Drunken chicken
A Shanghai recipe of chicken marinated in Shaoxing wine, served cold as an appetizer with a nice cold beer.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken thighs
Marinade
- 0,5 tsp salt
- 0,3 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
- 2 tsp rice wine (Shaoxing)
- 1 spring onion
- 3 slices ginger
Chicken stock
- 500 ml water≈ 500 g
- 5 slices ginger
- 1 spring onion
- 1 star anise
- 3 red dates (optional)
- 1 tbsp goji berries (optional)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1,5 tsp salt
- 300 ml rice wine (Shaoxing)≈ 300 g
Method
Marinade
- 1Toast the Sichuan peppercorns in a pan over low heat until they begin to release their aroma (2 minutes). Set aside.
- 2Bone the chicken thighs. Reserve the bones.
- 3Use the flat of a knife to flatten the thicker parts of the chicken flesh so it ends up at an even thickness.
- 4Crush the spring onion with the flat of the knife. Set aside.
- 5Add the salt, peppercorns and the other marinade ingredients. Massage the chicken for a few moments and let it marinate for 15 minutes.
Chicken stock
- 6In a saucepan, add the bones, water, ginger, spring onions, star anise and red dates. Bring to a boil.
- 7Reduce to low heat, cook 30 minutes, stirring occasionally and skimming.
- 8Transfer to a dish and add the goji berries, salt, sugar and rice wine. Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Refrigerate.
Chicken
- 9Roll the chicken, skin facing outward, into a cylindrical shape. Wrap in aluminium foil.
- 10Steam over medium heat for 20 minutes.
- 11Prepare an ice bath: in a large container, add ice, 1 tsp salt and water. Add the chicken and let it cool completely. Wipe dry, remove the foil and place in a dish.
- 12Take the chicken stock out of the fridge and strain it over the chicken. Discard everything that was strained out, but recover the goji berries and red dates to add to the chicken. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate in the fridge for 12 hours to 3 days.
- 13Serve cold or at room temperature as an appetizer in 1 cm slices with a little marinade, goji berries, red dates and freshly sliced spring onions.
Notes
Red dates or jujubes are found at Asian grocers or online. After 15 minutes, insert a toothpick to check doneness. If the liquid that comes out is pink, the chicken isn't cooked. If it's clear, you can stop cooking. It's important to use a good-quality Shaoxing wine to avoid ending up with a bitter taste. You can adjust the stock-to-Shaoxing ratio up to 1:1 if you have a really high-quality wine. The easiest approach is to taste: if you detect any bitterness, stick to a sensible 1:2 ratio. Otherwise add more. Keep in mind that this chicken, while it has real devotees, may not suit every palate. The combination of cold meat and alcohol can be disconcerting.
