← Nouns Cooking · Chinese

Ingredients

• 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken leg quarters (about 800 g)
• 1 tsp salt, for rubbing
• 4 slices Ginger
• 2 Spring onion, cut into lengths
• 1 Star anise
• 3 Dried Chinese red dates (jujubes, hong zao)
• 1 tbsp Dried goji berries
• 1 tsp salt, for the brine
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 250 ml chicken poaching liquid, cooled
• 200 ml good Shaoxing wine (huadiao)

Method

1. Rub the chicken all over with the first measure of salt and leave for 10 min while you bring a pot of water (enough to cover) to the boil with half the ginger and spring onion.
2. Lower in the chicken, return to a bare simmer, cover and cook for 15 min. Turn off the heat and leave it in the covered pot for 10 min more, until the thickest part reaches 75°C (165°F).
3. Lift the chicken into a bowl of iced water for 5 min to firm the skin, then drain and pat dry.
4. Simmer 250 ml of the poaching liquid with the remaining ginger and spring onion, star anise, red dates, goji, salt and sugar for 5 min. Cool completely, then stir in the Shaoxing wine.
5. Put the chicken in a snug container, pour over the brine so it is submerged, cover and chill for at least 12 hours, turning once.
6. Chop the chicken through the bone into bite-size pieces, arrange on a plate and spoon over a little of the cold wine brine to serve.

Tips

• The wine is not cooked off, so this dish contains alcohol and is not one for children or anyone avoiding alcohol.
• Keeps 3 days in the fridge in its brine; Shaoxing wine contains wheat.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Omnivore's Cookbook Taste of Asian Food Noob Cook