Sheet-pan gochujang chicken with charred cabbage

By June Halloran · January 17, 2026

This has been on the site since 2021 and it is still the recipe I get the most email about. I retested it in November with a shorter marinade and a hotter oven, and the version below is the one to use.

Serves 4 · Active 15 minutes · Total 45 minutes · One sheet pan

Ingredients

• 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2½ lb / 1.1 kg)
• 3 tbsp gochujang, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp honey, 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 2 grated garlic cloves
• 1 small green cabbage, cut into 6 wedges through the core
• 2 tbsp neutral oil, plus scallions and toasted sesame to finish

Method

1. Heat the oven to 425°F / 220°C with a rack in the upper third. Whisk the gochujang, soy, honey, vinegar and garlic in a large bowl, add the thighs, and turn to coat. Fifteen minutes on the counter is enough; overnight in the fridge is better but not required.

2. Toss the cabbage wedges with the oil and a good pinch of salt and lay them cut-side down on one half of a large sheet pan. Nestle the chicken skin-side up on the other half and scrape any remaining marinade over the thighs only — it burns on the cabbage.

3. Roast 30–35 minutes, until the skin is lacquered and a thigh reads 175°F / 79°C at the bone. If the glaze is not dark at the edges, give it 3 minutes under the broiler and stand there watching it.

If your cabbage is pale, your pan was too crowded. Use two pans before you use a smaller cabbage.

Notes from four years of emails

• Boneless thighs work at 400°F for 22 minutes, but you lose the skin, which is most of the joy.
• Gochujang brands vary wildly in heat. Start at 2 tbsp if yours is new to you.
• Leftovers shredded into rice with a fried egg is arguably the better meal.