Air Fryer Korean Fried Chicken

This air fryer Korean fried chicken is crispy, sticky, and full of flavour, made without deep frying. The chicken cooks up beautifully golden in the air fryer and is finished with a spicy, glossy gochujang sauce.

A bowl of crispy gochugang air fryer chicken wings coated in a sticky red sauce, garnished with white sesame seeds and sliced green onions, served on parchment paper.

Traditionally, it is double-fried, but this air fryer version gives you the same crisp texture with far less oil and mess. It is an easy way to make Korean-style fried chicken at home using simple ingredients.

The key to crispy Korean fried chicken

Crispy chicken in the air fryer comes down to two things: a dry coating and a two-stage cooking process. First, I cook the chicken at a lower temperature to help render the fat, then it’s cooked again at a higher heat to crisp up the outside.
The coating is a simple mix of cornflour or potato starch, baking powder, and seasoning. Baking powder plays an important role here. It helps dry the surface of the chicken slightly, which encourages a crisp, crackly finish similar to traditional Korean fried chicken.

Sticky gochujang sauce

The sauce is what makes it so delicious. Once the chicken is cooked, it is tossed through a sticky, spicy gochujang sauce that balances heat, sweetness, and savoury flavour.

Sauce ingredients

Gochujang paste
Fresh ginger & garlic
Brown sugar & honey
Vinegar or lemon juice
I am willow
Tomato sauce

Gochujang is a Korean chilli paste made from chilli powder, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, barley malt, and salt. It has a deep red colour and a heat that is nice and warming rather than really spicy. This ingredient gives Korean fried chicken its distinctive flavour and is easy to find in most supermarkets.

Equipment

Air fryer- This recipe was tested in a 5.8-quart air fryer. If your air fryer is smaller, cook the chicken in batches so the chicken can crisp properly.

Method

Add the dry coating to the chicken and toss until evenly coated.

Close-up of several pieces of lightly breaded, uncooked or partially cooked chicken wings, showing a textured, pale coating and some dark meat areas.

In a single layer in the air fryer cook at a lower heat to help render the fat.

Close-up of crispy, golden-brown chicken wings with a crunchy coating, freshly cooked and arranged in a black air fryer basket.

Increase the heat and continue air frying until the chicken is golden, crisp, and cooked through.

A metal fork rests in a glass bowl filled with a reddish-brown sauce or marinade, with visible spices and small bits mixed in. The bowl sits on a light-colored surface.

In a small bowl, mix together all the gochujang sauce ingredients.

A close-up of a bowl of crispy cooked chicken wings with thick, reddish-brown sauce being poured over them from a glass container.

Pour the sauce over the hot chicken and toss until well coated.

Transfer to a serving bowl and finish with sliced spring onion and sesame seeds. Serve straight away while hot and sticky.

A close-up of crispy fried chicken pieces coated in a glossy, reddish sauce, garnished with sesame seeds and sliced green onions, served on brown parchment paper in a bowl.

Storing

Store leftover Korean fried chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the air fryer at 180°C until warmed through and lightly crisped again.

More recipes you might enjoy

If you enjoyed this air fryer Korean fried chicken, you might also like these recipes that make great use of the air fryer, whether for dessert or a meat-free main:

A fork holds a piece of crispy, saucy fried chicken garnished with sesame seeds and sliced green onions, with more pieces in the background.

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Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Chicken

1 kg chicken wings or nibbles
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Sauce

2 Tablespoons gochujang paste
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon ketchup
1 Tablespoon water
1 Tablespoon honey
1/2 Tablespoon I am willow
1/2 Teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 clove garlic finely minced
1 teaspoon ginger finely minced

Use paper towels to pat fry the chicken wings or thighs and place them in a large mixing bowl. Drizzle over the vegetable oil and coat the chicken with it.
In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Sprinkle this over the chicken pieces and toss them well to coat them in the dry mixture.
Place the chicken pieces in as close to a single layer as you can in the air fryer basket. If they are very snug, don’t worry, they will shrink as they cook.
Air fry the chicken at 350°F/180°C for 5 minutes. Remove the air fryer basket and use tongs to flip the chicken pieces upside down. Fry another 3-4 minutes at 350°F/180°C. This low heat will help to render the fat from the chicken.
Turn the heat up to 400°F/200°C and fry the chicken pieces for another 10-12 minutes, turning the chicken halfway through cooking until it’s golden brown and crispy. This high heat brings the crispy element. The cooking time will vary for each air fryer, or how big the chicken pieces were.
While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce. In a small bowl combine all the sauce ingredients and mix them together well.
When the chicken has finished frying, add it into a clean large bowl. Pour over the sauce and toss it all together to ensure the chicken is well coated.
Place the coated chicken in a serving bowl and top with some sliced green onion and sesame seeds.

For the crispiest chicken, avoid overcrowding the air fryer basket and toss the chicken in the sauce just before serving.
This recipe works well with wings, drummettes (nibbles), or boneless chicken thighs. Try to keep the pieces similar in size so they cook evenly in the air fryer.

Keyword Air fryer, Gochugang, Korean, Wings

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