This recipe is nothing short of a flavour explosion. Juicy bone-in chicken thighs cooked over fire with a beautifully sticky, sweet and spicy Korean BBQ sauce is absolute heaven. These Korean chicken thighs are a great sharing dish as part of a BBQ feast, or make a great meal served with some sticky rice and fresh crunchy veggies.

BBQ Chicken Temperature

We used the Smoke BBQ thermometer to keep track of our meat and pit temperatures in this recipe. We took the Korean chicken thighs up to 68 °C using the Smoke, then took over with the Thermapen ONE meat thermometer to probe them while the skin crisped up. Once they reached 74 °C, the safe temperature for chicken, we removed them from the grill.

Ingredients

Korean BBQ Chicken Recipe

Serves 6

• 6 Chicken thighs, bone-in
• 100g brown sugar (plus extra for brining)
• 100g gochujang paste
• 100g ketchup
• 50g sesame oil
• 50g soy sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• Coriander to garnish

Equipment

• Smoke BBQ thermometer
• Thermapen ONE thermometer
• Cooking tongs
• Basting brush

Directions

• Start by dry-brining the chicken thighs. Mix equal parts salt and sugar together to make a rub and liberally sprinkle over the chicken thighs. Refrigerate for at least an hour.
• Combine the gochujang paste, ketchup, brown sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce and minced garlic together in a pan and heat until the sugar has dissolved. We used our BBQ for this but a hob will do fine. Set aside, keeping some for dipping in a separate container to avoid cross-contamination.
• Remove the chicken from the fridge around 30 minutes before you want to eat and use this time to prepare the BBQ. We set the BBQ to 180 °C and used the Smoke thermometer to keep track of the pit temperature.

• Once the BBQ has reached temperature, place the chicken thighs skin side up on the grill. Insert the Smoke’s meat probe into the thicket part of one of the chicken thighs and set the temperature to 68 °C. Close the lid.
• After a few minutes of cooking, the chicken will have formed a crust which means it’s ready for glazing. Brush your Korean BBQ sauce over the chicken, repeating a couple of times over the course of the cook to build up a sticky coating. Make sure to close your BBQ lid after each glaze to keep the heat in.

• Once the Smoke sounds to notify you that the chicken has reached temperature, remove the probe and flip the chicken over to crisp up the skin. Keep the lid open through this final stage, probing the chicken with your Thermapen thermometer. Remove it from the BBQ once it reaches 74 °C.
• Garnish your cooked chicken with chopped coriander and serve your reserved Korean sauce on the side for dipping.

Dan Cotton

Chef, The Coal Shed

@thecoalshed

"Working in a fast paced kitchen I need something I can rely on every time to give me fast and accurate temperatures. Thermapen gives me the confidence to make sure my food is not just safe but consistent every time."