this amazing recipe! I made this last night for dinner and it was incredible. My husband absolutely loved it. The flavours combine together so well – and the level of spice is perfect. The combination is addictive! I needed to add more water- I think too much cooked off when I was skimming the foam initially. I also couldn’t find cellophane noodles here in Abu Dhabi, so I didn’t use any. However, we found that the potatoes in the dish made it hearty enough (I used one very large potato). I also did not have jalapeños, so I used 5 red chilis (the small thai chilis). Thanks again – can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
Hyosun says
Aww that’s great to hear! Especially all the way from Abu Dhabi! Thanks for trying my recipe and letting me know how you and your husband liked it. Cheers!
maya says
i like your website, it’s really help me. I just finished cook this recipe for my husband and he really like it. Thank you
Hyosun says
So happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know. Cheers!
Karen says
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I lived in Korea for 2 semesters of academic exchange and I fell in love with this dish while I was there. Yesterday I cooked it and my whole family loved it! I substituted Chinese cooking wine for soju and honey for corn syrup.
Hyosun says
You’re welcome! I’m thrilled to hear your family loved it! I bet you had a great time in Korea and made lots of fond memories of food, people and culture. Thanks for stopping by and leaving me the feedback!
Livia Ellis says
This was just beautiful! I substituted honey for corn syrup (I can’t find corn syrup where I live) and I don’t think it changed it by much. I’ve never had the starch noodles before and they were gorgeous. I served some of the sauce and chicken with rice for my picky child and she loved it.
Hyosun Ro says
That’s awesome!! Happy to hear that. A good call to use honey. I often use honey in my brasied dishes. Thanks for the feedback!
Mags says
Thank you for having this available on the internet! Your instructions are straight forward and very easy to follow. Absolutely love making this. Makes for a very enjoyable dinner!
Hyosun Ro says
You’re welcome, Mag! I’m thrilled to hear you love making this. Thanks for letting me know. I make this quite often as well. A family favorite!
Hyosun Ro says
It will be great in a crock pot. You would not need the water in the recipe for slow cooking. Let me know how it turns out. Thank you! Happy cooking!
Anonymous says
Love your blog! Do you think it would turn out okay if this was done in a crock pot? Tks!
Anonymous says
Just finished making this and it’s awesome! I tried other recipes but this one is perfect. Thank you for sharing.
Hyosun Ro says
That’s great! Thanks for letting me know. It means a lot to me.
~Lisa~ says
I love Korean chicken dishes. And yours looks fabulous. How cool you had chickens growing up. I bet it was extremely tasty making fresh chicken dishes.
Raw_Girl says
Korean food is so alien to me…know nothing about it except kimchi and my korean miso 🙂
Everything looks so colorful, vibrant and oozing with life!
thehungryartist says
Yum! This looks so delicious!! Thanks for sharing. I would love to make this. 🙂
Biren @ Roti n Rice says
This chicken stew looks so appetizing and delicious! We are having another extremely cold spell here. I am sure this dish will warm up both the tummy and soul.
Cook With Susan says
Thank you for sharing all of your wonderful recipes. This particular recipe looks so comforting. I will definitely put it on my list for this week.
denise @ bread expectations says
Delicious!! I can relate to growing up feeding, chasing and even playing with chickens LOL I did it up to the age of 10 😀 Nothing beats fresh, fresh eggs from a hen you personally know 😉
Chef Dennis says
what a wonderful blend of flavors!! I should make this at school for my girls, I know they would love it and Your images are beautiful!
Cheers
Dennis
Mary says
The colors in your dish are amazing and would warm the coldest of hearts. I’m new to your blog but will try to visit often. I hope you have a wonderful day. Blessings…Mary
Elisabeth says
Thank you for your kind comment on my blog. I love your fabulous chicken dish, and the yummy sauce that goes with it. Bookmarking it, to try!
As a matter of fact, as I was browsing through your other recipes, love, love, all the others that I’ve seen so far.
I’m staying close to your blog, and following you, I invite you to do the same!
Judy says
My mom grew-up with a few chickens in her backyard too. She was responsible for feeding them. Although she eats chicken, unlike your brother, to this day, she is very afraid of getting near chickens, turkeys, ostriches, and any type of bird for that matter. She freaks out if one starts walking towards her. As for your braised chicken, it looks great and absolutely perfect for a cold stormy day!
jennaseverythingblog says
This dish looks fabulous!! I’m going to put it in my line-up of things to make over the next couple months. Thanks for your easy explanation of the steps!
Kimberly Peterson says
This chicken dish looks absolutely amazing. I must try some Korean recipes one of these days!
Andrea@WellnessNotes says
The dish sounds wonderful!
My grandmother lived next door to us when I was growing up, and she raised chickens. I loved it when she let me collect the warm eggs. But I remember watching her kill some chickens once when I was very little, and it stayed with me for a very, very long time… I don’t blame your brother for having a hard time with eating chicken…
Hyosun Ro says
Pierre – It’s very easy to make. Try it. There is a variety of jjimdak that uses gochujang and/or gochugaru, and I make that sometimes too. However, this particular version (Andong-style) typically doesn’t call for gochuhjang or gochugaru. Having said that, you can always modify the recipe to add the ingredients you like. If you decide to use gochujang, reduce the amount of soy sauce since gochujang is already seasoned. Thanks.
PFx says
Yum!It’s been a long time since I had this. My mum rarely makes this. I don’t really know how to make this. So it has no gochujang or kochukaru?