三杯鸡
Apparently a dish that's really well-known in Taiwan. I've seen this dish pop up on several different cooking shows so I was curious to give it a try. I've never had this dish at a restaurant so I'm not really sure how this dish is "supposed" to taste, but I was quite pleased with how it turned out. The signature combination of rice wine, soy sauce, and sesame oil (with sugar) makes for a delightful flavor. I have some areas to improve to fine-tune the timing of everything but I'll definitely be making this again in the future.
Active Time: 25 min
Total Time: 25 min
Ingredients
> boneless chicken thigh (1 lb)
> ginger (20g, thinly sliced)
> garlic (~15 cloves, halved)
> red onion (1/2, roughly chopped)
> scallions (3-4 stalks, chopped into ~3 inch pieces)
> (optional) red / green peppers (a little bit, roughly chopped)
> basil leaves (a lot, roughly 1 pack)
seasonings
> rice wine / sake (100g)
> soy sauce (40g)
> dark soy sauce (2g)
> sesame oil (30g)
> white pepper (a little)
> rock sugar (30g)
chicken marinade
> salt (1g)
> white pepper (1g)
> sesame oil (5g)
Instructions
1. Cut the chicken thigh into smallish pieces (~1 inch cubes). In a large bowl, add salt + white pepper and mix well. Then add the sesame oil and mix well. Set aside.
2. Fry the ginger + garlic pieces in a wok over high heat with plenty of oil until golden-brown and aromatic. Remove, drain the oil, and set aside for later.
3. Add sesame oil, heat for a bit over medium heat, then add the chicken thigh and let "sear" the chicken for ~4m, or until golden brown. DO NOT stir-fry at this time. Flip and sear the other side until golden brown.
4. Add soy sauce, rice wine, a little bit of water, white pepper, rock sugar, and fried garlic + ginger. Mix well, bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for ~5m.
5. Add red onion, scallions, and peppers (if using). Bring the heat to high, and stir-fry for a few minutes or until cooked.
6. Add basil, and stir fry a couple of times until mixed well. Serve in a hot casserole and enjoy!
Notes/Tips:
> The timing of everything is a little hand-wavy, and honestly I haven't quite got a handle on it either. My sense is that it is important to simmer the chicken for a bit to let the flavor of the rice wine permeate. But adjust as you see fit. Depending on how cooked you like your onions / peppers, you may want to add them earlier.
> Adjust according to the shape of your wok, but just a little bit of water is necessary in the simmering step. You want the liquid to reduce down to a thin sauce-like consistency at the end.
> Supposedly this is traditionally made with black sesame oil, which I also don't have so I just used regular sesame oil. I think it makes for not as nice of a color, but you can probably circumvent this by adding a touch of dark soy sauce.
> The dark soy sauce is purely for color; to improve the appearance of the chicken (which would otherwise look quite pale and unappetizing). If you have black sesame oil, you could probably achieve a similar effect with that.