One-Pan Gochujang Chicken and Rice

Soak the dried mushrooms in ½ cup of hot water for 15 minutes to soften. Remove the mushrooms and give them a gentle squeeze to remove any excess water (reserve the soaking liquid). Next, remove and discard the stems (they tend to be tough and woody), then cut the mushrooms in half. Set aside for later.

In a large mixing bowl, place the gochujang, soy sauce, mirin, garlic, ginger and sweet dark soy sauce. Give everything a good mix to combine, and then add the chicken pieces. Ensure they each get a lovely even coat of that marinade, then set aside to let those flavours infuse.

To make the omelette, crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl and whisk. Add the white pepper. Place a shallow, heavy-based pan over high heat (we’ll be adding the rice to it later, so ensure it’s big enough!). When hot, add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Pour in the egg and cook for 1–2 minutes or until golden at the bottom and just set. Use your spatula to cut the omelette in half and flip each half over. Cook for a further minute, then transfer the pieces to a chopping board. Roll the omelettes up into a cylinder and then thinly slice to form egg ‘noodles’. Set aside for later.

Squeeze out the juice from the kimchi into a measuring jug. Top up with the reserved mushroom soaking liquid. And then top up with the chicken stock until your combined liquid amount is 2½ cups in total. Set aside for later.

Wipe out the pan you cooked the omelettes in with some kitchen paper and place it back over medium-high heat. Add the remaining vegetable oil and cook the marinated chicken pieces, skin-side down, for 2–3 minutes or until the skin is starting to colour and char at the edges.

Flip the chicken over so that the skin-side is up. Then add the kimchi and mushrooms around the chicken pieces. Pour the rice over the top of everything, then mix through the ingredients. Add the chicken stock mixture, making sure all the rice grains are in the liquid. Bring to a simmer and then turn the heat to low, cover and cook gently for 30 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender.

Once the rice is cooked through, use a fork to fluff up the rice a little. Sprinkle with the egg ‘noodles’ and spring onion, then serve.