What Korean stir-fried chicken dish is seasoned with gochujang?

The Korean stir-fried chicken dish seasoned with gochujang is dak-galbi. It consists of diced chicken cooked in a spicy, sweet-savory gochujang-based sauce, usually with vegetables and other additions.

Typical ingredients include cabbage, sweet potato, Korean perilla leaves, spring onions, and tteok, or rice cakes. Restaurants often cook dak-galbi on a large round hot plate built into the table, allowing diners to share the dish while it remains sizzling. Lettuce and perilla leaves may be used to wrap bites.

Dak-galbi developed in Chuncheon during the 1960s. Kim Yeong-seok, a pork-restaurant owner, is credited with creating an early version after substituting chicken when pork ran out. It was initially called dakbulgogi and was grilled over charcoal before the modern stir-fried style became standard. Its large portions and relatively low price made it popular with students and soldiers.

The word galbi usually refers to ribs, but dak-galbi is not made from chicken ribs. The name reflects the dish’s association with galbi-style seasoning and its historical use as a substitute for pork ribs. It is distinct from jjimdak, a soy-sauce-braised chicken dish.