Cheese Dakgalbi (Spicy Korean Chicken Stir Fry)

Cheese Dakgalbi is a Korean dish with juicy spicy chicken topped with gooey melted cheese that is healthy and easy to make.

Jump to:

• 💭 What is Cheese Dakgalbi?
• ✅ Why This Recipe Works
• 🍎 Calories and Nutrition Facts – Is It Healthy
• 📋 Ingredient Notes
• 📖 Substitutions and Variations
• 🔪 Step by Step Instructions 
• 💡Expert Tips
• 💭 Recipe FAQs
• 🍽 Related Recipes
• 🍳 Recipe

💭 What is Cheese Dakgalbi?

Cheese Dakgalbi is a tasty Korean dish consisting of juicy, spicy marinated chicken topped with gooey melted cheese and generally is cooked on a dak galbi pan made of cast iron, giving it a smoky and delicious flavor. It’s a big-size dish that is often shared among a group of friends.

It's quite similar to my spicy chicken bulgogi recipe – the main difference stems from it being mixed with a variety of vegetables, carbs, and is often topped with cheese. It is typically a main big dish to be shared among a group rather than one component of a meal.

This is a great Korean BBQ dish to make at home.

✅ Why This Recipe Works

Easy to make – All it takes is making the sauce and marinating it in the chicken to make this cheese dakgalbi.

Flavorful and fun – The sweet and spicy flavors of the chicken combined with the ooey-gooey cheese make for a treat for the taste buds.

Healthy and nutritious – Made with lower calories with careful portioning, this cheese dakgalbi is a great healthy Korean food recipe, for those who want to satisfy their Korean food cravings while tracking their fitness goals

🍎 Calories and Nutrition Facts – Is It Healthy

Here's how I portioned my recipe:

• Chicken – Used 6 oz of boneless skinless chicken thigh is often used for this recipe, a great lean protein source
• Sauce – Dak galbi sauce is made of a number of various sauces, including gochujang and soy sauce to name a few. While none of these ingredients is a calorie bomb, it's best to portion them mindfully. This recipe's sauce adds up to 70 calories.
• Vegetables – Carrots, onions, and cabbage are examples of some vegetables that are included in dak galbi. These ingredients don't add a significant amount of calories.
• Carbs – The dish is often mixed with a variety of carbs, including udon, ramen, and rice cakes. While there's nothing wrong with eating carbs, these ingredients can easily add up in calories, so it's best to be mindful of the amount being consumed here. I'd recommend picking one and portioning accordingly.
• Cheese – While cheese can often be thought of as heavy, with careful portioning, it can add a manageable amount of calories, and additional protein and a great way to add some pizzazz to this meal

Looking at each component, it’s easy to see that cheese dakgalbi can be easily made into a well-balanced low–calorie dish packed with protein.

For a detailed breakdown of each ingredient, their portioning, and how they make up the nutrition profile of this cheese dakgalbi recipe, you may refer to the table below: 

📋 Ingredient Notes

Chicken – I opted for boneless skinless chicken thighs for optimal texture. You can use chicken breast too, but it may be a little dry. I would advise against using chicken with skin, as it adds about 100 more calories per serving, largely from fat. 

Dak Galbi Sauce – Combo of gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, and mirin with minced garlic and onion. Low calorie overall since I use cooking spray rather than oil. The gochugaru makes the dish spicy, so adjust based on your spice preference.

Cheese – I used mozzarella since it melts well but honestly any would work. Pepper jack, cheddar, etc. would also be delicious and the nutrition is the same. 

See my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.

📖 Substitutions and Variations

Omit the cheese – If you prefer not to use cheese, feel free to omit. The dish is just as delicious without it.

Make dak galbi rice – Use leftover rice and add it in the end in true Korean fashion. 

Make dak galbi noodles – Add udon or ramen to the finished dish. To make, cook the noodle or ramen separately, make sure it is dry, and add in. 

Add rice cakes – Rice cakes, aka tteokbokki, make a great pairing with the dish (although not the best option if you want to keep it healthy)

Make it non-spicy – You can also make this dish non-healthy. Follow my dak bulgogi recipe as a starting point and feel free to mix in the vegetables and carbs if you'd prefer.

🔪 Step by Step Instructions 

Make the dak galbi sauce – Start by mixing all the sauce ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

Prepare the chicken and veggies – Cut the excess fat off the chicken thigh and cut it into bite-sized pieces. Cut the mushrooms and carrots. Mix the chicken and vegetables thoroughly with the sauce and marinade for at least 30 minutes, preferably 3-4 hours.

Cook the Dak Galbi – Prepare the cast iron by putting it on the stove and turning the heat to high. When the cast iron is ready, add the chicken and vegetables in a single layer, reserving the marinade. Cook for 3-4 minutes on the first side before flipping.

Finish cooking and top with cheese – After flipping the chicken pieces, add in the reserved marinade as needed. Top the chicken pieces with cheese. 

Garnish and enjoy – When the chicken is done cooking and the cheese is melted, remove from heat, top with scallions and furikake, and enjoy your delicious cheese dakgalbi!

💡Expert Tips

Make crispy rice – Dak galbi often has rice mixed in with the sauce to make a delicious crispy rice dish. Just be sure to make the rice the night before so it is dry enough to turn crispy.

Marinade the chicken overnight – this will optimize the flavor of the chicken  

Cook the chicken on a cast iron – this will give the chicken a smoky barbecue flavor reminiscent of Korean barbeque

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