Tag Archives: Chinese

May 16, 2013

Ching He-Huang’s Yellow Bean and Honey Roast Chicken

Yellow bean and honey roast chicken

One of my favourite Chinese cooks is Ching He-Huang. I got her ‘Chinese Food In Minutes’ cookbook sent to me a few years ago when I worked on a cookery magazine and I’ve used it at least a couple of times a month. It’s a fantastic source of inspiration.

This particular recipe for Yellow Bean & Honey Roast Chicken is one of my favourites. I’m always on the look out for a new twist on the traditional roast chicken for Sunday lunch, and this one didn’t let me down.

Ching writes in her introdcutory note: ‘I love traditional roast chicken, so inspired by that and my love of Chinese ingredients, I decided to try yellow bean and honey marinade for my roast chicken, with a sprinkle of roasted ground Sichuan peppercorns for a fragrant sweet citrus numbing heat. After cooking, the leftover marinade and pan juices make a rich, savoury east-meets-west gravy.’

It sounded delicious, but I must offer a word of caution on those Sichuan peppercorns: don’t go over-the-top with them. Mine were given to me by a friend, Helena, and they are hotter than the Sun. Used sparingly, they impart a lovely background heat, but go to far, and your mouth will be as numb as if you’ve visited the dentist!

Serves 4

1 chicken, weighing approx. 1.8kg
1 tbsp ground, dry-toasted Sichuan peppercorns
1 onion, sliced
Groundnut or sunflower oil
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp cornflour, blended with 2 tbsp cold water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the marinade

6 tbsp yellow bean sauce
6 tbsp runny honey
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
5cm piece ginger, grated

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1. Wash the chicken well and pat dry with absorbent kitchen paper. Put the chicken into a large ziplock bag or freezer bag. Add the marinade ingredients and shake to coat the chicken, then leave to marinate overnight in the fridge.

2. When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 190C/Gas 5. Place the chicken breast-side up in a roasting tin. Retain the marinade. Season the chicken well with salt and half the ground Sichuan peppercorns, then stuff with the onion and brush with oil. Roast in the oven for 1 hour 20 mins, or until the juices run clear when you cut into the chicken thigh. As you can see from the photo, the skin is blackened, which is a result of the honey catching, but don’t loet that put you off: it’s delicious.

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3. To make the gravy, heat the juices in the roasting tin with the reserved marinade and 100ml water until boiling. Season with salt, pepper and the soy sauce. If you like a thicker gravy, add the cornflour mixture.

4. Serve with roasted veggies (potatoes, squash, sweet potato) and steamed asparagus or broccoli.

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April 6, 2013

Chinese Chicken Fried Rice

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The secret to making this one of the tastiest fried rice recipes I’ve ever tried is to marinate the chicken in soy sauce and Shaosing rice wine and then cook it long and slow in the slow cooker, until the meat falls off the bone. You can then use the leftover stock as a condiment to flavour the rice. 

Serves 2

3-4 chicken thighs, skin on
100ml light soy sauce (I used Amoy’s new Special Selection soy)
100ml dark soy sauce (I used Amoy)
100ml Shaosing Chinese rice wine
3 garlic cloves, chopped
Golf ball-sized piece of ginger, sliced
1 star anise
2 tbsp brown sugar
200-300g basmati or Jasmine rice, cooked in water according to packet instructions
1-2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 egg, beaten
10 mange tout, cooked in boiling water until al dente, approx 3-4 mins

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1. Marinate the chicken in the soy sauces, wine, garlic, gjnger and star anise overnight.

2. The next day, transfer the chicken and marinade to a slow cooker and cook on LOW for 3-4 hours, until the chicken is very tender and almost falling off the bone.

3. Remove from the stock and transfer to a roasting dish. Cook in the oven preheated to 180C/Gas 4 for 10 mins, to glaze the chicken. Remove from the oven. Remove the chicken from the bones and roughly chop, including the skin.

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4. Meanwhile, transfer the stock to a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Boil fiercely for a few minutes to reduce and thicken the stock.

5. Add the oil to a large frying pan and add the rice and mange tout. Stir through to coat all the grains of rice with the oil.

6. When the rice is hot, make a well in the centre and pour in the beaten egg.  Rapidly scramble with a wooden spoon, then gradually mix the egg through the rice, to coat the rice with egg, but also leaving chunks of egg.

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7. Add the chopped chicken. Drizzle over as much stock as you like to your taste. Serve in bowls.

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March 11, 2013

Cooking For Kids: Rainbow Stir-Fry with Chicken and Hoi Sin Sauce

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The way to a kid’s stomach in our house is through crunch and colour, and this Rainbow Stir-Fry hits the pot every time. You can use any vegetables you like as long as they are crunchy and, yes, colourful. I used carrots, red and yellow peppers,  and courgettes, all cut into batons, then stir-fried with ‘velveted’ chicken breast strips and Chinese Hoi Sin sauce. Serve with rice or you could use pitta pockets instead. 

Serves 3-4 children

2 chicken breasts, skinless, cut into strips
White of 1 egg
1 tsp cornflour
2 tbsp sunflower oil
2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into batons
1 courgette, topped and tailed and cut into batons
Half red pepper, deseeded and cut into batons
Half yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into batons
2 rbsp hoi sin sauce, from a jar (I used Amoy)

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To serve:

1 cup basmati rice, boiled in 2 cups water for 9-10 mins, until tender

1. In a bowl, beat the egg white and cornflour together until they form a batter. Add the chicken breast strips and set aside.  This is called ‘velveting’ which protects the chicken from getting burnt and dried out.

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2. Add 1 tbsp sunflower oil to a wok or large frying pan and heat until smoking. Remove the chicken from the egg white batter and drain off any excess. Stir-fry in the hot oil for 2-3 mins until the chicken is almost cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

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3. Wipe the pan clean and add the rest of the oil. Stir-fry the vegetable batons for a couple of minutes, then add the Hoi Sin sauce, Continue to cook for 3-4 mins until the veg starts to become tender, then return the velveted chicken to the pan. Add the Hoi Sin Sauce and cook until bubbling, approx. 2 mins.

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4. Serve on a bed of basmati rice or in pitta pockets.

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January 11, 2013

Recipe Shed: Sous Vide 50-hour Pork Belly with Chinese Spices

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Fifty hours? Fifty! Hours? Yep, fifty. In a Sous Vide water bath, set to 65C – and then left alone for a couple of days. The results are nothing short of incredible: soft, melting meat that has the texture of warm chocolate.  This recipe is about as simple as they come – though you do need a Sous Vide. Just rub a slab of pork belly with some Chinese 5-Spice powder, vac-pack it, then immerse in the water bath. Then go away for the weekend. 

At the end of the cooking time, snip open the vac-pack, pat the meat dry and then sear the skin side in a hot frying pan with a little oil.

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