Dakgalbi, a Korean dish centered around chicken stir-fried with gochujang, is popular both domestically and internationally. In Korea, it’s enjoyed at home and in restaurants, with cheese dakgalbi being a favorite variation. The dish’s savory-sweet flavor comes from gochujang, garlic, ginger, sugar, and honey, balanced with pickled radish and vegetables. In Japan, cheese dakgalbi is a hit among younger generations, with specialty restaurants and even convenience store offerings. Its popularity is evident in manga and anime appearances, making it a beloved dish beyond borders.
Dakgalbi is one of Korea’s representative dishes, centered around chicken. It’s a dish where chicken and vegetables are stir-fried with gochujang, creating a spicy and sweet flavor.
Usually, the process involves marinating the chicken slightly with the seasoning and then stir-frying it over a flame. Through this process, the chicken becomes chewy and delicious, accompanied by the flavor of gochujang.
Among Korean foods, dakgalbi is commonly enjoyed at home, often shared with family and friends. Additionally, many Korean restaurants offer dakgalbi on their menus, making it accessible to foreign tourists.
Dakgalbi is beloved for its spicy taste, offering a comforting break from the routine of daily life. It has firmly established itself as one of Korea’s representative home-cooked dishes.
In a small place built with wooden boards at 18 Jungang-ro 2-ga, Chuncheon-si, Gangwon Special Autonomous Province, Kim Young-seok, who used to sell pork, decided to try something new in 1960. One day, when it was difficult to procure pork, he bought two chickens instead and chopped them into pieces, trying to mimic pork ribs. After marinating and aging the chicken for 12 hours, he grilled it over charcoal and started selling it under the name “dak bulgogi,” which means “chicken fire meat.”
Dakgalbi is mainly sold and consumed in major cities and areas of South Korea, especially around bustling neighborhoods and tourist spots like Hongdae, Sinchon, Gangnam, and Myeongdong in Seoul. These areas are frequently visited by tourists, offering various restaurants specializing in dakgalbi and other representative Korean dishes.
Moreover, dakgalbi can easily be found in traditional markets and street food stalls across South Korea. Places like Namdaemun Market, Gwangjang Market, and Gyo-dong Market offer a wide array of foods, including dakgalbi, at affordable prices, making them excellent spots for tourists to experience traditional Korean market culture and enjoy local cuisine.
Additionally, dakgalbi is commonly prepared and enjoyed in Korean households. Gathering with family or friends to cook and eat dakgalbi is a common scene in daily life. Nowadays, pre-marinated dakgalbi ingredients are readily available in supermarkets and grocery stores, making it convenient for people to cook dakgalbi at home.
Among the various versions of dakgalbi, “cheese dakgalbi” stands out as particularly popular. Cheese dakgalbi adds cheese to the traditional dish, enhancing its flavor and texture. This variation is highly favored in South Korea, especially among the younger generation.
Here are the characteristics of cheese dakgalbi:
- Addition of Cheese: The distinctive feature of cheese dakgalbi is the addition of cheese to the traditional dish. When melted, cheese adds a creamy and savory flavor.
- Smooth Taste: During the melting process, the cheese blends with the seasoning of dakgalbi, creating a smooth and rich taste.
- Popular Menu Item: Many Korean restaurants, both specialized dakgalbi eateries and general dining establishments, offer cheese dakgalbi on their menus. It has also become a popular dish to make at home due to its availability and ease of preparation.
- Popularity on Social Media: Cheese dakgalbi has gained popularity on social media platforms in Korea. It is frequently mentioned in food reviews and other related content on platforms like Instagram and YouTube, where people share their experiences and recommendations.
Cheese dakgalbi is thus a popular variation of the traditional dish, offering a richer flavor and enjoyable dining experience.
Dakgalbi is characterized by its unique spicy and sweet flavor along with a savory aroma. The elements that contribute to this flavor profile include:
- Gochujang and Gochugaru: Gochujang, a fermented chili paste, and gochugaru, chili powder, are key ingredients in dakgalbi seasoning. They add spiciness and a fragrant flavor. Gochujang offers a rich taste and deep aroma due to the fermentation process, which complements the chicken well. Gochugaru, known for its strong spiciness and aroma, enhances the flavor of dakgalbi.
- Garlic and Ginger: A generous amount of garlic and ginger is used in the seasoning, adding depth to the flavor and imparting a smooth taste. Garlic, in particular, releases a deep aroma when cooked, enriching the taste of dakgalbi.
- Sugar and Honey: Sugar or honey is often added to the seasoning to provide sweetness. These ingredients balance the spicy flavor and emphasize the sweet taste of dakgalbi.
- Vegetables and Pickled Radish: Various vegetables are stir-fried with the chicken in dakgalbi, enhancing its flavor. Additionally, pickled radish and kimchi served alongside dakgalbi help to neutralize the spiciness and add a refreshing taste.
These diverse seasonings and ingredients harmonize to create the distinctive taste and aroma of dakgalbi. Each ingredient interacts during the cooking process to produce a unique flavor, offering a special enjoyment typical of Korean cuisine.
Popularity in Japan
Dakgalbi has gained immense popularity in Japan and remains a favorite dish to this day. The addition of cheese reduces the spiciness, making it appealing to Japanese tastes. Similar to the cases of Korean dishes like malatang and tanghulu, dakgalbi is especially popular among the younger generation in Japan. Many cheese dakgalbi specialty restaurants have emerged around Shin-Okubo, and the dish has been featured on television broadcasts several times. Particularly noteworthy is the introduction of a cooking method combining raclette cheese, and cheese dakgalbi has even been made into cheese dakgalbi bread sold at FamilyMart convenience stores. Celebrity idol Chonan Kang, formerly of the famous group SMAP, has even shared videos of himself cooking cheese dakgalbi on his personal YouTube channel. In Korea, areas like Gangnam and Myeongdong, known for their vibrant nightlife, attract many Japanese customers to dakgalbi restaurants. Cheese dakgalbi has become so famous that simply searching “タッカルビ(닭갈비)” on Google Japan brings up pictures of cheese dakgalbi.
Thanks to its popularity, cheese dakgalbi has also made appearances in various manga. It was mentioned in the gag comic “Nice to Meet You,” and in the anime “Crayon Shin-chan,” the character Shinnosuke Nohara tried dakgalbi during a trip to Korea and found it spicy but delicious. In episode 5 of the anime “The Day I Became a God,” there is a scene where Kyoko Izanami’s father enjoys cheese dakgalbi at a Korean restaurant with Sato Hina. In reality, Ayasa Ito, famous as the voice actress for Arisa Ichigaya in “BanG Dream!”, has mentioned that cheese dakgalbi is her favorite Korean food. Even in the novel version of “Haikyuu!!,” the character Atsumu Miya discusses cheese dakgalbi with Osamu Miya on their way home from school.