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Gochujang chicken with cabbage with tahini dressing
youryum.com/recipes/gochujang-chicken-with-cabbage-with-tahini-dressing · serves 4

Spicy chicken with a sesame dressing to round it out

A sharp tahini dressing softens the heat of gochujang without making the roasted cabbage or chicken feel heavy.

  • Gluten free
  • High protein
Maren Ashby in her kitchen, in a dark apron, looking away from the camera
By Maren Ashby · Writes and tests everything here
Published 14 July 2026
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Gochujang chicken with cabbage and lemon tahini dressing
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Prep
15 min
Cook
35 min
Total
50 min
Serves
4
Per serving
574kcal
Effort
Easy

Tahini is a useful bridge between gochujang and cabbage. Its bitterness gives the chilli somewhere to land, while lemon stops the sesame from turning the plate dense.

Keep the dressing loose enough to drizzle. Thick tahini on hot cabbage seizes into a paste; cold water is what turns it glossy and spoonable.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Chicken and cabbage

Tahini dressing

To finish

Equipment

  • Wide frying pan with lid
  • Roasting tin
  • Small bowl

Method

  1. Loosen the tahini

    Whisk the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and salt in a bowl. It will seize and look grainy at first. Add the cold water one tablespoon at a time, whisking until it becomes pale and pourable.

  2. Season the chicken

    Stir the gochujang, soy sauce, vinegar and one tablespoon of oil together. Turn the chicken through the mixture and leave it for ten minutes.

  3. Colour the cabbage

    Heat the remaining oil in a wide lidded pan. Brown the cabbage wedges for four minutes on each cut side, working in batches if the pan is small. Move them to a plate.

    Watch the surface here rather than the clock. The cabbage should pick up dark edges, the chicken should look lacquered, and the liquid should move slowly when you tilt the pan. If the paste looks dry before those signs appear, add a spoonful of stock. If it looks loose after the chicken is done, lift the food out and reduce the liquid alone for a minute. The lemon tahini dressing finish works best when the base is concentrated but still easy to spoon.

    Hands stirring gochujang chicken and cabbage in a wide pan during cooking

  4. Cook the chicken

    Add the chicken to the same pan and cook for six minutes, turning until the coating is dark and sticky. Pour in the stock, return the cabbage, cover and cook for eight minutes.

    Watch the surface here rather than the clock. The cabbage should pick up dark edges, the chicken should look lacquered, and the liquid should move slowly when you tilt the pan. If the paste looks dry before those signs appear, add a spoonful of stock. If it looks loose after the chicken is done, lift the food out and reduce the liquid alone for a minute. The lemon tahini dressing finish works best when the base is concentrated but still easy to spoon.

  5. Reduce the sauce

    Take off the lid and simmer for two minutes. The chicken should be cooked and the pan juices glossy. If the sauce is very thick, add a tablespoon of water so it can coat the cabbage.

  6. Drizzle and serve

    Arrange the cabbage and chicken on a platter. Drizzle with tahini, scatter over sesame seeds and spring onions, and serve with rice or warm grains.

Gochujang chicken cabbage ingredients and lemon tahini dressing arranged ready to cook
The ingredients for the lemon tahini dressing version, ready before the pan gets hot.

The cabbage is not an afterthought

Tahini behaves oddly with acid: it tightens before it loosens. Add water gradually and keep whisking. The dressing is ready when it looks like double cream, not when it is merely smooth.

Because the tahini supplies richness, the chicken needs enough acid in its own marinade. Rice vinegar in the gochujang paste keeps the final plate from becoming soft-edged. The order matters more than the exact shape of the pan. Gochujang contains sugar, so it needs contact with the chicken but it should not sit on dry metal for the whole cooking time. Stock or water gives the paste a little room to move, then the final uncovered minutes concentrate it again. If the chicken browns before the cabbage is tender, lower the heat and add a splash of stock rather than turning the burner higher. A fierce heat will darken the outside while leaving the centre tough. If the cabbage is pale, give it a few extra minutes after the chicken comes out; it can take colour on its own. For the lemon tahini dressing finish, taste at the end, not the beginning. The pan sauce becomes saltier as it reduces, and toppings such as pickles, tahini or yogurt change how much seasoning the whole plate needs. Serve the first portion, then adjust the remaining pan with lime, vinegar or a spoonful of water. That small pause keeps the glaze lively and means leftovers reheat without becoming sticky or harsh.

Nutrition

Per serving, for 4 servings. Estimated from ingredient weights — it moves with the brands and cuts you actually use.

NutrientPer serving
Calories 574 kcal
Protein 38 g
Carbohydrate 35 g
Fibre 6 g
Fat 28 g

Source: Estimated from ingredient weights, USDA FoodData Central

Questions

Can I use peanut butter?
You can make a different but good dressing with smooth peanut butter, lemon and water. Use half the amount because peanut butter is sweeter and stronger.
Can I serve this cold?
Yes. Slice the chicken and cabbage, loosen the tahini, and make it a grain salad. Keep the dressing separate until serving.
Why did my tahini dressing split?
Usually too much water was added at once or the tahini was very oily. Whisk in another teaspoon of tahini, then add water slowly.

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