← Nouns Cooking · Chinese

Ingredients

• 500 g boneless chicken thighs, cut into large bite-sized chunks
• 8 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked until soft, stems removed, halved
• 5 g Dried wood ear mushrooms, soaked and torn into pieces (optional)
• 4 Dried Chinese red dates (jujubes, hong zao), pitted and sliced (optional)
• 15 g Ginger, cut into fine matchsticks
• 1½ tbsp Oyster sauce
• 2 tsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp Shaoxing wine
• ½ tsp Sugar
• ½ tsp Salt
• ¼ tsp White pepper
• 1 tbsp Cornflour (cornstarch)
• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 tsp Toasted sesame oil
• 2 Spring onion, finely sliced

Method

1. Mix the chicken with the oyster sauce, soy sauce, wine, sugar, salt, pepper and half the ginger. Stir in the cornflour, then the oil, and leave to marinate for 30 min.
2. Squeeze the soaked mushrooms dry and mix them, plus the wood ear and dates if using, through the chicken.
3. Spread everything in a single layer on a heatproof plate that fits your steamer or wok, with the rest of the ginger scattered on top.
4. Bring the water in the steamer to a rolling boil, put the plate in, cover and steam over high heat for 15–18 min, until the chicken is opaque and reaches 75°C (165°F) in the thickest piece.
5. Lift out carefully (the plate and juices are very hot), drizzle with the sesame oil and scatter over the spring onion. Serve with rice to soak up the juices.

Tips

• A single, spread-out layer steams evenly; piled-up chicken cooks unevenly and takes far longer.
• A spoonful of the mushroom soaking water in the marinade adds even more flavour.

Sources

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

Taste of Asian Food Red House Spice