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They Spent $10 Million Perfecting This Fried Chicken... and I Stole It.

A full at-home recreation of the Coqodaq (Kyochon) Bucket List: whole-bird butchery, a 24-hour spiced brine, a gluten-free double-fried batter, four signature sauces, a gochujang glaze, a crisp scallion salad, and quick homemade banchan. Everything is 100% gluten free.

smart_display Published 2026-06-17 download Extracted 2026-06-20

90m Prep

45m Cook

26h 15m Total

3 Servings

korean fried-chicken gluten-free gochujang banchan double-fried deep-fry main-dish

Ingredients

Banchan

as needed kimchi (stand-in for the cabbage banchan)
as needed pickled daikon and carrot (store-bought)
as needed cucumber (halved, split, cut into big chunks, salted)
a little soy sauce (for cucumber)
a little honey (for cucumber)
a little sesame oil (for cucumber)

Chicken & Brine

4.5 lb whole chicken (organic, pasture-raised; butchered into pieces, breasts kept large)
4 cups water (split: half heated for brine, half kept cold)
3 tbsp kosher salt (roughly 30-35 g)
10 g sugar
1 tbsp granulated garlic
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp ground ginger
as needed ice (to cool the brine before adding chicken)

Gluten-Free Dredge & Batter

1 cup rice flour
1 cup potato starch
0.5 cup corn starch
2 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp onion powder
a few big pinches salt
2 tbsp turmeric (added to the wet batter for color)
0.5 cup cold water (for the wet batter)
0.5 cup vodka (evaporates faster than water for extra crispness)
for frying peanut oil (enough to deep fry)

Gochujang Barbecue Sauce

1 clove garlic (grated)
0.33 cup gochujang (fermented chili paste)
0.25 cup ketchup
2 tbsp tamari (gluten-free soy sauce)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp sesame oil
a touch dark soy sauce (to darken color) optional

Gochujang Glaze

2 cloves garlic (grated)
a little ginger (grated)
3 tbsp gochujang
3 tbsp ketchup
3 tbsp honey
1.5 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp rice vinegar

Honey Mustard Sauce

0.5 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp spicy brown mustard (old style)
2 tbsp honey
a little rice vinegar
to taste cayenne pepper

Jun Verde Sauce

as needed tomatillos (peeled, rinsed, charred)
a few cloves garlic (charred)
1 jalapeno (charred; seed/limit heat to taste)
0.5 cup cilantro
0.25 cup mayonnaise (plus a touch more to loosen)
1 tbsp lime juice
a pinch salt
as needed green onion
a little honey
a pinch xanthan gum (to thicken) optional

Parm Pepper Sauce

0.5 cup mayonnaise
0.25 cup sour cream
0.33 cup Parmigiano Reggiano (grated)
to taste black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
cheek of one lemon (juiced)
to taste salt

Scallion Salad

1 bunch scallions (tops and bottoms removed, segmented into thirds, halved, sliced thin)
a little soy sauce (for dressing)
a little rice vinegar
a little honey
a little sesame oil
to taste Korean chili flakes (gochugaru, if available) optional

Steps

Banchan

1

Make the banchan: stand in kimchi for the cabbage and store-bought pickled daikon and carrot. For the cucumber, halve, split, cut into big chunks, salt, then dress with a little soy, honey, and sesame oil and let marinate. Plate in small bowls.

~10 min
2

Assemble the bucket list: pile the fried chicken into a bucket, glazing the second course with gochujang glaze, and serve with the four sauces, the scallion salad, and the banchan.

~5 min

Chicken & Brine

1

Make the brine: combine 2 cups of the water with 3 Tbsp kosher salt (30-35 g), 10 g sugar, granulated garlic, cayenne, and ground ginger in a small pot. Whisk and warm on the stove just until the salt and sugar dissolve.

Tip: Heat only half the water so the brine cools quickly when combined with the cold half.

~5 min
2

Pour the remaining 2 cups cold water into a large bowl, add the dissolved hot brine, then add a little ice to bring it down to temperature before adding chicken.

~5 min
3

Butcher the 4.5 lb chicken: open the legs along the fat line, pop the legs from their sockets keeping the oyster attached, then remove each leg and thigh.

Tip: The line of fat on the meat tells you exactly where to cut. Drying the chicken overnight in the fridge gives cleaner cuts.

~10 min
4

Remove the breasts by cutting alongside the breastbone and peeling the meat off, leaving the wings on for stability. Then remove the wings, separating wingtip (save for stock), drumette, and wing.

~10 min
5

Debone the thighs along the bone, cut the thighs into thirds, and cut the breasts where they taper (keeping breast pieces large). Save the carcass and trimmings for stock in a Ziploc bag.

Tip: Keep breast pieces much bigger than everything else so they survive frying without overcooking.

~15 min
6

Place the chicken pieces in the brine, cover, and refrigerate. 12 hours is good, 24 hours is best, so the meat absorbs and retains the salt and moisture needed to survive multiple fries.

~1440 min

Gluten-Free Dredge & Batter

1

Make the gluten-free dry dredge: whisk together 1 cup rice flour, 1 cup potato starch, 0.5 cup corn starch, baking powder, garlic powder, onion powder, and a few big pinches of salt.

Tip: These low-protein flours absorb less oil for a lighter, greaseless fried chicken, but won't brown well on their own.

~5 min
2

Make the wet batter: pull about 1 cup of the dredge into a narrow vessel, add turmeric, then slowly whisk in 0.5 cup cold water and 0.5 cup vodka to form a loose batter that coats a spoon but still runs.

Tip: Turmeric restores the golden color the gluten-free flours lack; alcohol evaporates faster than water so the crust crisps faster and holds its crunch longer.

~5 min
3

First fry: dredge the brined chicken in the dry dredge (not the batter yet) and fry in peanut oil at 275-300F (around 280F), in batches, about 5-6 minutes each, starting with the biggest pieces. Pieces will be pale. Drain and chill on a wire rack.

Tip: Regulate the temperature by adjusting the heat as you add cold chicken; do about three batches.

~18 min
4

Second fry: heat the oil to 325F. Dip the chilled chicken in the wet batter and fry. The batter looks reddish from the turmeric at first but the color resolves as it fries.

Tip: Test one piece first to confirm the color resolves before adding the rest.

~10 min
5

Final fry: bring the oil to 375F and drop the twice-fried pieces for just 1-2 minutes to evaporate residual moisture for a crispy, perfect result.

Tip: This is how the restaurant serves great chicken fast: hold the twice-fried chicken, then flash-fry to order at 375F.

~2 min

Gochujang Barbecue Sauce

1

Make the gochujang barbecue sauce: in a pan combine grated garlic, gochujang, ketchup, tamari, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil, and a touch of dark soy. Bring to a bubble and caramelize/reduce for a minute or two, then transfer to a squirt bottle.

~5 min

Gochujang Glaze

1

Make the gochujang glaze: in a nonstick pan combine grated garlic, grated ginger, 3 Tbsp gochujang, 3 Tbsp ketchup, 3 Tbsp honey, 1.5 Tbsp tamari, 1 Tbsp mirin, and 1 Tbsp vinegar. Heat and mix until spicy but balanced. Paint onto the chicken right before serving.

~5 min

Honey Mustard Sauce

1

Make the honey mustard: stir together mayo, spicy brown mustard, honey, a little rice vinegar, and cayenne.

~3 min

Jun Verde Sauce

1

Make the Jun Verde sauce: char tomatillos, garlic, and a jalapeno in a dry hot stainless pan until charred on all sides. Blend with cilantro, mayonnaise, lime juice, a pinch of salt, green onion, a little honey, and a pinch of xanthan gum until smooth.

Tip: Slice only the flesh of the jalapeno into the blender to limit the heat.

~12 min

Parm Pepper Sauce

1

Make the parm pepper sauce: stir together mayo, sour cream, grated Parmigiano Reggiano, black pepper, garlic powder, the juice from a lemon cheek, and salt.

~3 min

Scallion Salad

1

Make the scallion salad: trim the scallions, segment into thirds, slice in half lengthwise, then slice thin. Soak in ice water until they curl up, drain onto paper towel, and dress just before service with soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil, and Korean chili flakes.

Tip: The scallion salad cuts through the richness of the fried chicken.

~10 min

Nutrition (per serving)

720

Calories

45g

Protein

48g

Carbs

38g

Fat

Fiber

Cultural Context

Coqodaq is one of the hardest reservations to get in New York City, a Korean fried chicken restaurant whose signature 'Bucket List' menu reportedly took fourteen months of research and $10 million of investment to perfect its crunch. Korean fried chicken (KFC) is defined by its thin, shatteringly crisp crust achieved through double-frying, and is traditionally served with banchan (small side dishes), pickles, and an array of dipping sauces and glazes. Coqodaq's signature move is making the entire experience gluten free by dredging in a blend of rice flour, potato starch, and corn starch, which absorb less oil for a lighter, greaseless result, with turmeric added to restore the golden color that low-protein flours otherwise lack.