These Korean Chicken Wings hit all the flavor notes: sweet, spicy, tangy, and savory. The sauce only takes 5 minutes to make and coats the chicken beautifully with a consistency that’s similar to BBQ sauce. It’s the perfect appetizer for game night and parties!

Korean Chicken Wings - With Scallions and Gochujang On Black Plate

Whenever I see chicken wings on sale at the grocery store, they always go in my cart. They’re one of my favorite foods ever and I love playing with different types of sauces. That’s the beauty of wings, as they are a blank canvas that can be coated in nearly any type of flavor combo.

While the classic Buffalo Sauce will always be my favorite, these Korean chicken wings are pretty incredible too. They have the perfect balance of tanginess, savory/umami, sweet, and spicy, and a rich thickness that coats the drumettes and wingettes kind of like a BBQ sauce. It’s definitely a situation where the phrase “finger licking good” comes to mind. And bonus, this gochujang-based Korean wing sauce is nearly as simple to make as Buffalo sauce, and only takes 5-10 minutes. You can definitely make it while the chicken is cooking.

Korean Wings - Coated and Served with Gochuang Sauce

Before we dive into the step-by-step, I should clarify that these Korean Chicken Wings are made with deep fried or baked chicken wings (your choice on however you cook them), then coated in a Korean sauce, and are not to be confused with Korean style chicken wings. Those are battered and deep fried, and have a crispy shell surrounding the meat.

Korean style wings are crazy delicious, but I like to go out for those since I don’t deep fry wings at home anymore, and those must be battered and fried. Now I always bake mine per the recipe link in the previous paragraph, and they always turn out wonderfully crispy from that method of parboiling and baking.

Tips for Best Results

Coat the wings while hot – In order for the skin to best absorb the sauce, you’ll want them to be piping hot out of the oven when you toss them. Have the sauce ready to go.

Keep the sauce warm as needed – Similarly, if you make the sauce in advance, make sure it’s also hot when you toss the wings. Don’t toss the hot chicken in cold sauce. Both should be hot.

Serve promptly – It doesn’t matter how crispy the wings are when they are done cooking, if they sit too long in the sauce, the skin will eventually become flabby. So serve the wings promptly once they’re ready.

Step by Step Overview

To get started, place butter, gochujang, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, honey, rice wine, and rice vinegar in a small saucepan:

Butter, gochujang, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, honey, rice wine, and rice vinegar in a small saucepan

What is gochujang?

If you’re not familiar with gochujang, it’s a sweet and spicy fermented Korean chili paste. It is one of the most foundational ingredients of Korean cooking, and it has an incredible flavor. You should be able to find it at pretty much any grocery store these days.

One thing I’ll note about the gochujang is that the sweetness varies wildly from brand to brand, so if you prefer it one way or another, take a look at the label before buying one. I also prefer the more natural brands…some have things like corn syrup and preservatives in them.

Also, if you don’t have rice wine on hand, you can use water instead. It still has tons of flavor.

Bring all the ingredients to a boil, and let it simmer for 5 minutes:

Korean Wing Sauce Simmering In Sauce Pan

That gives the sauce plenty of time to thicken a little bit, and for the garlic and ginger to cook.

When your wings are just about done cooking, pour the Korean wing sauce into a big bowl, one that’s big enough to hold all the wings:

BBQ Sauce like Korean Wing Sauce In Bowl

While the wings are hot out of the oven (I use this Baked Chicken Wings recipe), toss them into the bowl with the sauce:

Crispy Baked Chicken Wings Added to Bowl with Korean BBQ Sauce

Stir to coat, until every bit of surface area is covered:

Korean Gochujang Wing Sauce Coated Chicken Wings

Don’t they look kind of like BBQ sauce wings? They’re pretty similar, but with a Korean flavor theme.

Dipping Korean Chicken Wing Into Gochujang Sauce

How to Serve It

Enjoy your Korean Chicken Wings right after coating with the sauce, otherwise they’ll get soggy.

For compatible side dishes, serve the wings alongside a noodle dish like Ramen Noodle Stir Fry, Cold Asian Noodles with Cucumber, or Sesame Soba Noodles.

You could also add a side of Crisp Asian Broccoli Salad or Spiralized Cucumber Noodle Salad for something more refreshing.

The Korean Chicken Wing Sauce recipe is below, and here’s the oven method for Chicken Wings.

For non-spicy wings, try Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings. Or coat the wings in the classic Buffalo Wing Sauce and pair with homemade Blue Cheese Dip.

For similar Korean flavors, these Korean Chicken Rice Bowls are really popular and take less 15 minutes to make, or you can try this classic Kalbi.

Recipe Tips and FAQ

How do you store leftover Korean wings?

Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Can you freeze leftover Korean chicken wings?

Yes, keep in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.

How do you reheat Korean wings?

While you can reheat in the microwave until warm, I recommend the oven instead, which produces slightly less soggy skin. Heat in a 300F oven for about 10-15 minutes until warmed through. Add an extra 5 minutes if reheating straight from frozen.

Can you make any of this ahead?

The sauce can be made ahead up to 3 days in advance, but just make sure you heat it up before you add the meat. Don’t add hot wings to cold sauce.

Did you enjoy the recipe? Please leave a 5-star rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page.

Korean Chicken Wings on Black Plate with Scallions

Korean Chicken Wing Sauce

Servings: 36 (enough to coat 36 chicken wing pieces)
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 5 mins
Total Time: 10 mins
These Korean Chicken Wings hit all the flavor notes, and are a little sweet, spicy, tangy, and savory. The sauce only takes 5 minutes to make and coats the wings beautifully with a consistency that's similar to BBQ sauce. 
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Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1/4 cup gochujang
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 2 tsp minced ginger
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 2 tbsp rice wine or water
  • 1 tbsp rice vinegar

Instructions 

  • Place all ingredients in a saucepan, and bring to a simmer over medium high heat.
  • Simmer for about 5 minutes, until the sauce has thickened slightly, to the consistency of a ketchup or BBQ sauce.
  • Toss cooked Chicken Wings with the sauce, then serve immediately.

Notes

I garnish the chicken wings with scallions for color, but they’re optional.
Storing leftovers: Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freezing: Keep in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating: You may reheat in the microwave, but in my experience the oven produces less soggy skin. Heat in a 300F oven for 10-15 minutes until warmed through. Add an extra 5 minutes if reheating straight from frozen.
Make-ahead: You may make the sauce up to 3 days in advance, but just make sure to warm it up before adding the meat. Don’t add hot wings to cold sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 15kcal, Carbohydrates: 2g, Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 2mg, Sodium: 96mg, Sugar: 1g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: korean
Author: Joanne Ozug