Spicy Korean BBQ Chicken

This spicy Korean BBQ chicken is sweet, smoky, savory, and just spicy enough to keep every bite interesting. Made with a bold marinade of chili garlic sauce, soy sauce, honey, grated apple, onion, ginger, and garlic, it is an easy recipe for cookouts or weeknight grilling.

Why You’ll Love This Spicy Korean BBQ Chicken

There’s so much to love about a sticky, flavorful chicken recipe, but lets get into the specifics.

• Bold flavor – With the strong ingredients that make up the marinade like ginger, garlic, soy and onion, the flavor of this chicken is bold and unmatched.
• Flexible recipe – With a wide range for marinating time and the ability to you any cut of chicken, this recipe is easy to swap or change up for convenience.
• Great for grilling – Whether grilling at home on a weeknight or taking to a cookout, this chicken fits the bill.

Gather This

Although the list looks a bit long, I bet you have some of these spicy korean bbq chicken ingredients already on hand. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.

• Chicken thighs – I like to use chicken thighs because they are more tender and soak up the delicious marinade better; but you can use chicken breasts, drumsticks or whichever cut you prefer.

How to Make Spicy Korean BBQ Chicken (Step-by-Step)

This chicken is so easy to make, it might just become your new favorite dinner recipe!

1. Combine sauce ingredients. Mix chile garlic sauce through coarse salt in a medium bowl. Remove half a cup for basting and set aside.
2. Marinate chicken in remaining sauce. Do this for at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours.
3. Grill chicken on in-direct heat. Heat BBQ grill to medium-high heat. Oil grill and set chicken on in-direct heat for 25 minutes, turning occasionally.
4. Move to direct heat and baste. Move to direct heat and baste with remaining spicy sauce for 10 minutes+. Chicken should register at 165 degrees.
5. Serve and enjoy. Serve with quick fried veggies and Cilantro Coconut Rice.

Tips for the Best Grilled Chicken

While this spicy korean bbq recipe couldn’t be easier, I do have some tips to ensure it comes out perfectly.

• Reserve the basting sauce before marinating – This is important for food safety. Any sauce that touches raw chicken should not be reused unless boiled.
• Use indirect heat first – Starting the chicken on indirect heat helps cook it through more gently before the exterior caramelizes.
• Do not skip resting – Resting for a few minutes after cooking helps the juices redistribute and keeps the chicken more tender.
• Watch the glaze carefully – Because the marinade contains honey and sugar, it can darken quickly. This creates great flavor, but it also means the chicken should be watched closely so that it doesn’t burn during the final grilling stage.

Make it A Meal

Spicy Korean BBQ Chicken is served by itself or with rice. Personally, I like my Cilantro Lime Rice. It also helps to ward off the spice, but has a little more flavor. Ginger rice would also be another option with complementing flavors.

I always like to serve mine with some sort of vegetable as well. PF Chang’s Spicy Green Beans, Red Cabbage Slaw or Garlic Grilled Broccoli are great options.

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Spicy Korean BBQ Chicken is a spicy chicken marinade using chile garlic sauce, dark soy sauce and apple to balance the sweet. Use on any type of chicken and grill to perfection. 

Prep Time: 1 hour hr

Cook Time: 35 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 35 minutes mins

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Servings: 6

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Equipment

• Silicone Basting Brush

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup chile garlic sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon rice wine
• 1/3 cup honey
• 3 tablespoons apple grated
• 1/2 yellow onion grated
• 1 inch nub fresh ginger grated
• 1 garlic clove grated
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 6 chicken thighs
• Scallions and sesame seeds for garnish
• Quick fried veggies
• Coconut Cilantro Rice

Instructions

• Mix chile garlic sauce through coarse salt in a medium bowl. Remove 1/2 cup for basting and set aside.
• Marinate chicken in remaining sauce for 1-24 hours.
• Heat BBQ grill to medium-high heat. Oil grill and set chicken on in-direct heat for 25 minutes, turning occasionally.
• Move to direct heat and baste with remaining spicy sauce for 10 minutes+. Chicken should register at 165 degrees.
• Serve with quick fried veggies and Cilantro Coconut Rice. See notes for what I used.
• If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was! 

Notes

Instead of grating, place apple, onion, ginger and garlic in a small food processor and grind until a paste and wet.

You can use any type of chicken, breasts, drumsticks, etc.

Storage: Store leftover spicy Korean BBQ chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. For best texture, reheat gently in a skillet or in the oven rather than microwaving it too aggressively.

Freezing: You can freeze the chicken either raw in the marinade or fully cooked.

For raw freezing:

• place the chicken and marinade in a freezer-safe bag
• remove excess air
• freeze for up to 2 months

For cooked freezing:

• cool the chicken completely
• store in an airtight freezer-safe container
• freeze for up to 2 months

Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating or grilling.

Nutrition

Calories: 352 kcal, Carbohydrates: 24 g, Protein: 18 g, Fat: 18 g, Saturated Fat: 5 g, Cholesterol: 110 mg, Sodium: 1612 mg, Potassium: 269 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 22 g, Vitamin A: 90 IU, Vitamin C: 1.2 mg, Calcium: 11 mg, Iron: 0.9 mg

Author: Chef Jessica Formicola

Calories: 352

Course: Main Course, Main Dish

Cuisine: Korean

Keyword: BBQ Chicken, chicken marinade, korean bbq chicken, korean chicken

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