Korean chicken wings are spicy, savoury and just flat out fantastic finger food. Perfect when you feel like grilling something delicious.

These are seriously tasty wings. Big Korean flavours of gochujang and Korean chili powder. With a surprise Vietnamese twist. Something new. Not traditional. But really good.

Koreans know grilling

There’s something about Korean spicing that just works on the grill. It makes sense. Koreans have been grilling for a long time. A long time. Like a couple thousand years.

So they’ve had time to think about it. And they have figured it out. I think so anyway.

Crispy skin and Korean spice make these grilled chicken wings irresistible. - 1

They even have a name for it. Korean BBQ. I don’t know too many countries that can claim this. Think about it. Korean BBQ. They put their national pride on the line. Korean BBQ.

There’s no Canadian BBQ. No American BBQ. Texas isn’t a country. Nor is Kansas City. Memphis? Nope. See what I mean? Serious business.

Take just about anything. Add some gochujang. Maybe some garlic and ginger. A bit of gochugaru for extra flavour. Throw it on a fire. Delicious every time. That’s what these Korean chicken wings are all about.

Korean chicken wing in a bowl of nuoc cham with a plate of wings in the background. - 2 Korean chicken wing in a bowl of nuoc cham with a plate of wings in the background. - 3 Plate of chicken wings on rice vermicelli with a bowl of nuoc cham from above. - 4

korean chicken wings

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs chicken wings
  • 2 cloves garlic crushed
  • 2 tsp ginger grated
  • 1 tbsp gochugaru korean chili flakes
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp gochujang korean chili paste
  • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • water to make a smooth paste

Instructions

  • Combine all the ingredients except the chicken. Stir to make a smooth paste.
  • Toss the chicken wings with the marinade to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for 1-4 hours.
  • Set your grill up for indirect heat with a drip pan under the cool part of the grill (not over the burner or fire). You want a hot grill. 450-500F hot.
  • If you are using gas, add a little bit of smoke however you like. Soaked wood chips in a foil packet works well.
  • Place the wings over the cool part of the grill above the drip pan. Cook, covered, for about 10 minutes. Flip the wings.
  • Cook another 10 minutes. Depending on the temperature and size of wings they may be done at this point. You are going for 175-180F internal temp. If they aren’t done flip them again and cook until you hit the target temp.
  • Serve with nuoc cham. Garnish with sliced shallots, cilantro, green onions, mint, thin slices of red chili - whatever you like. It’s a fun recipe to play with.

Nutrition

Fresh Vietnamese spring rolls are loaded with fresh herb flavour. Dip them in a salty, spicy, creamy peanut sauce and you have a match made in heaven.

Once you get the hang of making these you will want to make them again and again. They are seriously addictive.

Vietnamese spring rolls – fresh or fried?

This is a tough one. Fried are good. Really good. Crispy. Salty. Perfect for dipping into that wonderful nuoc cham sauce you see at every Vietnamese or Thai restaurant.

But they are real work. Deep frying is messy. And you can’t eat very many of them. They are pretty rich.

Vietnamese spring rolls with creamy peanut sauce. Fresh. Bright. Delicious. - 5

Fresh spring rolls are completely different. Clean tastes. Bright. Chewy not crunchy. Mint. Cilantro. Lettuce. And a crazy delicious peanut dipping sauce. They taste like summer.

Which is why they are actually called summer rolls. Or goi cuon in Vietnamese. Spring rolls are fried. Fresh rolls are summer rolls. There’s a bit of useless trivia you can trot out when you serve them.

I like both. It’s hard to choose. But if I had to I’d probably pick fresh. I love the texture. And I love peanut sauce.

Dipping a Vietnamese spring roll into peanut sauce. - 6 Dipping a Vietnamese spring roll into peanut sauce. - 7