Some dinners are honest about being shortcuts, and this is one of them – in the best way. The original recipe is a lazy-cook’s dream from a Chinese home cook: a bag of frozen crispy fried chicken, a bowl of rice cakes, and a sauce made from Korean chili paste, ketchup, and soy. Twenty minutes later the kitchen smells like a snack bar and the plate holds two flavors at once – half the chicken glazed sticky and spicy, half left crackling plain. My family fights over the glazed half, then quietly finishes the rest.
Nian gao zha ji (年糕炸鸡) is rice cake fried chicken – the Chinese home-kitchen mashup of Korean-style fried chicken and tteokbokki, where chewy rice cakes and crispy chicken share one spicy-sweet sauce. The “double flavor” (双拼) comes from glazing only half the chicken, so the plate offers both the sticky sauced pieces and the plain crackling ones. It is the kind of recipe that feels like cheating, tastes like a restaurant, and empties a table fast.
What Is Rice Cake Fried Chicken (Nian Gao Zha Ji)?
Nian gao zha ji (年糕炸鸡) is a fusion snack born in Chinese home kitchens: crispy fried chicken and chewy rice cakes (nian gao) tossed together in a glossy sauce built on Korean chili paste, ketchup, soy, garlic, and a little sugar. It borrows the gochujang-glazed chicken and the tteokbokki sauce of Korean street food, then puts them on one plate with Chinese home-cooking logic.
The beauty of the dish is its modularity. The chicken can be deep-fried, air-fried, or even bought pre-fried – the original recipe uses a bag of frozen crispy fried chicken and an air fryer, which is why it qualifies as lazy genius. The rice cakes are boiled briefly, and the sauce comes together in one pan in five minutes. This version follows the original’s air-fryer method with a note on how to make it with home-fried chicken instead, because not everyone has a bag of frozen fried chicken in the freezer.
If you love this flavor family, my Korean spicy chicken and rice cakes is the fully-from-scratch version of the same plate.
1Korean Spicy Chicken and Rice Cakes (Dakgalbi Style Stir-fry)A fast, spicy, and savory stir-fry featuring tender chicken breast, chewy Korean rice cakes, and crisp vegetables in a rich Gochujang sauce. Inspired by Korean Dakgalbi but adapted for a quick home-cooked meal.Check out this recipe
Why This Version Works
- Frozen fried chicken, no thawing. The original’s core move: straight from the bag to the air fryer. No defrost, no oil, no fuss – and honestly, it works.
- No parchment, no oil spray. The recipe’s counterintuitive detail: lay the chicken directly on the air-fryer basket. The rendered oil drips away, so the crust comes out drier and crispier.
- Rice cakes boiled, then shocked. A quick boil and a cold-water rinse stop the rice cakes from overcooking, leaving them chewy rather than gluey.
- The sauce is five ingredients, five minutes. Gochujang, ketchup, soy, garlic, sugar, and water – simmered until bubbling, then used to coat only half the chicken.
- The double-flavor split. Glazing half keeps the other half crackling – two textures, one plate, zero extra work.
Equipment Needed
- An air fryer (or an oven – the recipe allows either)
- A small pot for the rice cakes
- A saucepan for the sauce
- A spatula for the tossing
Ingredients
- 2 bags frozen crispy fried chicken (about 500 g / 1.1 lb total)
- 1 small bowl rice cakes (about 200 g / 7 oz), thawed if frozen
- For the sauce:
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) Korean chili paste (gochujang)
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) ketchup
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp (12 g) sugar
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) water
- White sesame seeds, for garnish
Ingredient Notes
Frozen crispy fried chicken: The original uses a specific brand’s pre-fried chicken nuggets or wings. Any frozen crispy fried chicken works – nuggets, popcorn chicken, or wingettes. If you would rather make it from scratch, air-fry or deep-fry your own pieces and skip straight to the sauce; my oven-baked popcorn chicken and air fryer chicken wings are good starting points.
Rice cakes (nian gao / tteok): The cylindrical Korean rice cakes or the flat Chinese slices both work. The original uses a “small bowl” – about 200 g (7 oz). Frozen rice cakes need no thawing; add a minute to the boil. For more on the rice-cake family, my yellow millet sticky rice cake covers the traditional sweet side.
Gochujang: The Korean fermented chili paste – sweet, spicy, and savory all at once. My guide to Korean chili paste explains how it differs from Chinese chili pastes, which are not a direct swap.
The 2-2-2-1 ratio: Two spoons each of gochujang, ketchup, and soy, one of sugar – the sauce’s balance is the whole dish. Adjust the sugar to your gochujang’s sweetness.
Prep & Mise en Place
This recipe is deliberately lazy, so the prep is minimal: take the frozen chicken out of the bag, measure the sauce ingredients into one bowl, mince the garlic, and have the rice cakes ready. The cook runs in parallel – air fryer on one counter, rice cakes boiling on the stove, sauce simmering last.
The original’s order matters: chicken first (it takes longest), rice cakes while the chicken cooks, sauce last so it is fresh and bubbling when the chicken is done. Have the serving plate ready, because once the glaze hits the chicken, the plate should be on the table within a minute.
Cooking Process
Step 1 – Prep all the ingredients
Prep all the ingredients.
Step 2 – The pre-cooked crispy fried chicken is perfect for lazy cook
The pre-cooked crispy fried chicken is perfect for lazy cooks – no thawing needed, straight into the air fryer.
Step 3 – No oil spray needed – lay the chicken flat, no paper liner n
No oil spray needed – lay the chicken flat, no paper liner needed (this way it renders less oil and gets crispier).
Step 4 – Air fry at 200°C for 15 minutes (oven works too)
Air fry at 200°C for 15 minutes (oven works too).
Step 5 – Golden brown, the whole kitchen smells amazing
Golden brown, the whole kitchen smells amazing.
Step 6 – While the chicken cooks, boil the rice cakes; when cooked, s
While the chicken cooks, boil the rice cakes; when cooked, scoop out and rinse briefly in cold water.
Step 7 – Pour the sauce into the pan and cook until small bubbles for
Pour the sauce into the pan and cook until small bubbles form.
Step 8 – Add the rice cakes and half the crispy chicken
Add the rice cakes and half the crispy chicken.
Step 9 – Toss until everything is coated in sauce
Toss until everything is coated in sauce.
Step 10 – Plate and sprinkle sesame – dig in!
Plate and sprinkle sesame – dig in!
Step 11 – Crisp outside, tender chicken inside – you can’t stop at one
Crisp outside, tender chicken inside – you can’t stop at one. The light, flavorful coating is super fragrant, two flavors to choose from.
Step 12 – Besides the crispy chicken, I also keep duck wings and hand-
Besides the crispy chicken, I also keep duck wings and hand-lamb-leg pieces at home – a few minutes in the air fryer when craving, simple and convenient.
Step 13 – Orange-scented duck wings: line with orange slices, arrange
Orange-scented duck wings: line with orange slices, arrange the wings, air fry at 200°C for 15 minutes – fragrant and gone in one plate.
Step 14 – Veggie hand-lamb-leg + mashed potato: palm-sized marinated l
Veggie hand-lamb-leg + mashed potato: palm-sized marinated legs, satisfying to gnaw. Mashed potato: steam potato and carrot, season with salt and black pepper.
Step 15 – A 30-minute Mid-Autumn feast – so convenient!
A 30-minute Mid-Autumn feast – so convenient!
Common Mistakes When Making Rice Cake Fried Chicken
1. Soggy, steamed crust. Cause: lining the air-fryer basket with parchment. Fix: no paper – let the rendered oil drip away so the crust stays crisp, exactly as the original insists.
2. Gluey rice cakes. Cause: overcooking, or no cold-water shock. Fix: cook just until they float, then rinse in cold water immediately – the shock stops the starch from turning gummy.
3. A sauce that tastes one-note. Cause: skimping on the gochujang or skipping the sugar. Fix: the 2-2-2-1 ratio is the dish’s balance – gochujang, ketchup, soy, then sugar to round it.
4. Burnt garlic in the sauce. Cause: frying the garlic before the liquid goes in. Fix: add the garlic with the liquids so it simmers instead of scorching.
5. The glaze sliding off the chicken. Cause: adding the chicken to a too-thin sauce. Fix: simmer the sauce until it bubbles and coats a spoon before the chicken goes in.
6. A plate that goes cold and soft. Cause: glazing all the chicken. Fix: the double-flavor split exists for texture – glaze half, keep half plain, and serve immediately.
Variations
From-scratch chicken: Skip the frozen bag and air-fry or deep-fry your own pieces – my garlic chicken wings and air fryer chicken wings give you the crispy base, then follow the same sauce steps.
Spicier or milder: The heat lives entirely in the gochujang – dial it to taste. A spoon of chili crisp adds a Chinese twist I have tested and enjoyed.
More rice cakes: Double the rice cakes and halve the chicken for a tteokbokki-forward plate; the sauce ratio stays the same.
Leftover sauce: The extra sauce is superb on noodles or stirred into rice – I have done both with zero regrets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use an oven instead of an air fryer? Yes – 200°C (400°F) for 15-18 minutes on a wire rack over a tray. The crust is slightly less crackling than air-fried, but close.
Do I need to thaw the chicken? No – the recipe’s whole point is no thawing. Straight from the bag to the air fryer.
What if I cannot find frozen fried chicken? Use any crispy chicken you can make – popcorn chicken, nuggets, or wings. The sauce and rice cakes do not care where the chicken came from.
Can I make this ahead? No – the glazed half softens within 15 minutes. This is a make-and-eat-immediately dish.
Is this very spicy? Mild-to-medium – the ketchup and sugar balance the gochujang. Add chili for more heat.
How to Serve
Serve the double-flavor plate immediately with cold drinks – it is snack-bar food in the best sense. It pairs naturally with other easy fried-chicken and rice dishes: honey roasted chicken wings and cola chicken wings for a wings spread, or teriyaki chicken rice bowl if someone wants a meal instead of a snack. For a truly lazy night, this plate plus a bag of air-fryer wings is dinner for four with almost no cooking.
Storage & Reheat
The dish is best eaten immediately; leftovers keep refrigerated for 1 day at most, and the glazed pieces soften regardless. Reheat in an air fryer at 190°C (375°F) for 4-5 minutes to restore some crunch – the microwave turns everything rubbery. Reheat chicken to at least 74°C (165°F). Do not freeze the finished dish; the sauce and crust both degrade. Never leave the plate out for more than 2 hours.
Allergen Notice
This recipe contains soy (light soy sauce), gluten (pre-fried chicken coating and soy sauce – check labels), and may contain sesame (garnish). It is free of nuts, eggs, and dairy, but verify your frozen chicken’s coating.
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.
About the Author & Recipe Development
I am Lin, a professional Chinese chef who spent a decade in high-volume restaurant kitchens before writing about Chinese cooking. This recipe is a confession of sorts: I love a proper from-scratch fried chicken, and I also love this twenty-minute shortcut – they are different dinners for different nights, and this one is honest about what it is. I tested the original exactly as written, kept the no-parchment rule after comparing it side by side with a parchment basket (the difference is real), and confirmed the cold-water shock for the rice cakes. I have not tested every frozen-chicken brand on the market, so your mileage may vary on the crust – but the sauce and the double-flavor trick will carry any chicken you use.
Authoritative References
USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service – Safe Temperature Chart for chicken handling and storage guidance.
Rice Cake Fried Chicken (Nian Gao Zha Ji) With Spicy Glaze
Equipment
- Air Fryer (or Oven)
- Small Pot
- Saucepan
Ingredients
For the Dish
- 2 bags frozen crispy fried chicken about 500 g / 1.1 lb
- 1 small bowl rice cakes (nian gao / tteok) about 200 g / 7 oz
- 2 tbsp Korean chili paste (gochujang) 30 ml
- 2 tbsp ketchup 30 ml
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce 30 ml
- 1 tbsp sugar 12 g
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup water 120 ml
- white sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
- Prep all the ingredients.
- The pre-cooked crispy fried chicken is perfect for lazy cooks – no thawing needed, straight into the air fryer.
- No oil spray needed – lay the chicken flat, no paper liner needed (this way it renders less oil and gets crispier).
- Air fry at 200°C for 15 minutes (oven works too).
- Golden brown, the whole kitchen smells amazing.
- While the chicken cooks, boil the rice cakes; when cooked, scoop out and rinse briefly in cold water.
- Pour the sauce into the pan and cook until small bubbles form.
- Add the rice cakes and half the crispy chicken.
- Toss until everything is coated in sauce.
- Plate and sprinkle sesame – dig in!
- Crisp outside, tender chicken inside – you can’t stop at one. The light, flavorful coating is super fragrant, two flavors to choose from.
- Besides the crispy chicken, I also keep duck wings and hand-lamb-leg pieces at home – a few minutes in the air fryer when craving, simple and convenient.
- Orange-scented duck wings: line with orange slices, arrange the wings, air fry at 200°C for 15 minutes – fragrant and gone in one plate.
- Veggie hand-lamb-leg + mashed potato: palm-sized marinated legs, satisfying to gnaw. Mashed potato: steam potato and carrot, season with salt and black pepper.
- A 30-minute Mid-Autumn feast – so convenient!
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