Firecracker buldak chicken with a molten cheese lid

The cook

1. 01

   Step 1MIX AND MARINATE

   Mix all the firecracker sauce ingredients except the water. Before adding any chicken, put half the sauce into a separate clean bowl for the skillet. Toss the remaining half with the chicken and rapeseed oil. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Prep time includes this marinating time.

2. 02

   Step 2BUILD YOUR FIRE

   Meanwhile, light lumpwood charcoal and set your kettle or kamado for two-zone cooking at roughly 220°C with the lid closed. On a kettle, bank the coals to one side. On a kamado, use a split cooking setup with a half-moon heat deflector. You need an exposed direct-grilling area and an indirect area big enough for a 26–28 cm cast-iron skillet.

3. 03

   Step 3CHAR THE CHICKEN

   Clean the cooking grate. Lift the chicken from its marinade, leaving excess behind, and grill over direct heat for 6–8 minutes, turning frequently. Work in batches if needed. Aim for dark, sticky edges rather than an all-over black crust. Move pieces to the cooler side whenever the sauce threatens to burn. The chicken will finish cooking in the skillet; discard the used marinade.

4. 04

   Step 4GET IT SAUCY

   Set the skillet on the indirect side. Add the clean reserved sauce and 100 ml water, then transfer the chicken straight into it. Stir well and spread the pieces into an even layer. Close the barbecue lid and cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring halfway through, until the sauce bubbles and coats the chicken. Add a splash of water if it starts looking sticky and dry rather than glossy.

5. 05

   Step 5CHECK THE CENTRE

   Probe several of the largest chicken pieces through their thickest part, without touching the skillet. They must reach at least 75°C. If they are not there yet, keep cooking with the barbecue lid closed and check again after a few minutes. Colour alone cannot tell you the chicken is done.

6. 06

   Step 6DROP THE CHEESE LID

   Scatter the mozzarella evenly across the chicken. Keep the skillet over indirect heat and close the barbecue lid for 5–7 minutes, until the cheese has melted into a bubbling blanket. Leave the skillet itself uncovered. You want the trapped barbecue heat melting the top without scorching the sauce underneath.

7. 07

   Step 7REST, THEN PULL

   Using proper heatproof gloves, lift the skillet onto a heatproof surface and rest for 5 minutes. That sauce is fierce in more ways than one. Scatter over the spring onions and sesame seeds, then serve while the cheese still stretches. Warn everyone that the skillet handle stays hot.