This chicken features a crisp exterior that’s bursting with layers of sweet and spicy flavor, and a decadently moist and juicy interior. We’re using a super simple ketchup and mustard-based coating, while the addition of Korean red chili pepper brings a nice bit of complexity, spice, and depth.
This is one recipe the entire family can enjoy. It’s easy to love and accessible for palates of all ages, while providing enough flare and depth for the more discerning among us. As a nice bonus, it pairs with all of the usual favorites, such as my Asian Summer Coleslaw, which features a ginger, gochugaru, and sesame dressing, or – if you’re feeling creative – my Fried Paneer Salad.
As a nice bonus, this recipe can be prepared baked in oven, pan fried, deep fried, or fried in the air fryer, making it very versatile. More on that below. We’ll also be covering notes and substitutions for almost all of the ingredients.
Now, without further delay, let’s make some chicken.
Ingredient Checklist and Notes
- Salt. Not a lot to say here. Plain table salt is all you need.
- Flour. All-purpose flour is probably best for today’s chicken. Baking flour will definitely be too fine and gentle, and fail to make a proper crust.
- Black Pepper. Pre-ground or cracked pepper is really all you need for today’s recipe, no need to fuss with grinding.
- Garlic Powder. Adds a nice garlicy flavor to the crust. Substitutes below if you don’t have this on hand.
- Eggs. Not a whole lot to say here, other than these help bind the crust together, while adding moisture and flavor.
- Milk. Whole fat milk is what you want to go with. We want the added fat for the crust. Substitutes below.
- Mustard. Plain yellow mustard is what I’m using for today’s recipe. I would steer clear of whole grain mustard. Dijon would probably work fine. Deli mustard might be a bit overpowering.
- Ketchup. Plain, standard ketchup. Not a whole lot to say here.
- Sugar. Simple granulated sugar is what you’re looking for.
- Gochugaru. Korean red chili pepper, which has a lovely ‘bright’ flavor, pleasant spiciness, and just a hint of sweetness. Seriously, this has become one of my favorite seasonings. Substitutions below.
Substitutions
- Milk – Lactose Free Substitutes. Any plain, full-fat milk substitute will work. No sweeteners, no flavors, no reduced fat. I would stick with plain soy or almond milk, as these are the most flavor neutral milk-substitutes. Use them in the same quantity as whole milk.
- Gochugaru. There are several suitable substitutes for Gochugaru. However, given gochugaru’s unique mix of chili flavor, heat, and sweetness, there is no ‘precise’ or ‘perfect substitute. All of the listed substitutes get used at a one-to-one ratio.
- Red Pepper Flakes. If all you really care about is the heat, this is perhaps the simplest substitute on this list.
- Sweet or Mild Paprika. This is my preferred substitute when I don’t have gochugaru on hand. However, some may find this a bit too ‘earthy,’ a quality that really isn’t present in gochugaru, so you will end up with a slightly different flavor profile.
- Chipotle Powder. Probably the closest in terms of ‘chili for chili’ flavor to gochugaru, but slightly milder in terms of heat, and without any real sweetness, but with an extra emphasis on ‘chili flavor.’
- Cayenne. The hottest of these substitutes by a longshot.
- Gochujang. This is perhaps the best substitute here, since one of the lead ingredients in Gochujang is actually gochugaru.
- Note: All of the above get used in the same volume as the gochugaru.
- Protip: For the very best results mix any or all of the above in roughly equal amounts (mix and match to find your preferred mixture). This only applies to the dry ingredients – ‘not’ the gochujang.
- Garlic Powder. An equal amount of freshly minced garlic with just a pinch of salt.
- The Mustard. Experiment with the mustard of your choice, and let me know how it turned out!
Alternative Cooking Methods
- Air Frying. Today’s recipe works in an air fryer. Fairly straight forward, if you’ve got an air fryer you probably already know how to do this, but here’s my personal rundown. Preheat your air fryer to 360 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook for 15-20 minutes. Open the basket, flip the chicken, and cook for another 5-10 minutes. You are looking for an internal temperature on the chicken of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Pan Frying. Super simple. Start off by heating a medium sized frying pan (I use cast iron, but stainless steel works fine too) with about an inch of vegetable oil (inch meaning an inch deep). You want the oil hot, but ‘not’ smoking, otherwise it will give the chicken a rancid taste. Then gently place the chicken into the hot oil. Only fry a few pieces at a time so as not to overcrowd the pan. Cook the chicken about 3-5 minutes per side. Dark meat takes slightly longer to cook. You are looking for the chicken to be golden colored. Once fried, transfer to a paper-towel lined tray to absorb any excess oil, and you’re done.
- Deep Frying. Yes, today’s recipe works just fine in a deep fryer. Keeping it real, if you’ve invested money and counterspace into a deep fryer, you probably don’t need me to tell you have to fry chicken in it. Just fry today’s breaded chicken the same way you would any other batch of lightly breaded chicken.
Oven Fried Chicken
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 chicken, cut into pieces
- Vegetable oil, for drizzling
For the Coating:
- 3 cups of flour
- 2 tsps. gochugaru (Korean red chili pepper flakes)
- 2 tsps. salt
- 2 tsps. sugar
- 2 tsps. garlic powder
- 2 tsps. black pepper
For the Egg Wash:
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 4 tbs. mustard (I used yellow but you may use the mustard of your choice)
- 4 tbs. ketchup
Instructions
- Clean and cut the chicken.
- In a large bowl combine the eggs, milk, ketchup and mustard and mix until well combined.
- Add the chicken pieces to the egg-wash mixture. Refrigerate in the egg-wash for about one hour.
- Prepare the flour mixture and lift the chicken pieces from the egg-wash mixture and dredge in the flour mixture.
- Prepare baking pans with parchment paper and place the dredged chicken on the baking pan.
- Drizzle each piece of chicken with the vegetable oil.
- Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bake the chicken for 55 – 60 minutes or until a nice golden color is achieved and the juices run clear.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
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Sandee says
Well this is sort of like the fried chicken I was raised on, but not all that grease. I'll give this one a try.
Have a fabulous day Catherine. Big hugs. ♥♥♥
Nee says
Hi Catherine ,
WOW !!! That chicken dish looks so tasty . I always oven fry my chicken and yours looks so tempting . I also think oven fried chicken is just as crispy without all the fat and you don't have to watch it every minute . Great dish and thanks for sharing 🙂
Chatty Crone says
Looks good - and it is healthier then fried - so will give it a whirl.
David says
Catherine, Love fried chicken and if it can be healthier, that's a good thing. Interesting with a little ketchup and mustard in the coating... Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
Elzbieta Hester says
It sure looks fried! A fantastic idea, less messy too! 🙂 ela@GrayApron
Dottie says
Hi Catherine, Great Fried Chicken recipe with no frying! Always love a tasty dish that is healthier than frying. Looks so good, I want to nibble on a piece. Like the coating, that must be the trick to it tasting like fried. Thanks for this on...Blessings Dottie 🙂
Medeja says
Thanks for a recipe! I would use it instead of fried chicken in a recipe I wanted to try for ages..
Mary Frances McNellis says
Fried chicken has always given me the shivers ... but I love eating it anyways! Thanks for this healthy, oven baked version! It looks just as good, if not better than the original!
MonuTeena RecipesPassion says
loving the version fantastic healthy recipe
DAVID J MYERS says
Catherine, Love fried chicken and oven-'fried' is the only way we do it at our house. Less Mess! Love the spice combinations that you've used to give this fried chicken recipe a real pop of flavor. FYI, some of the pop up ads on your site are getting in the way of your write-up and even the recipe. Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
Catherine Pappas says
Hi Dave, I like to do oven fried too. Much less mess and fuss. Enjoy the weekend.
Beth says
I'm so excited to make this! I always put ketchup on my fried chicken, so making it part of the recipe seems like a genius move!
Catherine Pappas says
Hi Beth, It is tasty. My family enjoyed it. I hope you do too. xo
Marta says
This is such a genius recipe for chicken wings. I would've never thought to make wings with ketchup and mustard, but it tasted like a chicken sandwich without all of the mess! Such a great idea.
Catherine Pappas says
Hi Marta, I am so glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for letting me know.
sean says
I thought that the ketchup and mustard would be too overpowering and I was happy that they were well balanced. A great recipe.
Catherine Pappas says
Hi Sean, I am glad that you enjoyed it. Thank you for letting me know.
Veronika says
I've made similar variations of ketchup and mustard chicken over the years but never tried it with Gochugaru. It added a nice spiciness but it wasn't overpowering. Will definitely make this again!
Catherine Pappas says
Hi Veronika, Thank you for letting me know that you enjoyed it with a bit of spice.
Mosaic Art says
Your kitchen looks out of this world!!!! I am doing your recipe tomorrow, I can't wait....
Catherine Pappas says
I hope you that you enjoyed the recipe. Thank you for letting me know that you are trying it.
Fatima T says
This looks delicious! I love making chicken dishes for dinner.
Catherine Pappas says
Thank you Fatima for your kind words. I hope that you enjoy the recipe if you give it a try.
Heather says
The ketchup and mustard gave the chicken so much flavor than my regular egg wash! Loved this dish!
Catherine Pappas says
Hi Heather. Thank you for letting me know that you enjoyed the recipe. I appreciate it so much.
Laura says
This looks amazing! Love gochujang so have to try gochugaru, and perfect with that Asian slaw!!
Catherine Pappas says
I hope that you enjoy this recipe if you give it a try. I love to know how you enjoy it.
Khushboo says
It looks really so yummy. I want to try this recipe sometime soon.
Catherine Pappas says
Thank you for your kind words. I hope that you enjoy the recipe if you give it a try. Please let me know how you liked it.
Sandee says
Hi Catherine - great to see you again.
This chicken sounds fabulous. I'm going to give it a try.
Have a fabulous day and rest of the week. ♥
Catherine Pappas says
It is so nice to see you!! I hope that you have a beautiful weekend. I hope you like the chicken if you do give it a try. xoxo
Cathleen says
Fried chicken is my favourite but I am so scared to deep fry in oil!! This is perfect for me! Pinned to make this over the weekend 🙂
Catherine Pappas says
I hope you enjoy this chicken if you give it a try. Please let me know how you like it. Have a beautiful weekend ahead.
Ann says
This chicken was delicious! The ketchup and mustard gave some extra flavor. I made mine in the air fryer, and turned out perfected crispy!
Catherine Pappas says
That is so nice to hear that you enjoyed the recipe. I am so glad it worked out well for you and the air fryer is a great idea. I hope you have a beautiful weekend ahead.
Tristin says
I’m excited to try this healthier fried chicken! Love that it’s made with such simple ingredients!!
Catherine Pappas says
I hope you enjoy it. Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a try. Have a great weekend.
Jacqueline Debono says
I love fried chicken but hate the mess it creates, cooking it in the oven is a genius idea and your marinade/egg wash added so much flavour!
Catherine Pappas says
Thank you Jacqueline. I hope you enjoy this recipe. Please let me know if you do. Have a beautiful rest of the day.
Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer says
OMGosh I NEED more of these in my life! I'm a huge ketchup and mustard fan and I knew I'd love this! Outstanding recipe!
Catherine Pappas says
Thank you so much Lori. I am so happy that you enjoyed the recipe. Thank you for taking the time to let me know.
LaKita says
This oven-fried chicken came out so tender, juicy, and full of flavor! The recipe was so easy to follow and it came out perfect
Catherine Pappas says
Thank you for letting me know LaKita. It makes me so happy that you enjoyed it. Have a beautiful rest of the day.