- 3 partsSoy sauce
- 3 partsHoney
- 2 partsBrown sugar
- 1 partRice vinegar
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp honey, or Korean rice syrup
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 8 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tsp finely grated ginger
- 3 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1-2 dried red chillies, optional
- Toasted sesame seeds, to finish
- Warm the neutral oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic, ginger and dried chillies and cook for 2 minutes until the garlic is pale gold and smells sweet.
- Add the soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, rice vinegar and water and bring to a simmer.
- Simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring, until the bubbles turn large and glossy and the glaze coats the back of a spoon.
- Take off the heat and stir in the sesame oil. It thickens as it cools.
- Toss hot fried chicken, wings or tofu through the warm glaze and finish with sesame seeds.
Walk into a Korean fried chicken shop and you get two choices: yangnyeom (red and spicy) or ganjang, the soy garlic glaze. This is the second one. It is glossy, dark and savoury, and it is the one kids and chilli dodgers order.
The trick is to fry plenty of garlic in a little oil first, then reduce the soy, honey and sugar until it coats a spoon. Toss the chicken while both are hot so the glaze clings without making the crust soggy.
Korean fried chicken, wings, drumsticks, crispy tofu, fried cauliflower and rice cakes.
It is the glaze behind dakgangjeong, and works on the same crispy chicken as yangnyeom chicken. Want it red instead? Make yangnyeom sauce.
Uses this sauce
Recipes that call for this sauce. Make a batch and cook one of these.
Pairs well with
Dishes this sauce suits. These recipes make their own glaze or dressing, so you can swap this sauce in.