SWEET AND SPICY KOREAN CHICKEN THIGHS WITH PLUMS, ONIONS, AND BOK CHOY
I am honored to be one of 30 bloggers chosen to compete in the Lucky Foods Recipe Challenge. Lucky Foods provided each blogger with 3 of their Korean sauces and the task is to create delicious ‘out-of-the-box’ appetizer and entree dishes. The sauces range from sweet to spicy and are derived from recipes that have been passed down for generations from the Lucky Foods founders, the Jo family. Each sauce has a delicious complex flavor profile and I couldn’t wait to start creating!
For my first entry I decided to use the Kalbi Korean BBQ Marinade and finish the dish with the Seoul Kimchi Mayo for a spicy kick! Seared chicken thighs served as the vehicle and sweet onions, plums, and baby bok choy danced in the delicious Kalbi Sauce. Little else was needed as the Kalbi Sauce was complex with sweet and savory notes and a zing of ginger! Here’s how I made it (or scroll to the full recipe below):
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large cast iron or oven proof skillet over medium high heat.
Trim any excess fat off the chicken thighs and season liberally on both sides with 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Place the seasoned thighs, skin-side down in the skillet and let cook until the skin is browned and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Flip and cook for 2 minutes on the other side. Remove from pan and set aside, reserving pan drippings. Note – the chicken will not be cooked through.
Cut your onions and plums into 1″ thick wedges. Add the onions to the skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until they begin to get soft, about 2 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and deglaze, scraping up all of the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 2 minutes, letting the wine reduce.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the plums, 1 cup of the Kalbi sauce, and ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper to the pan and toss everything together to evenly coat.
Place the chicken thighs back in the pan, nestled in the onions and plums, skin side up. Spoon some of the sauce over the thighs but leave the skin exposed so it will remain crispy while it bakes.
Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the pan from the oven and add the baby bok choy, tossing to lightly coat with the sauce. Return to the oven and bake 5-10 minutes more until chicken is cooked through and reaches 160-165 degrees in the center and the bok choy is lightly wilted.
Remove the pan from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Drizzle the kimchi mayo all over the top of the chicken – I like to put it in a squire bottle for easy application, but a spoon works too. Sprinkle the scallions, cilantro, and sesame seeds over the top.
Serve 1-2 thighs over the sticky rice with lots of the plums, onions, and bok choy bathed in that delicious sauce. DEVOUR!
SWEET AND SPCIY KOREAN CHICKEN THIGHS WITH PLUMS, ONIONS, AND BOK CHOY
2 tablespoons olive oil
6-8 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin on (about 4 pounds)
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 ½ teaspoons black pepper
2 large sweet onions, sliced into 1” wedges
¼ cup dry white wine
6 large plums, pits removed and sliced into 1” wedges
1 cup Lucky Foods Seoul Kalbi Sauce
3 heads baby bok choy, cut in half
¼ – ½ cup Lucky Foods Seoul Kimchi Mayo
½ cup chopped scallions, chopped
¼ cup cilantro leaves
2 teaspoons black and white sesame seeds
3 cups sushi rice, cooked to package directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Heat olive oil in a large cast iron or oven proof skillet over medium high heat.
Trim any excess fat off the chicken thighs and season liberally on both sides with 1 teaspoon each of the salt and pepper. Place the seasoned thighs, skin-side down in the skillet and let cook until the skin is browned and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Flip and cook for 2 minutes on the other side. Remove from pan and set aside, reserving pan drippings. Note – the chicken will not be cooked through.
Add the onions to the skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until they begin to get soft, about 2 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and deglaze, scraping up all of the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 2 minutes, letting the wine reduce.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the plums, Kalbi sauce, and remaining ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper to the pan and toss everything together to evenly coat.
Place the chicken thighs back in the pan, nestled in the onions and plums, skin side up. Spoon some of the sauce over the thighs but leave the skin exposed so it will remain crispy while it bakes. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the pan from the oven and add the baby bok choy, tossing to lightly coat with the sauce. Return to the oven and bake 5-10 minutes more until chicken is cooked through and reaches 160-165 degrees in the center and the bok choy is lightly wilted.
Remove the pan from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Drizzle the kimchi mayo all over the top of the chicken – I like to put it in a squire bottle for easy application, but a spoon works too. Sprinkle the scallions, cilantro, and sesame seeds over the top.
Serve 1-2 thighs over the sticky rice with lots of the plums, onions, and bok choy bathed in that delicious sauce. DEVOUR!
Check out Lucky Foods website for these amazing sauces, their famous spring rolls, kimchi, and so much more! https://luckyfood.com/ and like and follow their Facebook https://www.facebook.com/luckyfoods/ and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/eatluckyfoods/ !
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